Demon Slayer Unleashes a Box Office Barrage | Weekend of September 12th, 2025

There were a couple of great surprises this past weekend, proving that September, which was anticipated to be a slower month, is anything but. The box office is thriving on the strength of good, unique content that is clearly drawing in audiences! As of today, 2025 has crossed the $6.2 Billion mark, and is up a healthy +4.2% from last year.

While Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle was expected to open at #1, it didn’t just take the crown—it obliterated the box office! Its huge $70M debut commanded a massive 43% of the weekend’s total tickets, with over 5 million sold. This is one of the biggest anime openings ever, reinforcing the immense global power of the Demon Slayer franchise.

Also new this weekend, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale landed right on expectations with $18M, good enough for #3, coming in just behind The Conjuring: Last Rites, which is still holding strong in its second week. This proves that horror continues to be a very reliable genre. Meanwhile, The Long Walk slightly outperformed predictions, a nice nod to a smaller-scale drama quietly over-delivering.

An interesting subplot of the weekend was the strength of re-releases, which collectively raked in more than $7M! Toy Story topped the list, capitalizing on the lack of new younger-skewing titles. Hamilton continued to pull in strong numbers in its second week, a testament to the fact that some stories just hit differently on the big screen, even with years of streaming availability. And The Sound of Music drew fans for a nostalgia-fueled, sing-along experience that proves classics never truly fade.

Looking Ahead: Horror and Star Power Set to Shine

This coming weekend brings a compelling mix of new releases. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, a romantic fantasy with Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie, has the star power to give it a boost at the box office.

Also debuting is Jordan Peele's Him, projected to bring in around $20M. Peele has a knack for turning high-concept horror into cultural events, and the film’s partnership with Marlon Wayans could help broaden its appeal beyond core horror fans.

Rounding out the weekend's newcomers is The Senior, an inspirational sports drama from Angel Studios. The film is expected to deliver around $4M, showcasing Angel’s successful strategy of leveraging community-driven distribution for its family-oriented fare. With these titles, September’s positive trajectory should continue, setting up a strong end to the year.

How many tickets will be sold this coming weekend? Find out on our next Cinema Ranker and follow us on LinkedIn to stay up to date with the cinema industry and The Marketing Cloud to unlock AI-driven solutions across market research, comms, creative, and media.

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