Leonardo Di Caprio as Bob Ferguson in ‘One Battle After Another.’ A Warner Bros. Pictures Release. Photo Credit: Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.
Preview:
- ‘One Battle After Another’ is the latest Warner Bros. movie to top the box office.
- Paul Thomas Anderson’s ambitious latest stars Leonardo DiCaprio.
- ‘Gabby’s Dollhouse’ opened second.
It was certainly a gamble for Warner Bros. to back Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film –– for all the acclaim the filmmaker has accrued, he rarely opens to giant box office figures. And even with a bankable star such as Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead, a budget in excess of $130 million was always going to be tough to turn into profit.
Still, a launch of $22.4 million, enough to top the box office this weekend is certainly healthier for ‘One Battle After Another’ than some might have predicted.
“Some search for battle, others are born into it…”
Release Date: Sep 26, 2025
Run Time: 2 hr 42 min
Budget: $130,000,000
With plenty of positive reviews and good reactions from cinemagoers, it’s probably about as solid as an original, long movie with controversial themes (social justice, political violence) might have expected.
Related Article: Movie Review: ‘One Battle After Another’
How did ‘One Battle After Another’ do elsewhere?
Leonardo Di Caprio as Bob Ferguson in ‘One Battle After Another.’ A Warner Bros. Pictures Release. Photo Credit: Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.
PTA’s latest, which also stars Chase Infiniti, Teyana Taylor, Regina Hall, Benicio Del Toro and Sean Penn, also opened decently in international markets.
It opened to $26.1 million across 74 markets, making for a $48.5 million global start.
Of course, it has a long road to travel to get to profitability, but it has premium format screenings and plenty of buzz to help it build legs.
And it represents another good result for Warner Bros., which has already enjoyed success with the likes of ‘Sinners’ and ‘A Minecraft Movie’ this year.
What else happened at the box office this weekend?
Madelaine Petsch as Maya in ‘The Strangers — Chapter 2’. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate.
Second place this weekend went to the kid-friendly blend of live-action and animation that is show adaptation ‘Gabby’s Dollhouse’. The Universal movie opened to $13.5 million, and $19 million worldwide.
Horror title ‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’ clung on to third, adding $6.8 million, ahead of misfiring Renny Harlin sequel effort ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’, which landed in fourth with $5.9 million. That one at least has the advantage of only costing $8.5 million to make.
Fifth was ‘Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle’, which topped the box office last weekend, and fell, but is still earning money. It made $4.8 million, and is currently sitting at $115.9 million domestically.
Coming up next week is awards-buzzed ‘The Smashing Machine’ starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt, but ‘One Battle’ faces no real challenge to its premium screen formats until ‘Tron: Ares’ lands on October 10th and starts gobbling up IMAX locations.
(L to R) Leonardo Di Caprio and Director/Writer/Producer Paul Thomas Anderson on the set of ‘One Battle After Another.’ A Warner Bros. Pictures Release. Photo Credit: Merrick Morton.
