Good ‘Novokain” cannot feel painBecause this one hurts. Paramount’s “Novocaine” Hit # 1 at the domestic cash register this weekend even though they only collected $ 8.7 million. It is the lowest sum for a movie to top the checkout this year this year, and it led an unclear weak weekend at large at the domestic cash register, where the top 10 earned only a cumulative $ 45.2 million, the worst of 2025 so far.
It comes as a surprise because no one that the box has been bleak since pandemic, but you don’t even have to go back that far to find a weekend that had a worse no. For that we see until February 9-11, 2024 when the No. 1 movie in America was Universal’s “Argylle” during its second weekend in theaters and earned only $ 6.2 million. The biggest new edition that weekend was focus features “Lisa Frankenstein”, which bombed at $ 3.6 million and yet was No. 2 for the weekend.
“Novocaine,” Howver, was a new release, where “Argylle” was in its second weekend, and the same gogg for the $ 6.9 million that the “Mean girls” Musical Made in Its Second Weekend Also in 2024. Among new release 1024. Open to only $ 8.3 Million, Beating Out “Avatar: The Way of Water” in its Ninth Weekend In Theater. “The Invitation” in August 26-28 2022 was just a $ 6.8 million opening for No. 1. According to comscore, SINCE THE START OF 2021, Six Films have Opened Below “Novocaine’s” $ 8.7 Million and Hit No. 1, Those Being “Raya and the Last Dragon,” Wrath of Man, “” Magic Mike’s Last Dance, “” The New Mutants, “” Nobody, “and” The Invitation. “
But “Invitation” arrived the last weekend in August when many films are dumped in a traditionally slow weekend at the checkout, and February can be forgiven for the same reason. “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” opened During the Super Bowl weekend And ended up adding over 1,500 screens in week 2, which reduced its second weekend.
“Novocaine” – and everything else that opened behind it – has less apology. It was a wide edition with 3,365 screens and opened in mid -March when the children start going on the spring trip and when more tent peaks generally arrive. If you want to be optimistic, you can say that four of the best 6 were original films, not sequels or based on an existing franchise. It includes “Mickey 17”, which had a steep 60 percent decrease in week 2 ($ 7.51 million), Steven Soderberghs “Black bag“($ 7.5 million) and” The Last Supper “($ 2.8 million). A24’s horror film “Opus” did not break the top 10 with just over $ 1 million gross, and although it is hardly an original movie, “The day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Toons Movie” is the first fully animated Looney Tunes movie that met theaters. It earned $ 3.17 million. Not too bad for a movie like Warner Bros. canceled and sold.
The good news for “Novocaine” is that it will almost certainly make a profit. The film was produced for just $ 18 million, quite rare for a studio film, and got a B Cinemascore, so Word of Mouth should help this movie go into week 2.
But if the audience does not show up for a slate as diverse as this one, what will they bring them to cinemas? The way that “Captain America: Brave New World” is forming, it is on the line to end during the $ 476 million merged by “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” Adult audiences have not given the time of the day to a soderbergh spy movie with Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender, a new Bong Joon Ho Sci-Fi-Head tour or a Marvel Tentpole.
Next weekend is Disney’s “Snow White”, which has been chased by people angry on it on both sides of the political spectrum. The next big IP project after that is WB’s “Minecraft movie” which opens April 4. If they do not meet, unlike “Novocaine”, everyone will feel the pain.
