After a slump at the start of the year, it looks like the domestic box office could be back on track. In fact, we may even see some records fall (the good way) this summer, if luck holds. Our entertainment lawyer from Blake & Wang P.A., Brandon Blake, takes a look at what could lie ahead for the summer season.
A Strong Memorial Day Start
We started the summer box office season with a bang, indeed. Not only did the final installment of the Mission: Impossible franchise manage a very credible first weekend, surpassing almost all of the other films in the franchise, but we saw Disney’s live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch rocket to a staggering $183M in its first weekend, demolishing several records along the way. Ironically, this puts the movie just behind the Lion King as Disney’s second-most successful live action remake, despite the original animation having flown mostly under the radar for them.
All in all, across all titles, we saw a $326M at the box office, one of the strongest Memorial Day weekends on record.
Looking Ahead to the Summer Box Office
Currently, the 2025 box office year to date is standing at $3.3B, up 22% over the same period last year. That may be a surprise for some, given the general impression that it was off to a very soft start after a pumping December holiday period!
There’s better news coming, however, or at least we hope. The first half of the year, based on release schedules, was always set to be duller than the second half. Barring an ugly surprise on one of the cornerstone upcoming releases, we should be looking at a strong end to the year.
That’s sure to be welcome news for the box office and the film industry in general. Let’s hope to have even better news to report from the latest releases as we get deeper into the final half of the year!
Film and Television 