Weapons Reclaims Top Box Office Spot, Steven Spielberg's Re-Released Classic Beats 3 New Movies

Weapons is back on top. Zach Cregger’s new horror movie is a runaway hit, having recently become the 20th highest-grossing horror movie ever at the domestic box office. After it debuted on August 8, it held No. 1 on the domestic chart for two consecutive weekends before being knocked to No. 2 by KPop Demon Hunters.

Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters, which was given a brief sing-along release after smashing streaming records (it is now the No. 1 most-watched movie in history on the streamer), is no longer in theaters, allowing 2025’s Weapons the opportunity to climb back to No. 1. However, it was not guaranteed to top the chart during its fourth weekend.

The horror movie is facing off against a number of new releases, including Darren Aronofsky’s Austin Butler-led crime movie Caught Stealing, the comedy remake The Roses, the Troma remake The Toxic Avenger, and the 50th anniversary re-release of Jaws. On Friday morning, Caught Stealing was projected to be neck and neck with Weapons.

Per Variety, as of Satuday morning, Weapons is now projected to return to the top of the chart at the domestic box office. With an estimated 4-day total of $11.8 million, it is tracking far ahead of the adjusted debut projections of Caught Stealing, which has a 4-day estimate of $9.5 million.

Caught Stealing is nevertheless tracking ahead of The Roses, which is projected to hit just over $7 million. Both movies could very well fall behind Jaws. The Steven Spielberg classic is expected to add $9.7 million to its all-time total over the 4-day weekend. Meanwhile, The Toxic Avenger is not expected to debut in the Top 10 at all.

What This Means For Weapons

This weekend marks a reversal of fortune for Weapons after Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters slayed it at the box office. During its third frame, the Zach Cregger horror movie was thwarted from hitting No. 1 for three consecutive weekends, which would have broken a record for a 2025 horror movie.

However, by reclaiming the No. 1 тιтle, Weapons is now the first horror movie of the year to top the domestic box office chart on three weekends in general. It has now surpᴀssed the record held by Ryan Coogler’s smash hit Sinners, which was No. 1 for two consecutive weekends before being knocked down by Marvel’s Thunderbolts*.

While the current trajectory of Weapons shows that it is unlikely to surpᴀss the domestic haul of Sinners ($278.6 million), as of Labor Day, its expected cumulative domestic gross of $134 million will see it drawing close to outgrossing Final Destination Bloodlines ($138.1 million) and becoming the second highest-grossing domestic horror movie of the year.

Our Take On The Weekend Box Office

Austin Butler as Hank Thompson sitting down exhausted in Caught Stealing

Ultimately, Weapons has thrived on the chart because there has been a dearth of new releases that have been connecting with audiences during the second half of August. However, that is most likely about to change with the release of the upcoming The Conjuring: Last Rites on September 5.

Last Rites, which will be the end of the current phase of the Conjuring Universe, will almost certainly debut at No. 1, most likely ending Weapons‘ reign on top of the domestic chart for good. However, it will maintain the horror genre’s dominance over the box office for yet another week ahead of the kickoff of the Halloween season.

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