411 Box Office Report: Avatar: Fire & Ash Snuffs 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple For Top Spot

It was another weekend of James Cameron on top as Avatar: Fire & Ash clipped 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’s wings at the box office. The Avatar threequel led the box office for its fifth straight week, taking in $13.3 million through Sunday and a projected $17.2 million through the four-day weekend. The three-day number was down 38% from last weekend’stake.

Fire & Ash now has $367.4 million domestically and $1.323 billion worldwide. That’s profitable against a $400 million production budget, even if it’s way down from the previous two films. At this point, the movie is looking as if it might close around $390 million or perhaps higher.

Meanwhile, The Bone Temple came in with more of a whimper than a zombie growl. The latest film in the 28 Days Later franchise took in just $13 million through Sunday and $15 million over four days. That’s below the $18 million to $20 million start that Sony Pictures was hoping for. It’s way below the $30 million start that 28 Years Later clocked in June of 2025.

Now in complete fairness, no one expected Bone Temple to reach its predecessor’s numbers. 28 Years Later came after an 18-year wait and was highly anticipated. Still, this is a disappointing start to the film – particularly considering how well received it was. The Bone Temple scored great reviews from critics on the whole with a 93% aggregate on Rotten Tomatoes. What’s more, those who saw it generally loved it with an 89% RT audience score and A- CinemaScore.

The biggest problem here is that Sony didn’t market it very well. The 28 Days Later franchise has always been a bit more niche than your average mainstream horror series. For perspective, 28 Days Later opened to $10.1 million in 2003 and 28 Weeks Later opened to $9.8 million in 2007. The series has always played more like an indie horror franchise; expectations merely went very high after the last film’s big numbers, and Sony seemed to be willing to coast on that film’s success in marketing this one.

The Bone Temple also had a somewhat quieter opening overseas. It added $16.2 million in 61 markets, though it scored a strong result in the UK with $4.6 million. It has $31.2 million total and will struggle to get to profit on a reported $65 million budget. It should have solid holds for horror but its end game in the US is looking to be more around $40 million, which is not great.

Zootopia 2 continues to hold onto its audience, with the Disney Animation film down just 12% to $8.8 million for the three-day and $12 million through Monday. The sequel has now amassed $393.2 million stateside and $1.707 billion worldwide, enormous numbers opposite a $150 million budget. A $400 million domestic total is now assured, and it could even top $420 million if it continues to hold well.

Speaking of good holds, The Housemaid remains the sleeper hit of the winter. Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried thriller was off just 22% to $8.5 million in its fourth weekend with $10.1 million through Sunday. That means that the film now has $108.7 million domestically and a stellar $247.3 million worldwide. It is a massive hit against a $35 million budget and should close out around $125 million or so.

Marty Supreme was able to maintain most of its audience after Timothee Chalamet’s Golden Globes win last weekend. The table tennis drama raked in another $5.5 million ($6.7 million through Monday). The film is now A24’s highest domestic grosser at $80.8 million stateside, with $94.8 million worldwide. It still has markets left to open overseas and continues fighting toward profit against its $65 million budget. It will likely close out in the states with around $90 million to $95 million.

Primate had a predictable drop in its second weekend. The bloody chimpanzee horror flick grossed $5 million over three days and $6 million over four. The three-day weekend drop was 55%, about what we would expect from a solidly reviewed horror film. The movie is looking to be in fine shape right now with $20.6 million in the US and $24.2 million with lots of major overseas markets left to go including the UK, France, Spain, Japan and Australia. It should be profitable thanks to foreign grosses and will reach around $30 million in the US. The budget was $21 million.

New Line and Warner Bros. gave The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring a 25th anniversary re-release through Fathom Events, and it came in at #7. The Peter Jackson blockbuster took in $3.5 million over three days and $4 million through Monday. That brings the film’s all-time totals to $324 million in the US and $894.1 million worldwide.

Greenland 2: Migration took a spill from its low start, slipping 60% to $3.4 million ($3.9 million through Monday). That’s not what Lionsgate was hoping for but was expected considering the low opening weekend and middling response. Remember, Lionsgate is only responsible for $10 million of the $90 million budget, but they also only have domestic distribution. Migration has totaled $14.7 million in the US and $16.8 million worldwide. The US total may make it to $20 million if it’s lucky.

Anaconda dropped 36% in its fourth weekend to score $3.2 million ($3.8 million over four days). The comedy sequel is a money maker for Sony with $59.7 million domestically and $122 million worldwide. It’s probably going to top the first Anaconda’s $65.6 million to become the highest grossing film in the series. The budget was $45 million.

The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants closed out the top 10 with $2.3 million (down 40%) in its fifth weekend and $3 million through Monday. The family comedy continues now has $67.8 million in the US and $144.9 million worldwide, good enough against its $64 million budget. It should still finish out at around $70 million stateside.

Next weekend will likely see Avatar cede #1 as it faces off with Mercy. The Amazon MGM sci fi flick is hoping for a mid-teens start. Also opening next weekend are Return to Silent Hill, looking at a single digit opening, and music drama Clicka which will also be in the low single digits.

Box Office Top Ten (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)

1. Avatar: Fire & Ash – $13.3 million ($367.4 million total, $1.323 billion WW)
2. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – $13 million ($15 million total, $31.2 million WW)
3. Zootopia 2 – $8.8 million ($393.2 million total, $1.707 billion WW)
4. The Housemaid – $8.5 million ($108.7 million total, $247.3 million WW)
5. Marty Supreme – $5.5 million ($80.8 million total, $94.8 million WW)
6. Primate – $5 million ($20.6 million total, $24.2 million WW)
7. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – $3.5 million ($324 million total, $894.1 million WW)
8. Greenland 2: Migration – $3.4 million ($14.7 million total, $16.8.5 million WW)
9. Anaconda – $3.2 million ($59.7 million total, $122 million WW)
10. The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants – $2.3 million ($67.8 million total, $144.9 million WW)