‘Coyote Vs. Acme’ Pulls Off a Miracle Box Office Comeback While ‘The Dog Stars’ Flops
Weekend box office charts rarely tell a story as unlikely as the one currently playing out in multiplexes. Between a superhero juggernaut still rewriting the record books, an animated underdog that nearly never saw daylight, and a star-studded thriller struggling to find an audience, this particular frame has become one of the more fascinating snapshots of the year.
At the top of the pile remains ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ which continues its historic run in a commanding number-one position. The Tom Holland-led blockbuster is now closing in on the $900 million domestic mark, a milestone that would make it the fastest film ever to reach that figure, and it’s projected to add roughly $20 million to $21 million more in its fifth weekend alone.
Right behind it sits the real surprise of the frame. ‘Coyote vs. Acme,’ the long-shelved Warner Bros. Looney Tunes hybrid that once seemed destined for a tax write-off rather than a theatrical release, finally opened this weekend to an estimated $14 million domestically, putting it in close contention for second place against Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey.’
That number represents a record-breaking debut for Ketchup Entertainment, the small indie distributor that rescued the film from Warner Bros. Discovery’s vault for a reported $50 million after years of fan backlash over its original cancellation. It more than quadrupled the previous high mark for the studio, set by 2024’s ‘The Day the Earth Blew Up,’ which opened to just $3.1 million.
Audiences have responded with genuine enthusiasm to match the underdog narrative. ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ earned an A CinemaScore along with a 93% positive score and an 82% definite recommend rating on PostTrak, backed by a stellar 95% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, numbers that suggest the film’s turbulent path to release hasn’t hurt its reception one bit.
Director Dave Green marked the release by directly thanking the fans whose sustained campaign helped save the film from oblivion, telling those supporters, “We won.” The film stars Will Forte as a struggling attorney representing Wile E. Coyote in a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the faulty products that have repeatedly injured him, with John Cena, Lana Condor and Eric Bauza rounding out the voice and live-action cast.
The weekend’s clearer disappointment belongs to ‘The Dog Stars,’ Ridley Scott’s post-apocalyptic thriller led by Jacob Elordi. Despite its starry pedigree and high-profile director, the film is tracking to open with just $8 million domestically, landing in fifth place and trailing well behind the modestly budgeted ‘Coyote vs. Acme.’
Reception has been lukewarm at best, with the film earning a C-plus CinemaScore, a 65% positive score, and a rough 41% definite recommend rating on PostTrak. Those figures place it among the weaker openings of Scott’s recent career, drawing comparisons to other troubled awards-adjacent misfires that failed to connect with mainstream audiences despite starry casts.
Taken together, the weekend paints a vivid picture of how unpredictable box office fortunes can be. A record-setting superhero sequel, a scrappy animated comeback story, and a big-budget disappointment are all sharing multiplex real estate at once, proving star power and studio backing still don’t guarantee a win.
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