Without an ounce of exaggeration, we just witnessed one of the worst weekends at the box office in literal decades. If we don’t count most of 2020 when the majority of movie theaters around the world were shut down for months on end, this past weekend was arguably the worst since roughly the mid-’90s. The number one movie was the new action/comedy Novocaine, which stars Jack Quad, pulling in $8.7 million. Any weekend where you have a number one movie that makes less than $10 million, things are bad. Fortunately, there was one bright spot amidst the darkness.
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Director Oz Perkins’ The Monkey has been – somewhat quietly – doing very well for itself since it opened in theaters last month dating back to its killer opening weekend. After adding another $2.4 million domestically in its fourth weekend, NEON’s Stephen King adaptation has now pulled in $56.1 million worldwide. While it’s not a fortune by global box office standards, it’s more than good enough to turn this $10 million production into a hit. It’s also now the highest-grossing horror movie of 2025 overall.
That was, sad to say, one of the only bright spots to be found. The total domestic box office for the weekend barely cleared $50 million. Last weekend when Mickey 17 topped the charts with less than $20 million seemed bad. This is far worse. Aside from Novocaine, Focus Features also released Steven Soderbergh’s acclaimed new thriller Black Bag. Even with stars like Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett, not to mention stellar reviews, it managed just $7.5 million.
Other newcomers include The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie ($3.1 million) and The Last Supper ($2.8 million) failed to drum up much in their respective debuts. It’s all more than a little discouraging for anyone who wants to see the theatrical experience thrive in the coming years. Theaters can’t always be holding their breath waiting for the next Barbie or Marvel smash hit.
What makes this all the more frustrating is that there are quite a few people out there who loudly accuse Hollywood of having no original ideas. They beg for fewer remakes and fewer sequels. Yet, on a weekend where we have two new, acclaimed originals in theaters, along with several other original holdovers like Last Breath, it’s straight-up tumbleweeds. The family crowd didn’t turn up for a new Looney Tunes movie. Adults didn’t turn up for a sexy new thriller from Soderbergh. Answers feel hard to find right now.
Relief will likely come this upcoming weekend as Disney’s live-action Snow White hits theaters. But if critics and audiences aren’t on its side, it may only carry us for a weekend. Then what? With any luck, Blumhouse’s The Woman in the Yard will bring out horror fans en masse to help round out March on a higher note. Here’s hoping.
You can see the full list of the top ten movies at the box office for the weekend of March 7, 2025, below. For more, check out our list of underrated slasher flicks that are well worth your time.
- Novacaine – $8.7 million (first weekend)
- Mickey 17 – $7.51 million (second weekend)
- Black Bag – $7.5 million (first weekend)
- Captain America: Brave New World – $5.4 million (fifth weekend)
- The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie – $3.1 million (first weekend)
- The Last Supper – $2.8 million (first weekend)
- Paddington in Peru – $2.7 million (fifth weekend)
- Dog Man – $2.5 million (seventh weekend)
- The Monkey – $2.4 million (fourth weekend)
- Last Breath – $2.3 million (third weekend)
