Ridley Scott's The Dog Stars Bombs In Theaters With $19 Million Global Opening

Director Ridley Scott's latest cinematic effort, The Dog Stars, experienced a highly disappointing opening weekend at the global box office. The film, co-produced by Disney and 20th Century Studios, managed to pull in an estimated worldwide total of only $19.3 million during its initial days in theaters. This weak debut represents a significant hurdle for the production, which reportedly carries a substantial $80 million budget according to figures from Variety.

The live-action feature is based on the 2012 novel by Peter Heller and stars a prominent cast including Jacob Elordi, Margaret Qualley, and Josh Brolin. The narrative centers on a pilot named Hig, portrayed by Elordi, and a military survivalist named Bangley, played by Brolin, who establish an isolated homestead in a harsh post-apocalyptic landscape. Their routine existence is disrupted when a mysterious radio transmission prompts Hig to embark on a journey into the unknown in search of remaining humanity.

Despite the high-profile cast and director, the film failed to attract large crowds during its debut weekend starting August 28, 2026. Domestically, the movie brought in a meager $8 million across 3,330 locations, placing it fifth in the box office rankings. Internationally, the film fared only slightly better, generating $11.3 million. Critical reception has been largely unfavorable, with the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reporting a low 41% approval rating. IGN's own review mirrored this sentiment, awarding the film a 5/10 and describing it as a survival story wrapped in excessive emotional protection.

While general audiences were somewhat more receptive to the film, yielding a 70% audience score, this positive word-of-mouth did not translate into strong ticket sales. The Dog Stars faces a steep uphill battle to achieve profitability given its high production costs and sluggish start. The film's performance stood in stark contrast to other theatrical releases sharing the same late-August weekend frame.

Among the weekend's successes was Coyote vs. Acme, which secured the second-place spot at the domestic box office with a $15.46 million debut. Distributed by Ketchup Entertainment, the film's release represents a major victory for fans and campaigners who fought to save the project after Warner Bros. initially considered shelving it permanently. Starring Will Forte, Lana Condor, and John Cena, the hybrid live-action and animated feature received widespread critical praise, including a 9/10 review from IGN, which lauded its clever meta-commentary on corporate dynamics.

The rest of the weekend's top five was rounded out by established box office juggernauts. Spider-Man: Brand New Day maintained its dominant position at the top of the charts, concluding its first month in theaters with an extraordinary global cumulative total of $2.332 billion. The Odyssey claimed the third-place spot, pushing its worldwide total to $1.55 billion, while the horror sequel Insidious: Out of the Further secured fourth place by reaching $110.2 million in its second weekend of release.