By Irshad Khan 
Adult upscale movies are experiencing catastrophic box office failures throughout fall 2025, with major studio releases and prestige dramas underperforming dramatically despite substantial production investments and A-list talent. Amazon MGM Studios’ “After the Hunt,” starring Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield, collapsed at the box office with a dismal three-weekend running total of just $2.9 million, representing one of the most severe financial disasters for a high-budget dramatic thriller. The film, produced with a substantial $70 million to $80 million budget and featuring Julia Roberts commanding a reported $20 million salary, generated catastrophic audience rejection marked by a devastating 23% definite recommend on Screen Engine/ComScore PostTrak and a failing C- CinemaScore. Alongside “After the Hunt,” numerous prestige productions including Sony’s “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” ($45 million production cost, $6.6 million domestic), Darren Aronofsky’s “Caught Stealing” (production costs exceeding $40 million-$65 million, $19 million box office), A24’s “Smashing Machine” ($50 million production cost, $11.3 million domestic), and Daniel Day-Lewis’ “Anemone” ($14 million production cost, $1.1 million domestic) have all experienced severe box office underperformance. The widespread prestige cinema collapse demonstrates fundamental structural challenges threatening theatrical viability for adult-oriented dramas competing against franchise entertainment and streaming platform alternatives.
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After the Hunt: Julia Roberts’ Career-Low Box Office Performance
“After the Hunt,” starring Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield, represents one of the most catastrophic box office failures for a high-budget dramatic thriller, with the Amazon MGM Studios production generating merely $2.9 million across its three-weekend theatrical run. The film’s collapse proves particularly devastating considering the substantial $70 million to $80 million production budget and Julia Roberts’ commanding $20 million salary—representing among the highest compensation packages negotiated for prestige cinema in recent years. The film’s audience rejection manifested across multiple performance metrics: a disastrous 23% definite recommend on Screen Engine/ComScore PostTrak (indicating severe audience dissatisfaction) and a failing C- CinemaScore representing bottom-tier audience reception. Amazon MGM Studios’ substantial financial investment in the dramatic thriller, combined with Roberts’ significant salary and production resources, yielded minimal box office return and catastrophic audience approval scores. The dramatic underperformance raises fundamental questions regarding whether even A-list star power commands sufficient theatrical audience appeal justifying major studio prestige cinema investment.
The Prestige Cinema Collapse: Multiple High-Profile Failures
“After the Hunt” represents merely the most prominent casualty among numerous prestige cinema failures throughout fall 2025, with the subgenre experiencing unprecedented theatrical collapse. Sony’s “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey,” starring Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell and produced with a $45 million budget, generated merely $6.6 million domestically and $21 million globally—devastating results for major star casting and substantial production investment. The film earned a B- CinemaScore, indicating moderate audience dissatisfaction despite prestigious casting and production resources. Darren Aronofsky’s “Caught Stealing,” produced with costs exceeding $40 million to $65 million, achieved $19 million box office domestically and $32 million globally—severely disappointing results for a major director project despite significant production investment. The crime comedy received a B CinemaScore, suggesting audience ambivalence rather than enthusiasm. The widespread prestige cinema failures demonstrate that major star power, substantial production budgets, and prestigious creative talent provide insufficient theatrical audience appeal in contemporary marketplace prioritizing franchise entertainment.
A24’s “Smashing Machine” and Independent Prestige Cinema Struggles
A24’s “Smashing Machine,” produced with a $50 million budget, generated only $11.3 million domestically and $19.7 million globally—catastrophic underperformance for independent prestige cinema from one of the industry’s most respected distributors. The film received a B- CinemaScore, indicating moderate audience reception insufficient generating strong word-of-mouth or repeat attendance. A24’s prestige cinema underperformance proves particularly significant given the distributor’s established reputation for quality independent releases and strong critical reception track record. The result demonstrates that even respected independent distributors with devoted audience followings struggle achieving theatrical box office viability for prestige content in contemporary marketplace. The “Smashing Machine” underperformance validates broader concerns that prestige cinema faces structural challenges transcending studio identity or distributor reputation, with fundamental theatrical economics threatening prestige film viability regardless of creative quality or critical acclaim.
Daniel Day-Lewis’ “Anemone” and Career-Defining Failures
Focus Features’ “Anemone,” featuring acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis in a significant role, generated merely $1.1 million domestically—among the lowest box office totals for a major studio release starring an Oscar-winning lead performer. The $14 million production budget yielded negligible box office return, representing financial disaster for Focus Features and profound career moment for Day-Lewis. The absence of public PostTrak exit scores suggests severe audience indifference rather than passionate rejection—potentially more damaging indicator than poor CinemaScore performance. Day-Lewis’ theatrical failure, despite his acclaimed performances and substantial fan appreciation, demonstrates that even legendary performers commanding critical respect and acting excellence fail generating contemporary theatrical audience interest. The “Anemone” collapse raises fundamental questions regarding whether theatrical viability exists for character-driven prestige cinema featuring acclaimed performances when audiences prioritize franchise entertainment and streaming alternatives.
Supporting Prestige Cinema Casualties
Beyond the major catastrophic failures, numerous prestige productions experienced severe underperformance during fall 2025. Roadside Attractions/Lionsgate/LD Entertainment’s “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” a $30 million production, generated merely $1.6 million domestically despite 54% definite recommend on PostTrak suggesting superior audience reception relative to other prestige failures. The modest theatrical performance despite stronger audience engagement scores indicates that even superior audience reception proves insufficient generating robust theatrical box office for prestige cinema. The widespread prestige cinema underperformance across multiple studios, distributors, and production budgets demonstrates that financial disaster transcends individual film or performer characteristics, reflecting broader structural theatrical economics challenges threatening prestige cinema viability across the industry.
Audience Reception Crisis: CinemaScore and PostTrak Evidence
The prestige cinema collapse manifests dramatically across audience reception metrics. “After the Hunt’s” catastrophic 23% PostTrak definite recommend represents severe audience dissatisfaction rarely observed for major studio releases. Multiple prestige films receiving B- and B CinemaScores indicate moderate audience dissatisfaction or ambivalence rather than enthusiasm driving repeat attendance and word-of-mouth promotion. The consistent pattern of poor audience reception scores across multiple prestige productions suggests fundamental audience disconnection from prestige cinema content, not individual film quality variation. The audience reception crisis demonstrates that audiences actively reject prestige drama content during peak entertainment periods, prioritizing franchise entertainment and streaming alternatives over theatrical prestige cinema despite acclaimed performances and substantial production investment.
Production Budget Reality: Massive Investment, Minimal Return
The prestige cinema collapse highlights devastating economic reality where substantial production investments yield minimal box office return and severe financial losses. Studios investing $40 million to $80 million in prestige productions generate single-digit to low-teen million-dollar domestic box office—representing 80-95% budget shortfalls before marketing costs. The global box office performance, while exceeding domestic totals, typically generates 30-50% of production budget—catastrophic financial performance for theatrical releases requiring marketing expenditure approaching production budgets. The economic equation demonstrates theatrical prestige cinema increasingly represents high-risk financial proposition for studios, with production investment requirements vastly exceeding likely box office return. The production budget crisis directly motivates industry shift toward streaming-primary distribution, with streaming platforms providing alternative revenue models and cost structures rendering theatrical prestige cinema economically unviable.
Star Power Insufficient: Julia Roberts and Margot Robbie Failures
The prestige cinema collapse fundamentally challenges long-standing industry assumption that A-list star power generates automatic theatrical audience interest. Julia Roberts, commanding $20 million salary and substantial star recognition from decades-long career, failed generating theatrical audience interest despite prestigious casting and substantial production resources. Margot Robbie, contemporary Hollywood star with recent blockbuster successes, similarly failed generating theatrical interest for prestige cinema with “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey.” The star power failures demonstrate that contemporary audiences prioritize franchise entertainment and streaming alternatives regardless of lead performer identity or career achievement. For studios, the star power failure indicates substantial actor compensation increasingly represents wasted expenditure when audiences demonstrate fundamental disinterest in theatrical prestige cinema regardless of casting choices.
Industry Implications and Theatrical Future Uncertainty
The prestige cinema collapse throughout fall 2025 represents watershed moment for theatrical exhibition and studio distribution strategy, with widespread financial failures forcing industry reconsideration of theatrical viability for prestige content. Studios increasingly allocate prestige cinema to streaming platforms rather than theatrical exhibition, recognizing streaming distribution provides revenue certainty and cost structure superior to theatrical theatrical models generating massive financial losses. The theatrical prestige cinema collapse accelerates industry transformation toward streaming-primary distribution, fundamentally restructuring theatrical exhibition landscape and prestige cinema accessibility. For theatrical exhibition industry, the prestige cinema underperformance reduces available prestige content justifying premium theatrical exhibition, threatening theater viability beyond franchise entertainment concentration. The fundamental industry transformation triggered by prestige cinema box office collapse represents permanent theatrical landscape reconfiguration with substantial implications for theatrical exhibition economics, prestige cinema production strategy, and entertainment industry distribution models.