Using examples from last year, we are going to look at two big box-office forces driving change. As well as what the industry may need to consider to keep up. But first, let’s look at why this shift is significant.

Opening Weekend Importance?

With many films marketed months before their release, the opening weekend is when interest is, theoretically, at its highest, due to the prominence it has been given. Barring slow-release periods, subsequent weeks will likely see diminishing returns as other films take customers’ interest. So the opening domestic weekend is seen as the point for maximum returns. It can then set the tempo for press coverage around the film, which can drive future engagement.

However, this mindset arguably contributes to a self-fulfilling cycle. Commentators have noted that attaching negative labels to a film, e.g. “disappointment” or “bomb”, early in its theatrical life, creates a negative association that can follow a film forever. Affecting box office, and therefore future licensing and home media sales.

Nevertheless, as Stephen Galloway told Variety, “based on the cost of movies and inflation, reliance on opening weekend is Hollywood’s only strategy. There is no alternative.” But is that true?.

Word of Mouth

Cinemas have faced an uphill battle to bring in customers post-COVID. Especially when everyone knows a film will be available to stream soon after it releases. Big properties still attract crowds, but titles with little to no name recognition, especially those with big budgets, are more unpredictable. Even if they have acclaimed directors behind them. This is where word of mouth comes in. Many have theorised that current audiences are more discerning about spending a night out at the cinema, potentially due to how much it costs. Thus, they will likely wait for positive word of mouth before watching a specific film. This means it can take longer for original titles to make their mark. However, when positive word of mouth can be hugely impactful.

To analyse this claim, let’s look at two films from last year: Sinners and One Battle After Another. Both were made by acclaimed directors playing outside genres they were used to. And both had long tails at the domestic box office. 

According to Box Office Mojo, Sinners stayed in the domestic box office top 20 consistently for around 13 weeks. It also didn’t drop below half its first week’s takings until its fourth week. Which is an incredible feat. One Battle After Another, while not as successful, remained in the domestic box office charts consistently for 26 weeks. Being in the top 20 consistently for 10 weeks. Awards attention definitely kept the film in the public consciousness, but the film didn’t truly become an awards frontrunner until several weeks after its release. Meaning it stayed running because of audience interest and critical praise. Considering the average theatrical window is currently around 30-45 days, both these films demonstrated extraordinary staying power.

International Box Office

Additionally, the international box office played a big role for both movies. Sinners was already successful, pulling in around 3 times its budget domestically, but with its international takings, it became the second-highest-grossing original movie worldwide in 2025. And while One Battle After Another was an overall flop, international screenings allowed the film to make its budget back.

Keeping Up

Matt Weisbecker has said that film marketing is primarily focused on the opening weekend, with promotion dropping significantly afterwards. This is incredibly counterintuitive. There is no way that everyone can see a movie during its opening weekend. Even after months of building anticipation. Considering the long tails that are provided to movies based on positive feedback from audiences and award bodies, surely this is proof that marketing up to release is not the sole way to maximise box office returns.

More marketing materials need to be spread throughout the theatrical run to keep more eyes on the film. This can then be used to take advantage of positive word of mouth. With focus needing to be put both online and in person to drive audience interest.

Likewise, even films that underperform domestically can recoup substantial sums at the international box office, which means international marketing needs to be maintained and further prioritised. Especially since it accounts for a huge amount of Hollywood box office and can also drive further interest down the line in international markets.  

The US opening weekend is still a good data point. But considering the power that is demonstrated by international takings and word of mouth, it needs to stop being considered the make-or-break factor when it comes to judging if a movie is financially successful.

The post Word of Mouth Replacing the Opening Weekend appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Today, we are going to look at how the reception for the highest-performing IP-led titles stack up against original films. We will also analyse the potential response from Hollywood studios and what audiences should look out for.

Franchise Upset

For the purposes of this analysis, I looked at the 50 highest-grossing films of 2025 according to Box Office Mojo. Of the American-produced projects, 27 of them were sequels, spinoffs, reboots or remakes of branded projects. A further 6 were adaptations of books or games. Plus, F1 traded on the brand name for attention.

Across all these franchise and adapted projects, only 11 have a rating of 7 stars or higher on IMDb (meaning more raters view it more positively than average). 

Although these ratings are not an objective measure of quality (these ratings are vulnerable to abuse) and other review sites like Rotten Tomatoes provide differing perspectives on many of these films, the volume of the ratings from across a vast range of projects from IMDb provides a good broad look into general audience attitudes towards these films. These ratings show that these films are seen as fine but nothing special. Of course, not every film needs to be a 10/10 artful statement about the human condition. That said, when there is such a large amount of franchise releases, with so much money behind them, and only a few of them can muster higher than 7/10, it does not necessarily bode well for future engagement.

There were also some noticeable dips in the takings of established franchises. For example, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Wicked: For Good, and all of Marvel’s 2025 offerings took significantly less than prior series entries. Showing that brand names are not always infallible.

Smaller Names Doing Well  

By comparison, in the top 50, there are 5 original US films. 3 produced by a major studio (Sinners, Elio and Weapons) and 2 distributed by A24 (Materialists and Marty Supreme). Three of them being rated above 7 stars. Overall, original films had a much more consistent success rate with audiences. 

Plus, of the 5, only Elio underperformed at the box office, showcasing that original films can still bring audiences in without franchise names being needed to give them a boost.

Hollywood Morals

With movies like Sinners, Weapons and Marty Supreme dominating conversations over the past year and proving original films can still be successful financially as well as with both critics and audiences, what will Hollywood learn from the experience? Considering that a lot of coverage around two of these films has been about the possibility of sequels and spinoffs, it seems that Hollywood is still intent on turning everything into a franchise. 

Of course, Hollywood currently relies on franchises to make the money it needs to function, and it has often turned original IP into quick franchises, particularly if they’re genre films (horror, comedy, sci-fi action, etc.). Although seldom has it seemed this desperate and all-consuming.

Studios also like to react to successes by trying to capture lightning in a bottle again. Making projects that crib the style and ideas from others and reuse them constantly. Creating projects that could very well be original but are so familiar, they may as well be unofficial remakes or sequels. Just look at how Netflix “original movies” are designed to be similar to others to drive engagement.

Support Originality

Unfortunately, we can never tell what studios will decide after an original film has succeeded, and with so many films vying for our attention, it can sometimes be hard to separate the originals from the fakes. But you can still do things to minimise franchise fatigue and burnout from Hollywood’s unoriginality.

Firstly, look up a film’s director. If the director has a good track record of producing original or distinctive work, then you can at least feel somewhat safe that they will give you a whole movie before turning it into a cash cow. Second, listen to word of mouth. Look at what other people and critics are saying about something to help you know the kind of story you are dealing with. And thirdly, don’t be afraid to be more discerning with your time and money. Just because a film has a franchise name attached or is a sequel to something you liked doesn’t guarantee a good-quality project. Embrace variety and support true originals and the people who make them at the box office. The only way the studios will notice is if audiences tell them they want more originality.

The post Original Vs Franchise – How Will Hollywood Respond To The Popularity of Original Stories appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Sinners

As I write this, Sinners is 2025’s highest-grossing original film. It’s also written and directed by Ryan Coogler, one of Hollywood’s most revered and popular recent directors. That said, being popular doesn’t stop Sinners from being a cult film in the making. Like many cult films, Sinners constantly shakes things up with different genre elements. One minute it’s a 1930s gangster story crossed with a fun hangout movie, the next it’s a full-blooded horror film. All while peppering in a cast of brilliant characters, songs and musical numbers, and deep thematic topics. Such as cultural legacy, appropriation, ingrained power structures and America’s racism. Modern big-budget films are rarely this audacious. Considering Sinners’ success seemingly has studios spooked, we may not see another huge film this unique for a while. That’s why this film is destined for cult stardom. It’s too special and significant not to inspire a legion of fans.

I Saw the TV Glow 

Many cult films also speak to marginalised experiences, particularly LGBTQ+ audiences. This is where I Saw The TV Glow slots in. Its discussion of how media provides great outlets for young people to express themselves, along with its difficult but important discussion of how hard it is to break free from an identity that society expects of you and that you have internalised, holds particular resonance for trans audiences. Plus, it’s framing through a lens of 90s and early 2000s nostalgic memory and heavy psychological horror gives I Saw The TV Glow a distinct style and feeling. These elements and the film’s bittersweet message at such a horrendous time for trans people will ensure a devoted following.

Polite Society

Smaller action films are also prime targets for cult status, especially if they have an instantly iconic main character. Polite Society centres on Ria, a British-Pakistani teenager aiming to become a stunt performer. When her beloved sister, aspiring artist Lena, unexpectedly gets engaged, Ria tries to sabotage their relationship. Slowly, she discovers a dark plot involving cloning that will require all her skills to overcome. A loving ode to sisterly love, with two fantastic central characters, that surreally mixes martial arts and sci-fi trappings into a grounded family drama, Polite Society has all the right ingredients to become a fixture of playground conversations for a new generation of off-kilter action fans.

The Tales From Pandora’s Box Series 

Another proud cult film category is the so bad it’s good film. Tales From Pandora’s Box is a horror and sci-fi anthology trilogy with the same charm as The Room. The filmmaker clearly had big ideas for the stories, but a lack of budget and no care given to film production basics make the final products feel incredibly amateur. When the films feature an astounding amount of out-of-place nudity, hilariously bad dialogue, use of still images to transition between stories, the same actors popping up again and again, Windows Movie Maker transitions, and more, it’s impossible not to laugh a little. These films could definitely become Halloween roasting rituals for drunken friends.

Stopmotion

Cult films are also known for how they experiment with cinema as a medium. Stopmotion’s blend of live-action and animation is an unnervingly impressive reminder of how great smaller-budget genre films can be. Additionally, it has some hard-to-watch effects work, a layered story about the creative process and Aisling Franciosi’s outstandingly raw lead performance. While Stopmotion should be held in higher regard, it will undoubtedly become a future cult favourite.

The post Five Recent Films Poised to Become Future Cult Classics appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.