Garfield pounces ahead of Furiosa at the box office.

"The Garfield Movie" surged ahead, overtaking "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga" at the domestic box office. The weekend's results were not as close as last weekend, with "Garfield" securing $14 million from 4,108 theaters in its second weekend, while "Furiosa" trailed with $10.7 million from 3,864 venues.

Now, Sony's "The Garfield Movie" has grossed $51.5 million in North America and $152 million globally, marking a solid performance for its $60 million budget. "Furiosa," the fifth entry in Warner Bros. and George Miller's post-apocalyptic "Mad Max" series, has earned $49.6 million domestically and $114 million worldwide. However, with a $168 million budget, "Furiosa" has a tougher path to profitability.




Overall, it was another disappointing weekend for the box office, with ticket sales 65% lower than the same period in 2023. Revenues remain 24% behind last year and over 40% below pre-pandemic levels. Hollywood and theaters need hits to close this gap. David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research attributes this year's summer struggles to last year's dual labor strikes, which delayed many big movies to 2025 and beyond.

"This weekend is another example of a lineup disrupted by the pandemic and labor strikes," he says. "It takes 18 to 24 months to plan, produce and market the biggest movies, so it's going to take another year to get past this inconsistency. There is no way around it."

Without major new releases, holdover titles like Paramount's "IF" and Disney's "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" filled out the box office charts.

"IF," directed by John Krasinski and starring Ryan Reynolds, moved to second place with $10.8 million from 3,783 venues, just ahead of "Furiosa." After three weekends, "IF" has earned $80.4 million domestically and $138 million worldwide. With a $110 million budget, the movie needs strong staying power through the summer.


"Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" took fourth place with $8.8 million from 3,450 theaters in its fourth weekend. So far, the fourth chapter in the "Apes" reboot has earned $140 million in North America and $337 million globally. It's currently the fourth-highest-grossing movie of the year but still far behind its predecessors. The newest entry has a $160 million budget, so it needs to continue performing well to break even.



Sony/Crunchyroll's "Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle" debuted in sixth place with $3.5 million from 1,119 venues. Though anime has a dedicated following at the domestic box office, these movies perform better overseas, where "Haikyuu" has earned $75 million.


IFC's gory slasher "In a Violent Nature" opened at No. 8 with $2.1 million from 1,426 locations. The well-reviewed film, directed by Chris Nash, follows a killer targeting teenagers in the Canadian wilderness and marks the second-biggest debut for IFC Films this year.


In ninth place, Bleaker Street's "Ezra," starring Robert De Niro, Rose Byrne, and Bobby Cannavale, earned $1.18 million from 1,320 theaters. The family comedy, about a divorced stand-up comedian on a road trip with his autistic son, received mixed reviews from critics.


Credit: Deadline