Last weekend’s top movie, DEMON SLAYER: KIMESTSU NO YAIBA INFINITY CASTLE, suffered a very predictable and massive decline in its second weekend. The anime feature went from $70.6M in its opening three days down to $17.3M this weekend, a drop of 76%. However, this was still strong enough to hold on to first place, edging out the sports horror movie HIM, which earned $13.5M in its debut.
DEMON SLAYER and HIM received very little help from the soft opening of the romantic fantasy A BIG BOLD BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY, which earned only $3.5M in its opening. The total for all movies playing in theatres this weekend was $75M, which is below the $81.8M earned last year on this same weekend, led by $25.9M from BEETLEJUICE in its third weekend.
Next weekend will be the last of the third quarter, and results should tick up with new openings from Warner Bros.’ ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, Universal’s GABBY’S DOLLHOUSE, and Lionsgate’s THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 2. In two weeks, on October 3rd, Taylor Swift will boost moviegoing when her recently announced TAYLOR SWIFT: THE OFFICIAL RELEASE PARTY OF A SHOWGIRL opens in theatres on the same day as her new album “The Life of a Showgirl” drops. Advanced ticket sales crossed $15M in the first day when they became available, and we expect it to be the top movie of that weekend.
Despite the steep decline in sales from its first to second weekends, Sony and Crunchyroll’s DEMON SLAYER: INFINITY CASTLE finished in first place again in its second weekend. After 10 days, the movie has brought in $104.7M domestically, making it the highest-grossing domestic release ever for an anime movie. The previous record holder was Warner Bros.’ Pokémon, which earned $85.7M in 1999.
This weekend’s drop was widely predicted, knowing that the earlier DEMON SLAYER films suffered similar second weekend drops of 70%, 77%, and 82% from the first to last. While the North American fan base for anime films has grown, it is still not deep enough to sustain an elevated box office after a movie’s opening weekend.
INFINITY CASTLE is Part 1 of a planned three-film series that will end the DEMON SLAYER storyline. With two other movies planned, exhibitors have two more high-grossing sequels to look forward to. Sources expect Part 2 to arrive sometime in 2026 and Part 3 in 2027. After 10 days of domestic release, the film has outperformed the three earlier DEMON SLAYER movies.
Comparing DEMON SLAYER Movies after 10 Days
With tomorrow being the first day of fall, it seems the perfect time to run out a football-themed movie. Universal did just that by releasing their psychological sports horror film HIM this weekend. Even with this strategically timed placement, HIM has started slowly, with only $13.5M in its debut weekend.
The film was created by Monkeypaw Productions, which was started in 2012 by filmmaker Jordan Peele, and has produced some of the most successful psychological horror films of the last decade. Their work includes GET OUT (2017), US (2019), and NOPE (2022), which were all directed and produced by Peele. With HIM, directing duties were assigned to Justin Tipping, best known as the filmmaker of KICKS (2016), which grossed only $150K after $10M was spent on its production.
HIM’s cast is led by Tyriq Withers (I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER from 2025) and veteran actor/comedian Marlon Wayans (RESPECT from 2023). Withers plays the protagonist Cameron “Cam” Cade, a top-tier quarterback prospect with dreams of playing in the NFL. Wayans plays Isaiah White, a legendary quarterback who becomes Cam’s mentor.
The plot follows Cam as an up-and-coming star quarterback who lives and breathes football. On the eve of the NFL scouting combine, where he expects to showcase his talents, he suffers a brain injury after an encounter with an obsessed fan, putting both his athletic future and sense of self in doubt. Just when everything seems lost, Cam gets a lifeline: his idol, Isaiah White, a legendary quarterback nearing the end of his career, offers to train him.
Isaiah invites Cam to his secluded, high-end compound, promising restoration and a path back to greatness. But as Cam’s recovery intensifies, Isaiah’s mentorship reveals a darker side. What begins as rigorous training becomes psychologically and physically disorienting.
HIM (initially titled GOAT) was a spec script written by Zack Akers and Skip Bronkie and purchased by Monkeypaw in 2022. Peele embraced the story, resonating with his previous films, which begin with seemingly normal settings where something seems slightly off and then ratchet up the psychological stress as the story unfolds, and it’s revealed that things aren’t quite what they seem.
Critics have loved all the movies that Peele has directed, but the Tipping-directed HIM is getting crushed by reviewers, who have weighed in with a lowly 29% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences are only somewhat more positive, with a 58% popcornmeter. The AP News says, “HIM starts with a promising idea – with compelling stylistic touches – but loses steam. It becomes overly symbolic, repetitive, and too confined (‘a surreal haunted house setting’) instead of showing more of the wider consequences of the sport.”
The Houston Chronicle appreciates the thematic ambitions and questions of manhood, fame, and the physical toll of sports, but feels the execution is muddled. The plot is incoherent in places, the horror elements aren’t always effective, and the conclusion is unsatisfying.
RogerEbert.com is particularly harsh, calling the film putrid, hollow, and a brain-dead football horror film. Variety was somewhat more favorable, noting that HIM succeeds at prompting thoughts about what football demands, and how hero status can warp identity. But even Variety seems to acknowledge that it doesn’t always deliver on its horror promise.
The film, like all Monkeypaw productions, was made on a tightly-controlled production budget of $27M. It needs to earn $68M globally to be profitable. After its opening weekend of $13.5 million, it will only get there if it can slough off its poor reviews and bring out audiences for several more weeks. We have chosen MONKEY MAN as a worthwhile comparison to HIM, another Monkeypaw production from 2024 that was not directed by Peele. Evidently, the Monkeypaw movies that shine brightest are the ones that Peele directs.
HIM (2025) vs. MONKEY MAN (2024)
THE CONJURING: LAST RITES from Warner Bros. finished in third place in its third weekend by selling $13.0M in new tickets. This brings its 17-day total to $151.2M domestically and $400M globally. The final movie in the immensely profitable THE CONJURING franchise has produced an impressive $7.3M to 1 ratio of worldwide gross to production budget.
We project its final tally will be $175M in North America and $450M worldwide, which would set a box office record for the franchise. Both Warner Bros. and producer James Wan should be congratulated for shepherding this series through twelve years and four successful movies.
THE CONJURING: LAST RITES vs. Earlier THE CONJURING Movies after 17 Days
Lionsgate’s THE LONG WALK finished in a tie for fourth place in its second weekend by earning $6.3M, a drop of 46% from its opening. After 10 days, its domestic total is now $22.7M. While THE LONG WALK is outperforming THE RUNNING MAN in a head-to-head comparison after ten days, after factoring in inflation over the past 38 years, Arnold’s 1987 movie takes back the lead. After a somewhat disappointing start, THE LONG WALK has no chance of generating the $133M in worldwide box office that it would need to be profitable.
THE LONG WALK (2025) vs. THE RUNNING MAN (1987) after 10 Days
Focus Features’ DOWNTON ABBEY: THE GRAND FINALE finished in a tie for fourth in its second weekend by taking in $6.3M and falling 65%. This brings its 10-day total to $31.6M in the domestic market. While its box office will be higher than the second film’s, this will still be well short of the original movie’s totals. THE GRAND FINALE was the most expensive of the three films to make, at $55M, and needs to earn at least $114M to be profitable.
This will depend on its ability to hold onto as many screens as possible over the several weeks ahead. If the box office next weekend drops at the same pace as this weekend, that will be a challenge. Three to four new titles are opening wide in each of the weeks ahead, and negotiating screentime at the Cineplex may be a challenge. If you are a fan of Downton Abbey, it would be best to make the time to get to theatres for THE GRAND FINALE within the next two weeks.
DOWNTON ABBEY: THE GRAND FINALE vs. Earlier DOWNTON ABBEY Films after 10 Days
Where Are We as of 9/18/2025
After 37 weeks, the 2025 domestic box office stands at 104% compared to the same point in 2024 and 77% compared to 2019.
