Box-Office: ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Tops With $22M; ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ $15M, Only -27%; ‘Buddy’ -2%; ‘Dog Stars’ $2M

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” remains the dominant force, with an estimated $22M over Labor Day weekend, pushing its domestic haul past $900M. The film is expected to hit roughly $922M by Monday, just $14M shy of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” a record it should blow past by next weekend to become the highest-grossing domestic movie of all time, unadjusted for inflation.

“Coyote vs. Acme,” distributed by Ketchup Entertainment, continues to show impressive staying power, grossing an estimated $15.3M over four days in its second weekend and lifting its domestic total to $37.8M. Its three-day number represents just a 27% drop from last weekend. The word is clearly out on how much fun this movie is, and that strong word-of-mouth has given it real legs. Ketchup reportedly spent $60M on acquisition and marketing, but with this kind of hold and foreign presales, the company could eventually recoup its investment. It’s also in a tight race with “The Odyssey” for #2.

Speaking of, “The Odyssey,” which briefly returned to No. 1 on Wednesday, is adding an estimated $16.4M over four days in its eighth weekend. The domestic total will reach approximately $588M, putting Christopher Nolan’s epic within striking distance of $600M.

Paramount’s “By Any Means,” starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Mark Wahlberg, opened to an estimated $8.5M over four days from 2,903 theaters. With a reported $29M budget, profitability will be an uphill climb. Reviews are mediocre at best, with a 52% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, though audiences have been considerably kinder: 87% audience score and a B+ CinemaScore.

Then there’s “Buddy,” Roadside Attractions/Saban Films’ indie horror-comedy, which is holding exceptionally well. The film grossed an estimated $5.4M over three days in its second weekend, just a 2% drop from its opening. It will have reached roughly $15M domestic by Sunday, an impressive showing for the little horror movie that could.

A tough break for A24’s “Onslaught.” The Adam Wingard-directed genre film is simply not connecting with audiences, opening to just $2.3M over four days from 1,918 theaters. The film scored a C CinemaScore and only a 33% definite recommend on PostTrak. Yikes. With a reported $15M budget, this one has a long road ahead.

And last, but certainly not least, Ridley Scott’s “The Dog Stars,” released by 20th Century, took in an estimated $3.5M over four days, plunging 64% in its second weekend. Domestic total now stands at roughly $13.8M. Puck recently reported that the film’s budget was not the trade-approved $70M, but actually $89M. If that number is accurate, Disney is looking at a very painful theatrical loss.