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‘Novocaine’ Drags Down Domestic Box Office with Dismal Weekend Performance

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1 month ago

03/16/2025

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'Novocaine' leads numbingly slow weekend at domestic box office

Despite the release of five new films this weekend, North American box office earnings are expected to hit a record low for the year. The combined ticket sales are projected to reach around $54 million, marking it as one of the weakest weekends in recent memory.

Leading the weekend’s releases was “Novocaine,” which grossed an estimated $8.7 million. The film features Jack Quaid in the role of a man who can’t feel pain, and was launched by Paramount Pictures across 3,365 theaters. Despite its promising concept, the film’s opening came in slightly below expectations.

Receiving generally positive reviews, “Novocaine” boasts an 82% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, audience responses showed a milder enthusiasm, recording a 4/5 on PostTrak and a B CinemaScore. Its international earnings added $1.8 million, pushing its total to $10.5 million for the weekend.

In a close contest for second place, “Mickey 17,” directed by Bong Joon Ho and starring Robert Pattinson, and “Black Bag,” a spy film from Steven Soderbergh featuring Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender, both reported $7.5 million in weekend earnings. “Mickey 17” remains active in 3,807 theaters, but has seen a steep decline of 60% from its opening weekend, accumulating a total of $33.3 million domestically against a budget of $118 million.

“Black Bag,” which opened in 2,705 cinemas, attracted an audience that was 56% male and 59% over the age of 35. This film currently enjoys a high approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, along with a B CinemaScore.

Other newcomers included “The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie,” which scored $3.2 million, and the faith-based drama “The Last Supper,” which garnered $2.8 million from 1,575 theaters. Both films trailed behind Disney’s “Captain America: Brave New World,” which pulled in $5.5 million during its fifth weekend.

A24’s “Opus,” which made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival, opened outside the top ten with approximately $1 million from 1,764 locations. Starring Ayo Edebiri and John Malkovich, this film focuses on a long-absent pop star making a comeback, but has received unfavorable reviews.

After a strong start to the year, marked by a 22% increase in box office performance, the industry now grapples with consecutive slow weekends that have kept total sales below $60 million. Currently, the domestic box office is operating at a 5% deficit for the year.

Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst for Comscore, commented on the current trends, emphasizing that “it’s a momentum business.” He expressed optimism about upcoming releases, including “Snow White,” which could revitalize interest in theaters. “The good news is we probably won’t see the 50s again until August,” he added.

Here are the top 10 movies by domestic box office as of this weekend: