Theater owners waited a long while for a robust and reliable release schedule, for a variety of films at the box office to attract more moviegoers and hopefully keep them coming back. Mission accomplished again this weekend where there’s something for everyone from kids fare to comedy to superheroes to Neon’s Together, an original horror, the first feature by Michael Shanks, and the sole independent film in an otherwise big studio-dominated top ten.
Together premiered at Sundance and Neon has been riding a wave of strong reviews ever since with a first teaser in February and stream of well received early access screenings. The distributor orchestrated a rare non-holiday Wednesday opening in the hope of generating buzz heading into the weekend, and it worked. The film opened to about $10.9 million and a no. 6 spot at the domestic box office on 2,302 screens.
“It’s very exciting that the studios are out there bringing great titles and filling theaters. As a result, this summer, as an independent, you have to be very intentional about the film you’re releasing and its marketing campaign. You have to put spend behind; you need to be creative and make audiences understand why this is the one that they want to go see this weekend,” says Neon’s Chief Distribution Officer Elissa Federoff.
Together follows terrific run for A24’s Materialists, a romcom when the word’s been that they aren’t really working. Both films — horror and romcom on their face — deliver an edgier punch and speak to more. Horror became such a reliable money maker post-Covid that it became oversaturated and now more than ever requires strong storytelling and careful handling. That goes for indies and studios alike, with box office successes Sinners and Final Destination: Bloodlines both extremely well reviewed.
Dave Franco and Alison Brie, married in real life, star as a couple years into their relationship who find themselves at a crossroads as they move to the country, abandoning all that is familiar in their lives except each other. With tensions already flaring – reads the log line — a nightmarish encounter with a mysterious, unnatural force threatens to corrupt their lives, their love, and their flesh.
It’s Neon’s latest horror success after hit Longlegs last summer and The Monkey in February, both with director Osgood Perkins, and Sidney Sweeney-starring Immaculate in the spring of 2024. Upcoming, the distrib has Chris Stuckman’s debut Shelby Oaks debuting in October, and Keeper, its third with Osgood Perkins, in November.
Social marketing includes Together celeb couple Instagram posts featuring celebrity couples displaying various forms of PDA — Kylie and Timothée’s courtside at the Knick’s game, Bezos and Sanchez’s pre-wedding kiss on the Venice canals, Paul Mescal and Gracie Abrams caught kissing — to reframe them through the lens of Together’s themes of toxic codependency. This social series helped extend the film’s reach beyond traditional horror and Neon audiences.
Free Couples Therapy Stunt — Traumatized By Together? Anyone who sees the film this weekend can upload a photo of their ticket to the couples therapy service OurRitual for a free session. Those who continue after their first session will receive an additional 20% discount.
Together Forever “Propose and We Pay” Stunt” — Neon is offering to cover a Las Vegas wedding for one couple that gets engaged inside or outside a movie theater and tags @Together.Movie in the post with the following caption and hashtag: TOGETHER FOREVER.
Dave & Alison Talk Together while playing with rats — a motif in the film — instead of puppies.
Merch Pop Up (8/9) – Neon will host a merch pop-up for superfans and collectors with exclusive shirts, collectibles, plushies and limited-edition screen prints signed by Dave & Alison.
Other indie openings: CatVideoFest 2025 racked up an impressive $460k at just under 200 locations with sold out screenings in dozens of markets — the strongest opening in the kitty compilation’s seven-year history with Oscilloscope. That’s with limited overall shows in the usually harder to fill matinee slots. The film played to capacity across scores of theaters.
“Collectively, we set out to make this year’s edition even bigger, and after months of diligent preparations and punny promotions we’re extremely pleased with how the hard work translated into this weekend’s numbers,” Oscilloscope said.
A portion of box office goes to local cats in need and showings have raised nearly $100k over the past three days for local charities, animal welfare organizations and shelters.
Australia and New Zealand also opened to exceedingly strong numbers with the film placing in the top ten in both markets.
Expands nationally and into select international markets throughout August and September.
Boris Lojkine’s Cannes Prize-winner Souleymane’s Story from Kino Lorber grossed $11.5k at Film at Lincoln Center and IFC Center in NYC.
Holdovers: Sophie Brooks’ Oh, Hi! from Sony Pictures Classics grossed $200.8k in week 2 on 323 screens (last week 866) for a cume of $1.8 million.
Sideshow/Janus Films’ release of Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Cloud begin its national expansion, grossing an estimated$82.7k on 36 screens on week 3 for a cume of $157k. Will continue to expand this Friday with an additional 20 markets.
