Disastrous $8 Million Debut for ‘The Dog Stars’; ‘Spider-Man’ Holds No. 1 Spot for Fifth Consecutive Week
According to CinemaDrame News Agency, The Dog Stars failed to survive the late-summer heat, suffering a severe flop in its opening weekend.
The Disney and 20th Century co-production landed in fifth place, grossing just $8 million domestically from 3,330 theaters. Produced with a budget exceeding $80 million, the apocalyptic thriller failed to impress critics or audiences, earning a 40% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a C+ grade on CinemaScore.
The Dog Stars is on track to lose tens of millions of dollars over its theatrical run, marking one of the biggest box office disasters of Ridley Scott’s career. The weak debut is reminiscent of Scott’s 2021 film The Last Duel, which opened to just $4.7 million in October of that year against a nearly $100 million budget. That historical drama was also released by 20th Century, though it received significantly better critical acclaim. Best known for classics like Gladiator and Alien, Scott achieved his peak box office success in 2015 with The Martian, which grossed $630 million worldwide and earned seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.
The Dog Stars caps off a tumultuous summer for Disney. While the studio scored massive hits with Toy Story 5 ($1.12 billion) and The Devil Wears Prada 2 ($692 million), its slate also featured missteps like the live-action Moana remake ($308 million against a $250 million budget) and The Mandalorian & Grogu ($345 million against a $165 million budget). However, with Avengers: Doomsday set to hit theaters in December and guaranteed to dominate the box office, Disney is unlikely to sweat these losses.
In The Dog Stars, Jacob Elordi stars as Hig, a lone survivor in a post-apocalyptic world accompanied by his dog. After receiving a mysterious radio signal, he becomes determined to track down its source. The ensemble cast also includes Margaret Qualley, Josh Brolin, Guy Pearce, Allison Janney, and Benedict Wong.
The week’s other major newcomer, Coyote vs. Acme, took third place with an estimated $13.5 million domestic haul from 3,575 theaters. The live-action/animation hybrid had previously been shelved for a tax write-down by its original distributor, Warner Bros., sparking outrage across the film community. Ketchup Entertainment acquired the rights to the project in March 2025 and prepared it for a theatrical release.
In Coyote vs. Acme, beloved Looney Tunes character Wile E. Coyote takes the Acme Corporation to court after its products repeatedly fail in his pursuits of the Road Runner. The film stars Will Forte, Lana Condor, John Cena, Tone Bell, Martha Kelly, Luis Guzmán, P.J. Byrne, and John Early. Dave Green directed from a screenplay written by Samy Burch.
Top honors at the box office once again went to Sony and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day. The film grossed $22.2 million through Sunday, dropping just 44% from last week. The figure brings the superhero epic’s domestic total to a staggering $891 million.
Brand New Day is on the verge of shattering two major box office milestones. Once it passes $936 million, it will become the highest-grossing film of all time at the domestic box office, a record currently held by 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Beyond that threshold, Spider-Man is on track to become the first film in history to reach $1 billion in North America alone.
Universal’s The Odyssey also continued its strong run. Christopher Nolan’s Greek epic brought in $14.6 million in its seventh weekend, securing second place and bringing its North American total to $564 million.
Meanwhile, Sony’s Insidious: Beyond the Further took fourth place in its second weekend with $10.1 million (a 60% drop). That brings the horror sequel’s domestic total to $43 million—a highly successful start against its $18 million production budget.
