SATURDAY AM: It’s a solid weekend following the Memorial Day holiday with all titles driving around $144M worth of business, +117% from the post-holiday doldrums a year ago. Let’s rejoice and take it.
No, it’s not the biggest for the post 4-day holiday during post pandemic times — that belongs to 2023 when Sony’s all-pleasing fanboy animated movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse led all titles to a $205M+ marketplace. However, out of 22 weekends in 2025, only ten of ’em have grossed north of $100M-plus. Let’s be pleased. I’m sure those novelty popcorn buckets at the circuits are still flying off counters.
Disney’s Lilo & Stitch is still on track for a $60M-$64M second weekend, Paramount’s Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning is showing that Imax makes a difference in weekend 2 with a -58% hold and $26.7M, and Sony’s Karate Kid: Legends…the studio is forecasting $21M-$23M opening off a $7.5M Friday. Rivals see it lower in the high teens, however, as we said yesterday, it boils down to Saturday business and whether that tips more families into both Karate Kid, and Lilo & Stitch toward the higher end of its range.
There is a bit of overlap between the two films demo wise, even though Lilo skews more female at 62% and Karate Kid: Legends more male at 59%. Their men under 25 demos are close (Legends is 22% to Lilo‘s 18%) and their women over 25 as well (Legends is 30% and Lilo 34%). Yes, of course, substantially more moms are taking kids to see Lilo.
Net production cost on Karate Kid: Legends was $45M before P&A. It will be interesting to see how big overseas is. The franchise was born at a time in 1984 before studios relied on overseas. With Jackie Chan in the 2010 reboot, the foreign box office on that movie edged out domestic, $182.5M to $176.5M and that’s without China, however, Japan made a great $17.4M.
Men over 25 for Karate Kid were 37% and women under 25 the lowest turnout at 11%. Best grades for the crossover comes from women over 25 with 95%. Diversity demos were 36% Caucasian, 31% Hispanic and Latino, 16% Asian American and 12% Black.
Great exits though for Karate Kid: Legends with an A- CinemaScore, the same grade as the 1986 sequel, Karate Kid II. The 2010 Chan version landed an A. Of course, the biggest reason on Screen Engine/Comscore’s PostTrak why people bought tickets to Legends is because it’s part of a franchise they love (46%). Also interesting to note that of all the moviegoers going to see Karate Kid: Legends, 68% of them said they have Netflix as their leading streaming service. That’s where Sony’s output deal is in the pay-one, and it’s also where Cobra Kai lives.
A24’s Bring Her Back after a $3.1M Friday is looking at $7M-$8M in 5th place. For horror films, especially an A24 one, which typically divides audiences, the movie, wow, landed a B+ CinemaScore. Also, four stars and 80% positive and a 57% definite recommend. High praise. Hopefully that all works in the film’s favor throughout this weekend and leg-wise. Thirty one percent of those who bought tickets said they went because it’s a Philippou twins movie, and 48% said it’s because it’s a horror movie.
Men over 25 mostly turned out at 42%, as well as women over 25 at 28%, with an even amount of men and women under 25 at 15% apiece. Diversity demos were 50% Caucasian, 23% Latino and Hispanic, 14% Black and 9% Asian American. Most influential forms of advertisement for Bring Her Back was social media at 21% per those polled by PostTrak which isn’t surprising as it’s an A24 movie, and that’s where they focus most of their P&A spend. Those polled also said buzz from friends/family was influential (15%) as well as the in-theater trailer (14%). Social media universe across TikTok, Instagram, etc. was 50M per RelishMix, which is ahead of Hereditary (44M) before opening and just under NEON’s Cuckoo (53M, $3M opening).
Positive word of mouth that RelishMix spotted included fans of the Philippou’s Talk to Me, as well as excitement over their trailer, some horror fans remarking that the movie looks like a throwback to 1989’s Pet Sematary.
A24 financed the movie for around $20M I hear, with foreign rights sold going to Sony for around $13M, I understand.
Also, as expected, Focus Features’ Wes Anderson movie, The Phoenician Scheme, is heading toward the best theater average of 2025 year to date with $95K from six NYC and LA theaters. Not as high as the director’s Asteroid City two years ago ($142,2K), but robust enough for the specialty sector post pandemic which is desparate for dollars. 3-day looks like $570K in 12th place. The Angelika in NY led all theaters with $78K yesterday where they had a premium $62 ticket that included an “Immersive Experience” and popcorn. AMC Lincoln Square did $63K, LA’s AMC Century City posted $38K, AMC The Grove a similar take, AMC Burbank $31.3K and Alamo Brooklyn was around $23K. Muy bien.
RELATED: Everything We Know About ‘The Phoenician Scheme’ So Far
Saturday numbers:
1.Lilo & Stitch (Dis) 4,410 theaters, Fri $17M (-70%) 3-day $60M-$64M (-56% to -59%), Total $277M-$281M/Wk 2
2. Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning (Par) 3,861 (+4) Fri $7.5M (-70%), 3-day $26.7M (-58%), Total $122M/Wk 2
3. Karate Kid: Legends (Sony) 3,809 theaters, Fri $7.5M, 3-day $21M-$23M/Wk 1
4. Final Destination: Bloodlines (NL) 3,134 (-389) Fri $3.1M (-43%), 3-day $11M (-43%), Total $111.9M/Wk 3
5. Bring Her Back (A24) 2,449 theaters, Fri $3.1M, 3-day $7M-$8M/Wk 1
6.) Sinners (WB) 2,138 (-494) theaters Fri $1.55M (-35%) 3-day $5.1M (-40%), Total $267M/Wk 7
7.) Thunderbolts (Dis) 2,520 (-660) theaters Fri $1.3M (-48%) 3-day $4.7M (-51%), Total $181.7M/Wk 5
8.) Friendship (A24) 1,293 (+238) theaters, Fri $780K (-56%), 3-day $2.5M (-44%), Total $12.3M/Wk 4
9.) Last Rodeo (Angel) 1995 (-210), Fri $640K (-69%), 3-day $2.25M (-59%), Total $10.8M/Wk 2
10.) The Accountant 2 (AMZ) 820 (-1182) theaters, Fri $214K (-56%) 3-day $778K (-62%), Total $65M/Wk 6
Notables:
The Phoenician Scheme (Foc) 6 theaters, Fri $270K, 3-day $570K, PTA $95K, Wk 1
FRIDAY AFTERNOON: Disney’s Lilo & Stitch is coming in right where we were seeing it — at $60M in weekend 2, -59%, at 4,410 locations. That hold is similar to that of the second weekend of Little Mermaid, which was also a Memorial Day theatrical release. Today looks like $17M for Lilo‘s second Friday, -70%. Running total for the Dean Fleischer Camp directed movie by Sunday is $277M.
From left: Ben Wang, Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio in ‘Karate Kid: Legends’
Columbia Pictures/Everett Collection
However, Sony’s Karate Kid: Legends is looking lighter than forecasts with a $20M opening after a $7M-$8M Friday that includes previews in 3,809 theaters. That would put the Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan team-up in third place behind Paramount’s second weekend of Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning, with a $7.7M second Friday and $27.3M second weekend, -57% at 3,861. That’s better than Dead Reckoning‘s second weekend decline of -65% sans Imax screens. Running total for the Christopher McQuarrie directed, Tom Cruise title by Sunday looks like $122.6M.
The anticipation is that Saturday will work in both Lilo and Karate Kid: Legends‘ favor.
Fourth is New Line’s Final Destination: Bloodlines with $2.8M today at 3,134 and a third weekend of $10M, -48%, for a running total by Sunday of $110.9M.
Fifth is A24’s Bring Her Back with $3M today (including previews), and $6M-$7M for the weekend at 2,409 sites.
Even if Karate Kid: Legends comes in less than expected, we are in far better shape than a year ago when the post Memorial Day weekend only did $66M per Box Office Mojo (there weren’t any major studio releases and Garfield Movie led with a second weekend take of $14M). The top five movies this weekend (at the high end) are already grossing north of $124M.
PREVIOUS FRIDAY AM: Sony’s Karate Kid: Legends grossed $2.3M from previews that began at 2 p.m. Thursday.
The PG-13 movie is a vortex of old school and new school: Ralph Macchio’s Daniel-san, Jackie Chan’s Mr. Han and, shhhhh, the Cobra Kai gang (I mean, is it really a secret?). Forecast for the movie is $25M-$30M in a marketplace where Disney’s Lilo & Stitch is overpowering with a potential $60M second frame. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning also is hoping to hold with those Imax screens, around $32M or less.
Critics like this Karate Kid a little less than the 2010 Chan one, 55% Rotten vs. 67% fresh. Karate Kid: Legends received 4 stars on PostTrak and a 68% definite recommend from definite audiences, 4 1/2 stars from parents and a 63 definite recommend, and kids under 12 with 4½ stars and a 79% must-see right away. Boys ages 10-12 at 64% made up the majority of the under-12 set; that demo is an essential portion of the Cobra Kai cult. Overall, men showed up at 60% last night.
Karate Kid: Legends‘ Thursday night is just ahead of the $1.9M that Sony/Alcon’s The Garfield Movie reboot made last May before a Friday of $8.4M and 3-day of $24M.
Karate Kid: Legends was made for $45M net before P&A; that’s $5M more than the 2010 version cost (unadjusted for inflation). The Karate Kid franchise is 41 years old and counts $620M at the global box office from five previous movies; the bulk of that figure is from the Chan/Jaden Smith version 15 years ago, which made $359M worldwide.
Sally Hawkins in ‘Bring Her Back’ (2025)
A24/Courtesy Everett Collection
A24’s Danny and Michael Philippou horror movie Bring Her Back made $850K in previews at 2,409 theaters that began at 4 p.m. Thursday. That figure is just under A24’s fall sleeper Heretic, which made $1.2M in previews starting at 7 p.m. before turning into a $4.3M Friday and $10.8M opening. The Philippou twins’ previous A24 movie, 2022’s Talk to Me, opened to $10.4M. A good definite-recommend from the fanboy crowd last night for Bring Her Back at 58%, with women over 25 giving the movie its best positive score at 83%. The Thursday crowd was male-heavy at 57% to female’s 43%. Women overall enjoyed it more than the guys, 83% to 77%. Go Sally Hawkins. The pre-weekend outlook is $5M-$7M. On Rotten Tomatoes, Bring Her Back has been stamped with 88% certified fresh. No audience score yet.
‘Lilo & Stitch,’ and ‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’
Disney/Paramount
Lilo & Stitch ends its first week with $217M at 4,410 theaters, after $9.2M yesterday, -9% from Wednesday. The pic’s first week is 15% behind that the $255M for Inside Out 2, which ended its run at $652.9M, and it’s 9% behind Moana 2‘s first seven days of $239.3M (final $460.4M). No, we’re not saying the movie is doing badly, we’re just trying to give you an idea of where Lilo & Stitch lives. While no one is forecasting this for Lilo & Stitch, sometimes these fan-fave Disney movies can go into overdrive, i.e. Inside Out 2 owns the best second weekend ever for a PG movie of $101.2M. And nobody saw that coming…
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning ends its first week with an estimated $95.3M at 3,857, which is 7% ahead of the first week of 2018’s Mission: Impossible – Fallout ($220.1M final domestic) and 4.7% ahead of the first seven days of 2022’s Dead Reckoning (final domestic B.O. was $172.6M).
The rest of the top 5 for the week:
3. Final Destination Bloodlines (WB/NL) 3,523 theaters, Thu $1.85M (-13% from Wed), Week $30.7M (-56%), Total $100.9M/Wk 2
It was the highest grossing of the franchise out of the gate. Nothing in its way.
4. Thunderbolts* (Dis) 3,180 theaters, Thu $765K (-10%), Wk $14.8M (-36%), Total $177M/Wk 4
5. Sinners (WB) 2,632 theaters, Thu $880k (-15%), Wk $14.06M (-37%), Total $261.8M/Wk 6
