‘Dog Man’ Runs Circles Around ‘Companion’ in Domestic Box Office Debut Find help us

This time a year ago, Apple’s Argylle sent the marketplace plummeting with its disappointing debut. But the domestic box office is eyeing around $90 million this weekend, thanks to the unexpected over-performance of Universal’s Dog Man. If one thing has become clear in the last few years, it’s that horror movies aren’t as reliable as they once were, and animated movies are still incredibly bankable. This trend unfolded in real-time this weekend, with Dog Man earning over three times as much as fellow newcomer, the horror film Companion.

Produced by Zach Cregger, who burst onto the scene with the hit film Barbarian a few years ago, Companion is written and directed by Drew Hancock. The film stars Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid, both of whom broke into the big leagues after appearing in the hit television shows Yellowjackets and The Boys, respectively. The movie earned an estimated $9.5 million in its first weekend, which could go either way. Companion opened to positive reviews, and currently holds a “fresh” 94% approval rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. Somewhat unusually for the horror genre, the movie has earned an exceptional response from audiences. It holds a 91% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as a B+ CinemaScore.

Dog Man, on the other hand, leaped to a $36 million opening weekend haul, despite minimal marketing. This marks the second-biggest January debut for an animated film, and the third number one debut in a row for DreamWorks. Based on the children’s comic book series by Dav Pilkey, the movie earned mostly positive reviews, and currently sits at a “fresh” 76% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Family audiences appear to have huge appetites, seeing as they just feasted on films such as Moana 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Mufasa: The Lion King.

Overall Business Nearly Hit the $90 Million Mark this Weekend

At number three, Mufasa earned another $6.5 million in its seventh weekend, taking its running domestic total to $230 million. What’s remarkable about the film’s run is that it made around $35 million in its first weekend, when it clashed with Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Both movies are now neck-and-neck, despite Sonic 3 having a $25 million head start after the opening weekend. The fourth spot was claimed by Sony’s comedy film One of Them Days, which made around $6 million in its second weekend. Starring Keke Palmer and SZA, the film has now made nearly $35 million domestically.

The top five list was rounded out by last weekend’s number one film, Flight Risk. Starring Mark Wahlberg and directed by Mel Gibson, the movie grossed around $5.5 million this weekend, taking its running domestic total to $20 million. Elsewhere, A Complete Unknown passed the $65 million mark, while Den of Thieves 2: Pantera neared the $35 million milestone after debuting on PVOD. Meanwhile, Steven Soderbergh‘s Presence fell by a huge 72% in its second weekend, grossing a little over $1 million.