Taylor Swift simply cannot be stopped. Almost two years after “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” took in $261 million at the global box office, the pop superstar returned to theaters this weekend with “Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl.” Not a concert film, not a documentary. “Showgirl” consisted of a music video premiere, behind-the-scenes video of her creative process, and lyric videos for her new album, “The Life of a Showgirl.” Yes, lyric videos. Her fans didn’t care as the 89-minute-long release took in $33 million in the U.S. and $46 million worldwide.
At publication, “Showgirl” is still scheduled as a one-weekend event. That’s good news for the remaining films in the marketplace that may or may not have felt the brunt of Swifties’ purchasing power. Considering “Showgirl” earned an A+ Cinemascore, it’s somewhat surprising it’s not at least playing in theaters for the full week. Perhaps that will change.
The other new release this weekend was Benny Safdie’s “The Smashing Machine.” Safdie took the Best Director prize at the Venice Film Festival, and stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt have earned praise for their performances. Whether it was through marketing or simply the movie itself, there was a disconnect with viewers. Chronicling the real-life story of mixed-martial artist Mark Kerr, what was seen as an easy $20+ million debut turned into a disappointing $6 million opening domestically. It cost a reported $50 million. Even with A24 pre-selling most of its international markets, breaking anywhere close to even is going to be tough for the mini-major.
Not only did Johnson have a streak of 11 straight movies in theaters to open over $20 million, but 11 straight movies to open at No. 1. “Smashing” didn’t come anywhere close. It also earned a surprisingly low B- CinemaScore. Did the movie not resonate with Johnson’s fanbase? Is UFC-fighting too hard a sell in theaters? A24 will have a chance to turn its mojo around when Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme,” starring Timothee Chalamet, arrives in theaters at Christmas (it’s also reportedly a New York Film Festival sneak on Monday night).
Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” didn’t have an amazing hold, but it had a very good one, dropping just 49% to another $11.1 million for $42.7 million domestic. The Warner Bros. release is actually performing even better overseas with $58 million so far. Globally, “Another” has earned $101 million. It reportedly cost anywhere between $140 million and $175 million, depending on who you want to believe.
There were two re-releases this weekend as James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” landed in 2,140 screens and took in $3.1 million. Universal Pictures brought 1995’s “Casper” back to theaters, where it $750,000 on 1100 screens.
IFC released the critically acclaimed horror thriller “Good Boy” in 1,650 theaters, where it ate up $2.25 million for a very good $1,365 per screen. This is the second biggest opening in IFC’s history after “Late Night with the Devil “debuted to $2.8 million in March 2024.
Focus Features dropped Ronan Day-Lewis’ “Anemone” in 865 theaters for $700,000 or an OK $809 per screen. Daniel Day-Lewis’ return to the big screen was expected to fare better overseas. UK and Irish returns were unavailable at posting.
On Friday, “Tron: Ares,” “Roofman,” “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” and “Soul on Fire” are all dropping in some form of wide release.
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Editor-at-Large Gregory Ellwood is one of the entertainment industry's most respected journalists and critics. Based in Los Angeles, he's the only current awards expert who previously worked on Oscar campaigns at a major movie studio. Over the years, he has written for the LA Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Vox, among others. He also co-founded the entertainment news site HitFix, which spawned a legion of influential Emmy and WGA Award-winning alumni.
