2025 Box Office Winners and Losers: Was this year the beginning of the end for theatrical movies?
2025 may go down as a turning point for theatrical exhibition. While Netflix’s much-discussed attempt to buy Warner Bros. hasn’t gone through (yet), this felt like the year many people truly fell out of love with going to the movies.
The writing has been on the wall for some time. The pandemic fundamentally changed how audiences consume media, and the box office has yet to reclaim its pre-COVID heights. While some movies still did very well, 2025 was also defined by an unusually high number of major flops—including from studios once considered bulletproof.
Below is a breakdown of the biggest box office winners and losers of 2025.
Box Office Loser: Marvel Studios
2025 was a rough year for the formerly untouchable Marvel juggernaut.
While none of the studio’s releases misfired quite as badly as Ms. Marvel, both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts failed to break even.
Captain America: Brave New World grossed $415 million worldwide. While Disney maintains the budget was around $180 million, many industry insiders peg the true cost much higher due to extensive reshoots.
Thunderbolts earned an underwhelming $382 million worldwide against a similarly reported $180 million budget, meaning Disney likely lost a significant sum once marketing costs were factored in.
Marvel did fare somewhat better with Fantastic Four: First Steps, which made $521 million worldwide, but given a reported budget north of $200 million, profits were likely slim.
Box Office Winner: Warner Bros. and DC
Going into 2025, many believed Warner Bros. co-chairs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy were on borrowed time due to the studio’s risky slate. The failure of 2024’s Joker: Folie à Deux cast a long shadow, and things didn’t improve early in the year when Mickey 17 flopped.
Then came the rebound.
Warner Bros. and its New Line Cinema shingle delivered one hit after another, including:
A Minecraft Movie
Sinners
Final Destination: Bloodlines
Weapons
F1
The Conjuring: Last Rites
And yes—DC’s Superman, which earned $616 million worldwide.
While Superman was far from a smash (especially compared to Man of Steel, which performed much better when adjusted for inflation), it still outperformed anything Marvel released in 2025. Warner Bros. did take a loss on One Battle After Another, which is unlikely to turn a profit, but given the awards attention it’s receiving, the studio probably isn’t losing sleep over it.
The Curious Case of Disney in 2025
Disney’s year was defined by extreme highs and lows.
On the losing side:
Snow White was a disastrous reboot
Tron: Ares failed to connect
Ella McCay fizzled
Marvel continued to struggle
Yet Disney also released some of the year’s biggest hits, including:
Lilo & Stitch
Zootopia 2
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Love them or hate them, Disney still commands a massive share of the theatrical marketplace, even in a down year.
New Movie Stars Delivered Mixed Results
Hollywood remains desperate for new stars as legends like Tom Cruise age out of their primes—but 2025 showed just how unpredictable star power has become.
Glen Powell, once seen as the next Cruise after Anyone But You and Twisters, had a disastrous year. His Hulu series Chad Powers earned poor reviews (although our critic really liked it), while his big-budget Running Man remake became one of the year’s biggest flops.
Sydney Sweeney endured brutal publicity and suffered a major bomb with her boxing drama Christy, though she rebounded with The Housemaid, which performed solidly.
Ana de Armas failed to ignite a franchise with Ballerina, which largely fell flat.
Two actors, however, proved they still have genuine box office muscle:
Michael B. Jordan: Sinners, featuring Jordan in a dual role, was one of the year’s biggest hits. Since breaking out with Creed, he’s rarely missed financially.
Timothée Chalamet: Marty Supreme may have been the only prestige drama of 2025 to turn a profit, and his track record remains remarkably consistent.
Box Office Losers: Prestige Dramas
2025 was brutal for star-driven prestige dramas, with almost all of them failing theatrically.
The Smashing Machine became the biggest box office disaster of Dwayne Johnson’s career.
After the Hunt, starring Julia Roberts (who reportedly earned $20 million), grossed just $3.26 million domestically.
Kiss of the Spider Woman, starring Jennifer Lopez, fared even worse, earning only $2 million.
Even Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell couldn’t turn A Big Bold Beautiful Journey into a hit.
For adult-oriented prestige cinema, theatrical exhibition in 2025 was nearly a bloodbath.
Final Thoughts: What Were the Biggest Box Office Stories of 2025?
From Marvel’s stumble to Warner Bros.’ resurgence, Disney’s whiplash year, and the near-collapse of prestige dramas, 2025 was one of the most volatile box office years in recent memory.
What do you think were the biggest box office stories of the year?
Let us know in the comments.
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