The specialty business showed real muscle this weekend, with indie and mid-tier releases taking five of the top 10 domestic box office slots. The mix included a third-weekend horror-comedy expanding its fan footprint, a wide Angel Studios drama, and two new titles cracking the top 10.
Buddy keeps compounding
Roadside Attractions and Saban Films’ R-rated horror-comedy Buddy added $3.5 million in its third weekend across 1,719 screens, landing at No. 6. Its domestic cume now stands at an estimated $21.2 million after a 39% drop. That makes it Roadside’s fifth highest-grossing film and its strongest box office performer since Covid, per the report.
The film centers on kids in a ’90s-style retro television show who push back against their orange unicorn host, voiced by Keegan-Michael Key. More than 1 million TikTok followers are tracking the film, and Roadside says it is hearing anecdotal reports of moviegoers returning three or four times and bringing new audiences with them. A weekend fan event at Sepulveda Tattoo in Duarte drew a crowd for a meet-up and a free, exclusive Buddy tattoo designed by Hunter Chao.
New releases land
Angel Studios’ Runner, starring Alan Ritchson and Owen Wilson, opened at No. 4 with $6.67 million from 2,568 screens. The company pointed to an A- CinemaScore and described the release as a “significant theatrical milestone,” following the summer run of Young Washington, which reached $47 million.
Neon’s South Korean monster film Hope took No. 8 with $3.3 million from 1,560 theaters, pushing its cume to $5 million since Wednesday. Focus Features’ Andrew Garfield-led The Uprising was close behind at No. 9 with $3.2 million from 2,068 locations.
Specialty data points
- Coyote vs. Acme – $6.23 million weekend, $47.8 million cume from 3,355 locations.
- Tony – $497k in week six, $14.7 million cume from 380 screens.
- Onslaught – $278k in week two, $3 million cume from 1,252 screens.
- Hanuman Ansh – $740k debut from 200 locations.
Limiteds show demand
Rich Spirit’s If I Go Will They Miss Me, starring Danielle Brooks and J Alphonse Nicholson, opened exclusively at AMC Century City in Los Angeles to $42,250 with multiple sellouts and added showtimes. That is the second-highest solo engagement opening of the year behind Magnolia’s Maddie’s Secret at $58k. It expands to 250 theaters next week.
Watermelon Pictures’ documentary American Doctor passed $400k after a $66.2k fifth weekend on 65 screens. Disney’s event release Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger opened to $1.435 million from 1,225 theaters.
For buyers and exhibitors, the signal is clear: a well-targeted specialty title can hold screens and convert social followings into repeat attendance, even against wider studio fare.
Source: Deadline
