Moo Deng's little expression above is a nice encapsulation of how so many film geeks feel right now knowing that summer moviegoing season is just around the corner. Movies of all kinds are about hit theaters from the biggest blockbusters to challenging counterprogramming indies from all over the world. With that, it's time to consider what could be this summer's biggest box office champions. What films look poised to become the ten biggest films of summer 2025?
If the last three summers have taught us anything, it's that nobody knows anything in this business. No one on the planet had Top Gun: Maverick, Barbie, and Inside Out 2 become such cultural juggernauts in their respective runs. With A Minecraft Movie transforming into such a gigantic unexpected success in April 2025, it's clear once again that unpredictability is everywhere. Still, let's assess what the future of this summer's moviegoing season looks like and what might resonate most of all with audiences.
Two notes before going forward: the first is that all figures discussed here are domestic box office figures. Secondly, all opening weekend predictions are just for three-day debuts. No lengthy holiday weekend predictions here.
10. M3gan 2.0
I cannot stress how much I didn't want to start this list with a sequel. That's especially true since there are a handful of (GASP) original films on the horizon like F1 and especially Weapons that could totally become this summer's sleeper hit equivalent to It Ends With Us. Still, looking at the raw numbers, it's hard to dispute that M3gan 2.0 is poised to become one of this season's bigger titles. The first feature was a major sleeper hit and had good word-of-mouth from audiences. This follow-up has a great 4th of July weekend launchpad and is heavily geared towards women in a summer moviegoing landscape that doesn't often cater to that demographic. This doll's about to slay the box office and almost certainly put an end to Blumhouse's box office cold streak.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $47 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $125 million
9. 28 Years Later
The first 28 Years Later trailer took off like wildfire online and in theaters, particularly for using a haunting poem on its soundtrack rather than a typical horror trailer choice of a slowed-down pop song. Though it'll inevitably be a very brutal R-rated horror feature, 28 Years Later promises to also function as a legacy sequel building on decades of residual goodwill from the first 28 Days Later. Its more epic scope, bigger cast (hello Ralph Fiennes!), and the dearth of other big screen zombie movies should also help it stand out in the summertime marketplace. Last year, A Quiet Place: Day One opened to $53 million in late June. A similar opening sounds about right for 28 Years Later. This summer's poised to be a strong one for horror between Final Destination: Bloodlines, Together, and Weapons. 28 Years Later is poised to become the biggest of this summer's offerings in that space.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $49 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $140 million
8. Thunderbolts*
Disney/Marvel Studios clearly have more confidence in Thunderbolts* than most of the last few Marvel Cinematic Universe titles given that the feature is holding advanced IMAX screenings on April 22nd to drum up word-of-mouth. More clever marketing (like those "this is a Thunderbolt" billboards or that A24-style trailer) is also bound to put this title on more people's radar. The biggest problem for Thunderbolts*, though, is that it focuses on Phase Four and Five MCU characters rooted in movies and TV shows that didn't take the public by storm. John Walker, Red Guardian, and Taskmaster are not as beloved as Thor and The Hulk. That's going to intrinsically limit the motion picture's immediate appeal, no matter how cute the billboards are.
The bad news is that Thunderbolts* seems guranteed to hit the lowest domestic opening for a first weekend of May Marvel adaptation since Thor in May 2011. However, if it can gain some positive buzz from audiences like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 two years ago, expect it to linger for a while, at least by the standards of post-2019 MCU fare.
Predicted Domestic Opening: $74 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $200 million
7. Elio
If nothing else, Elio has one big advantage in its summer box office run: there's no Illumination movie scheduled for release over 4th of July this year. Typically, the mid-June Pixar blockbuster has to contend with a new Minions/Despicable Me outing over 4th of July weekend. Like Elemental two years ago, though, Elio doesn't have an Illumination tentpole to compete against over this lucrative holiday weekend. If Elio actually resonates with audiences, it'll function as the only game in town for family moviegoers for a few weeks. That bodes well for this original feature, which hopes to prove Elemental was no fluke and that audiences are interested in seeing original animated motion pictures theatrically again. Don't expect a massive bow from this one, but Elio looks poised to stick around for the long haul.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $48 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $205 million
6. How to Train Your Dragon
It might sound weird to say for a movie ranked so relatively high on this list, but How to Train Your Dragon does have some concerning qualities surrounding its box office potential. Will remaking an animated movie this recent come as too cynical even for mainstream audiences lapping up Mufasa: The Lion King? Will Lilo & Stitch (another live-action remake of a Chris Sanders animated movie) steal Dragon's thunder? Universal's already announced a sequel for June 2027, could this be another Fantastic Four 2 or Divergent: Ascendant situation where a follow-up's release date gets announced too quickly? Even with all that in mind, the Dragon saga is beloved, it's releasing over Father's Day weekend, and Universal's pretty much bulletproof promoting PG-rated films that aren't Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken. Expect this to soar financially, albeit not quite as high as the biggest live-action Disney remakes.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $77 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $230 million
5. Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning
This is it, the last Mission: Impossible movie. After 29 years, it's time to wrap this saga up, especially since this newest installment cost $400 million to make (these titles would need to be Avatar big to be profitable at this rate) and Tom Cruise has left Mission: Impossible home Paramount Pictures for a long-term Warner Bros. deal. Quorum box office tracking (via Deadline) is reporting that The Final Reckoning is tracking (six weeks out from release) for by far the biggest opening in the franchise, dehtorning Mission: Impossible - Fallout's $61 million for the honor. No specific numbers are being offered for what Reckoning is tracking for on opening weekend, but it's already looking prime to leave Dead Reckoning's box office haul in the dust. Unlike its predecessor, which opened a week before Barbenheimer, The Final Reckoning will be the newest PG-13 tentpole in the marketplace for several weeks and even has exclusive control of IMAX auditoriums for three weekends. Ethan Hunt, prepare to go out in a blaze of glory.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $80 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $245 million
4. Jurassic World Rebirth
There was a four-year gap between Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Jurassic World Dominion. The former film was terrible, the latter feature got dismal reviews. Yet Dominion still only fell 9% domestically from Fallen Kingdom's cume. At this point, the Jurassic World/Park franchise is unstoppable. Universal's been very smart in rolling these out only once every three years (with no live-action streaming shows in between movies to dilute interest and enthusiasm) to make them feel like "events." This one doesn't have Chris Pratt or Laura Dern, but it does have Scarlett Johansson, lots of dinosaurs, and a prime 4th of July spot. Underestimate these dinosaurs at your own peril.' They refuse to go extinct.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $70 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $285 million
3. The Fantastic Four: First Steps
A spectacular way to make your comic book movie seem especially important to audiences is to promote it as the film that's correcting the mistakes of past superhero films. Deadpool and Venom, for instance, centered their respective promotional campaigns on things like "don't worry, his mouth won't be sewn shut this time!" The Fantastic Four: First Steps has done a tremendous job so far in its trailers and posters of emphasizing how it's different and more comics-accurate than the other three 21st-century Fantastic Four movies. This one has a 60s period piece setting, the production and costume design pop with colors, and Galactus isn't a cloud. All of that has got comic book geeks salivating, while the more accessible tone and presence of beloved actors like Pedro Pascal is also putting it on the radar of general audiences. On top of all that, First Steps has that late summer release date that worked so well for past MCU features Deadpool & Wolverine and Guardians of the Galaxy. All signs point to this one becoming the first major box office hit for Marvel's first family.
Predicted Opening Weekend: $110 million
Predicted Domestic Total: $335 million
2. Lilo & Stitch
It’s hard to remember now, but this time last year, the Lilo & Stitch remake was still a Disney+ original movie. It wasn’t until last August’s D23 that an upgrade to a summer 2025 theatrical release was confirmed. That sounds especially insane given that the feature is now tracking for a spectacular debut. Live-action Disney Animation remakes work best when they’re updating titles from 1989 onward. The modern classic Lilo & Stitch fits right into that phenomenon, while that titular blue alien’s enduring marketability ensures everyone knows who he is. Between all that and a prime Memorial Day weekend launchpad, Lilo & Stitch has everything working for it. Snow White was a historic box office misfire, but Lilo & Stitch will inevitably restore the box office prowess of the live action Disney trend.
1. Superman
Superman movies are in a weird spot. Those original Christopher Reeve Superman films still occupy such a profoundly powerful place in pop culture that it’s hard for any reboots to escape their shadow. Superman Returns and Man of Steel both cleared $200 million domestically (the latter even hit $293 million), but they still couldn’t muster up enough audience goodwill spawn solo sequels (read: follow-up’s without Batman). The third modern Superman reboot, simply titled Superman, is in grave danger of just rehashing a brand name audiences might not want unless it’s the 70s and Christopher Reeve is in the lead role.
However, so far, everything in the Superman marketing campaign has been going off divinely. That first trailer got a tremendously positive response while a distinctive extended look at Superman was attached to all screenings of recent Warner Bros smash hit A Minecraft Movie. Right now, preliminary tracking data from services like Quorum is incredibly encouraging for the next James Gunn directorial effort. Maybe this is the 21st-century Superman movie that really becomes a pop culture sensation. If nothing else, I’ll predict that it has the goods to top the domestic summer box office.