4 minBusiness
«Coyote vs. Acme» Opens Strong After Warner Bros. Reversal
Three years after Warner Bros. shelved the completed film for a tax write-off, «Coyote vs. Acme» debuted with an estimated $15.5 million at the North American box office, ranking second behind «Spider-Man: Brand New Day».
Three years after Warner Bros. abruptly shelved the completed film for a tax write-off, «Coyote vs. Acme» finally reached theaters with an estimated $15.5 million in ticket sales over the weekend, placing second at the North American box office. The Looney Tunes hybrid feature, acquired by indie distributor Ketchup Entertainment after a public outcry, marked the company’s best opening ever.
«Spider-Man: Brand New Day» topped the charts for the fifth consecutive weekend, grossing $22.2 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to studio estimates released Sunday. The film’s worldwide total now stands at $2.33 billion, making it the fourth highest-grossing movie of all time.
«Coyote vs. Acme» fared best among the weekend’s newcomers. The film, directed by Dave Green and starring Will Forte, John Cena, Lana Condor, and Eric Bauza, follows Wile E. Coyote as he sues the Acme Corporation over its faulty products. Based on an Ian Frazier «Shouts and Murmurs» column from The New Yorker, the movie blends live action and animation and cost $70 million to produce.
Warner Bros. originally produced the film for its streaming service, HBO Max, but canceled any release in 2023 to take a tax write-off. The studio also shelved «Batgirl» and «Scoob! Holiday Haunt,» both of which remain unreleased. Despite strong test screening scores, the company opted to abandon the completed picture. After public backlash, Warner Bros. put the film up for sale, and Ketchup Entertainment acquired worldwide distribution rights for about $50 million early last year.
For the filmmakers, simply getting the movie into theaters was a victory. «Coyote vs. Acme is finally, gloriously, in theaters now,» Green wrote on social media Friday. «Which means one thing. WE WON.»
Audiences and critics responded favorably. Moviegoers gave the film an «A» CinemaScore, and it holds a 95% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While a $15.5 million opening might be modest for a $70 million production, it set a record for Ketchup Entertainment, whose previous high was the $3.1 million debut of 2024’s «The Day the Earth Blew Up,» another Warner-made Looney Tunes castoff.
«The box office numbers are fair, but the reception is excellent and the release should set up good ancillary business for kids’ viewing, where the film should recoup its investment,» said David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe.
Elsewhere in the top five, «The Odyssey» slid to third place in its seventh weekend with $14.3 million domestically. The Christopher Nolan film remains unusually strong overseas, grossing $48.6 million over the weekend and bringing its global total to $1.55 billion for Universal Pictures. The Ridley Scott action drama «The Dog Stars,» starring Jacob Elordi, flopped in fifth place with $8 million domestically and $11.3 million overseas, a poor result for a film that cost between $70 million and $100 million.
The weekend’s top 10 domestic grosses, based on estimated ticket sales from Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, were led by «Spider-Man: Brand New Day» at $22.2 million, followed by «Coyote vs. Acme» at $15.5 million, «The Odyssey» at $14.3 million, «Insidious: Out of the Further» at $10.1 million, «The Dog Stars» at $8 million, «Buddy» at $5.4 million, «The End of Oak Street» at $5 million, «PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie» at $4.9 million, «Mutiny» at $2.8 million, and «Tony» at $2.2 million.
