'Civil War 'Sets A24's Box Office Debut Record With $25 Million USD

Civil War is officially A24's biggest box office debut yet. Leading the box office with a record $25 million USD for the studio, the film, led by Kirsten Dunst is A24's first movie at No. 1 on the charts. The opening record also marks the biggest R-rated film to begin the year, so far.

Initially, Civil War was projected to only hit $15 million USD to $20 million USD. The film follows Dunst's character, a journalist who traverses a violently divided UN in a dystopian future America. Dunst's character is part of a team of military-embedded journalists who race against time to reach Washington, D.C. before rebel factions descend upon the White House. Directed by Alex Garland, the film also stars Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen McKinley and Nick Offerman. On opening day, Civil War hit $10.7 million USd and it was later reported that the film overperformed in every region except for Los Angeles and El Paso, Texas.

The film had a "B-" CinemaScore going into the weekend, which would hinder its chances with distributors. Civil War is also the studio's most expensive film, costing $50 million USD. Rights to the film has already been sold to foreign markets, helping the studio to gain back investments in North America. Civil War was also this week's only new release, goign up agains monster tentpoles like Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment's Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which now comes in second after Civil War.