‘Street Fighter’s’ Weak Pre-Sales Have Trackers Bracing for a Masters of the Universe-Sized Box Office Bomb
Video game movies have had an inconsistent track record at the box office, with every new fighting-game adaptation carrying the weight of two prior failed attempts. Paramount’s upcoming ‘Street Fighter’ reboot arrives with that history looming large, since both the 1994 film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raúl Juliá and 2009’s ‘Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li’ struggled to connect with audiences.
This new version has already had a bumpy road of its own, having originally been set up at Sony for a March 2026 release before moving to Paramount and landing its current October slot. Directed by Kitao Sakurai, who stepped in after Danny and Michael Philippou exited the project in 2024, the film is betting on a PG-13 rating and a colorful 1990s-set ensemble to finally win over the fanbase two previous adaptations couldn’t reach.
That gamble is now facing its first real test at the box office. Presale tracking for ‘Street Fighter’ has come in noticeably softer than hoped, with early data showing the film opening stronger than ‘Masters of the Universe,’ which debuted to $29.3 million, but weaker than ‘Mortal Kombat II,’ which opened to $38.5 million. Current projections have ‘Street Fighter’ heading toward a domestic debut somewhere between $30 million and $37 million.
The softer pre-sale numbers follow weeks of declining audience awareness metrics for the film. Tracking from The Quorum, which polls everyday moviegoers on both awareness and interest every two weeks, showed ‘Street Fighter’ falling to 39 percent awareness, down 7 points, and 39 percent interest, down 5 points, ahead of its release. No other film on that chart lost more ground in either category during the same period, and notably, those exact 39 and 39 numbers mirror almost precisely where ‘Masters of the Universe’ sat on the same tracking chart before it opened to $29.3 million and ultimately stalled around $113 million worldwide against a production budget reported north of $170 million.
STREET FIGHTER, Paramount’s last hope to ignite its box office this year, had weak first days of pre-sales.
— Global Box Office (@GlobalBoxOffice) September 24, 2026
Its domestic sales started better than MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE ($29M opening) but weaker than MORTAL KOMBAT 2 ($38M).
Heading to a $30M–$37M domestic debut. pic.twitter.com/M3rw1F7p9v
Paramount and Legendary aren’t sitting back and hoping word of mouth carries the film. The studios are hosting a “Bonus Round” fan event on October 15, the night before release, playing exclusively in IMAX and premium formats with early showtimes starting at 2:00 PM, and every ticket holder receiving a collector’s art print as an added incentive.
‘Street Fighter’ brings together a cast blending traditional Hollywood actors with wrestling and music stars, led by Andrew Koji as Ryu, Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, and Callina Liang as Chun-Li. David Dastmalchian rounds out the core cast as the villainous M. Bison, while Jason Momoa, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, 50 Cent, and Orville Peck fill out the extended roster as Blanka, Akuma, Guile, Balrog, and Vega respectively.
Set in 1993, the story follows Ryu and Ken as they’re recruited by Chun-Li to enter the World Warrior Tournament, only to discover a conspiracy tied to Bison waiting beneath the surface. The film releases in IMAX and RealD 3D on October 16, giving Paramount just under three weeks to close the awareness gap before opening weekend arrives.
PERFECT! Watch the New Trailer for Street Fighter, hitting theaters everywhere October 16. pic.twitter.com/jAAPf1k9jf
— Street Fighter Movie (@Street_Fighter) September 1, 2026
Whether that stacked cast and last-minute promotional push can meaningfully shift the film’s trajectory remains an open question, especially with genre comparisons like ‘Mortal Kombat II’ still fresh in trackers’ minds. For a studio hoping ‘Street Fighter’ becomes its box office spark for the back half of the year, the early numbers suggest a much tougher fight than anticipated.
Can Street Fighter turn its box office outlook around?
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