Firstly, James Cameron is yet again king of the world as his “Avatar: Fire & Ash” pulled in $89M, and has now earned $220M domestically in just 10 days. Overseas, the results are even stronger with the film having hit $760M worldwide.
Yet, an even bigger story, at least in these neck of the woods, is Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme” which has grossed nearly $30M since Christmas Day. That’s quite the tally for a non-IP film that's playing on 2600+ screens. It even handily beat “Anaconda” ($21M).
With a reported $90M budget, and a strong marketing campaign, which included 50% of polled moviegoers admitting they bought a ticket because of Timothee Chalamet’s involvement, ‘Marty’ is a film that might potentially have some legs behind it. A handful of Oscar nominations are in store for it, including best picture.
Meanwhile, is there really any doubt left that Chalamet is a true A-lister who can sell tickets on name recognition alone? Unlike some actors still labeled A-list whose appeal has largely played out on social media rather than at the box office (Pedro Pascal, Paul Mescal), Chalamet has repeatedly proven he can back up the hype.
‘Marty’ cements Chalamet as one of the true young Hollywood A-listers, an actor who can drive ticket sales simply by having his name on the poster. The marketing campaign for this one has been intense—the kind of all-out, balls-to-the-wall effort that’s entertaining to watch—yet it still left some skeptical about the film’s box office prospects. Chalamet has now proven his doubters wrong.
This is Chalamet’s third consecutive Christmas hit at the box office, a consecutive streak that began with 2023’s “Wonka” and continued with 2024’s Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.” “Marty Supreme,” a ping pong epic, the riskiest of the three projects, has extended his winning streak in immense fashion.
Chalamet is set to return to theaters around this time next year—assuming Warner Bros. holds to the December 19 release for “Dune: Part Three,” a date that currently puts it head-to-head with Marvel’s “Avengers: Doomsday.” If anything, Chalamet’s string of Christmas-season wins only strengthens the case for Warners to keep the date exactly where it is.
It’s worth noting that, between the floods in California and the massive snowstorm in New York, this weekend’s numbers for ‘Avatar’ and ‘Marty’ could have been significantly higher. With no new releases scheduled for next Friday, both films have the opportunity to post strong holds.