Warner Bros. makes history with 7 straight $40M+ openers

Warner Bros. has made box office history by becoming the first Hollywood studio to achieve seven consecutive films opening above $40 million domestically, with "The Conjuring: Last Rites" delivering an $83 million debut that exceeded analyst expectations by $33 millioncnn+1.
The horror sequel earned $187 million globally and achieved the third-highest domestic opening for a horror film in history, behind only "It" and "It: Chapter Two," while setting a new record for the largest international horror opening ever with $104 million from 66 marketsfortune+1.
This unprecedented streak began with "A Minecraft Movie" in April and continued through "Sinners," "Final Destination Bloodlines," "F1: The Movie," "Superman," "Weapons," and now "Last Rites," propelling Warner Bros. to global box office leadership with $3.77 billion worldwide in 2025imdb+1.
The remarkable turnaround comes after studio executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy nearly faced dismissal earlier this year following disappointing performances from "Joker: Folie à Deux," "Mickey 17," and "The Alto Knights"slashfilm.
Warner Bros. now leads all studios in 2025 domestic market share at 26.98% with $1.53 billion, narrowly ahead of Disney's 25.73%, while "Last Rites" helped push the horror genre past $1 billion domestically for the yearfortune+1.

Warner Bros. WBD has made box office history by becoming the first studio to achieve seven consecutive films opening above $40 million domestically, with "The Conjuring: Last Rites" extending an unprecedented streak that has propelled the studio to global leadership with $3.77 billion worldwide.

"The Conjuring: Last Rites" exceeded all expectations over the weekend, earning $83 million domestically and $187 million globally. The horror sequel, directed by Michael Chaves and starring Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, delivered the franchise's largest opening weekend and marked the third-highest domestic horror opening in history, trailing only "It" and "It: Chapter Two".cnn+2

Breaking Records and Defying Expectations

The performance of "Last Rites" solidified Warner Bros.' historic achievement as no other studio has matched this level of consistency at the box office. According to Variety, the streak began with "A Minecraft Movie" in April ($162 million), followed by "Sinners" ($48 million), "Final Destination Bloodlines" ($51.6 million), "F1: The Movie" ($57 million), "Superman" ($125 million), "Weapons" ($43.5 million), and now "The Conjuring: Last Rites".imdb

Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, highlighted the horror genre's strength in 2025, noting that "Last Rites" helped push horror films past $1 billion domestically for the year. The film achieved the largest international horror opening ever with $104 million from 66 markets, surpassing Warner Bros.' own "It Chapter 2".cnn+1

From Near-Disaster to Industry Leadership

This remarkable turnaround comes after Warner Bros. Pictures co-heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy faced potential dismissal earlier this year. According to Bloomberg reports from March 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was interviewing potential replacements following disappointing performances from "Joker: Folie à Deux," "Mickey 17," and "The Alto Knights".slashfilm

The studio's resurgence began with "A Minecraft Movie" breaking video game adaptation records, ultimately grossing $955 million worldwide. This success initiated an unbroken streak that has now established Warner Bros. as the top global distributor for 2025, with $3.77 billion worldwide including $1.74 billion domestically and $2.04 billion internationally.slashfilm+1

Market Dominance and Future Outlook

Warner Bros. currently leads all studios in 2025 market share at 26.98% with $1.53 billion domestically, narrowly ahead of Disney's 25.73% and $1.46 billion. The studio's success has been driven by a strategic mix of original content and established franchises, with three of its seven consecutive hits being original films including "Sinners," "F1: The Movie," and "Weapons".the-numbers+1

Looking ahead, the studio's momentum faces its next test with Paul Thomas Anderson's "One Battle After Another" and "Mortal Kombat II" scheduled for later this year. Industry observers note that while the streak will inevitably end, De Luca and Abdy have orchestrated one of the most impressive box office runs in the post-pandemic era.slashfilm

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