April 8Apr 8 Author 66. The Monkey - £3.1 million Everybody dies. And that's f*cked up. When twin brothers find a mysterious wind-up monkey, a series of outrageous deaths tear their family apart. Twenty-five years later, the monkey begins a new killing spree forcing the estranged brothers to confront the cursed toy.Director: Osgood PerkinsCast: Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Christian ConveryRelease Date: 21st February 2025Distributor: Black BearCertification: 15Genre: HorrorRotten Tomatoes: 77%IMDb: 5.9 Top 15 Chart Run: 4-4-6-9-15 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,070,404 (#4) God save the King. 2025 was the year of Stephen King with this being the first of three adaptations of his work in this chart. This had a lot of pre-release hype being Osgood Perkins's follow-up to 'Longlegs' (£8.1 million, EOY #35) from 2024. That film became a sensation after a unique marketing campaign which this couldn't quite manage to match. This is a much more comedic take which I think alienated some viewers. It still managed to make about 7x it's budget worldwide though.
April 9Apr 9 Author 65. The Phoenician Scheme - £3.2 million If something gets in your way: flatten it. Wealthy businessman Zsa-zsa Korda appoints his only daughter, a nun, as sole heir to his estate. As Korda embarks on a new enterprise, they soon become the target of scheming tycoons, foreign terrorists and determined assassins.Director: Wes AndersonCast: Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, Michael CeraRelease Date: 23rd May 2025Distributor: UniversalCertification: 15Genre: ComedyRotten Tomatoes: 77%IMDb: 6.6 Top 15 Chart Run: 4-7-9-11-14 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £770,562 (#4) I didn't have a particularly busy year going to the cinema in 2025 with this being only the second film so far that I did see on the big screen. I have seen the the last four Anderson films in the cinema so he's quietly coming one of biggest draws in film. Despite some interesting additions to his often never-changing cast (Michael Cera, Tom Hanks) it was the (potentially nepo-baby) Mia Threapleton (daughter of Kate Winslet) that I found the most engaging newcomer. It's not Anderson's strongest but still a solid addition to his filmography.
April 9Apr 9 Author 64. Saiyaara - £3.2 million Two artistic souls find harmony through music despite their contrasting worlds. As feelings deepen, age and circumstances challenge their undeniable bond.Director: Mohit SuriCast: Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda, Alam KhanRelease Date: 18th July 2025Distributor: Yash RajCertification: 12AGenre: MusicalRotten Tomatoes: 63%IMDb: 6.3 Top 15 Chart Run: 10-6-7-9 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £194,072 (#10) 2025's biggest Indian hit goes to 'Saiyaara'. If you thought 'Dhurandhar' climibing 94% in week 2 was impressive, this one managed an insane 161% increase in weekend two before it found an even bigger audience on Netflix. We even got the title track to its soundtrack reaching the UK Top 100 singles chart. This was a phenomenon and was the second biggest Indian film in the UK until the past week or so.
April 9Apr 9 Author 63. The Penguin Lessons - £3.3 million In 1976, as Argentina descends into violence and chaos, a world-weary English teacher regains his compassion for others thanks to an unlikely friendship with a penguin..Director: Peter CattaneoCast: Steve Coogan, Jonathan Pryce, Vivian El JaberRelease Date: 18th April 2025Distributor: LionsgateCertification: 12AGenre: DramaRotten Tomatoes: 78%IMDb: 7.1 Top 15 Chart Run: 3-7-6-8-13 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,057,236 (#3) "A British teacher in Argentina saved and houses a penguin at this school". It sounds like a pitch than Alan Partridge would have gave to the head-commissions officer of the BBC in his sitcom but is instead an adaptation of the true-life story of Tom Mitchell starring Steve Coogan. This was an improvement on Cattaneo's previous release ('Military Wives, £2.9 million) but a far way off his 'The Full Monty' days. This result was made more impressive as Odeon chose not to show it.
April 9Apr 9 Author 62. Ballerina - £3.3 million Vengeance has a new face. Taking place during the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, Eve Macarro begins her training in the assassin traditions of the Ruska Roma.Director: Len WisemanCast: Ana de Armas, Keanu Reaves, Ian McShaneRelease Date: 6th June 2025Distributor: LionsgateCertification: 15Genre: ActionRotten Tomatoes: 75%IMDb: 6.8 Top 15 Chart Run: 3-5-8-14 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,418,816 (#3) The long-delayed first attempt to spin off from the John Wick franchise on the big screen finally hit cinemas last year where it largely underwhelmed. Sensing a disaster, Lionsgate highlighted Keanu is the marketing but it wasn't enough. The four main films in the Wick franchise all increased openings with each release, culminating with 'John Wick: Chapter 4' opening above £5 million and ending up at #14 in 2023's EOY chart (£17.6 million). 'Ballerina', on the other hand, ended up being the lowest opening since the original 'John Wick' (£539,602, #6, 2015) ten years prior.
April 9Apr 9 Author 61. Nuremberg - £3.4 million Judgment is coming. In postwar Germany, an American psychiatrist must determine whether Nazi prisoners are fit to go on trial for war crimes, and finds himself in a complex battle of intellect and ethics with Hermann Göring, Hitler’s right-hand man.Director: James VanderbiltCast: Russell Crowe, Rami Malek, Leo WoodallRelease Date: 14th November 2025Distributor: StudioCanalCertification: 15Genre: DramaRotten Tomatoes: 71%IMDb: 7.4 Top 15 Chart Run: 4-4-7-10-15 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £898,990 (#4) There was a time where seeing 'Sky Movies original' was the most-feared three words to appear on a poster but they've slowly started to release some well-received films of which 'Nuremberg' is one. This is about the trials that happened for key Nazi figures after the conclusion of WWII. Malek plays a psychiatrist who was tasked with determining whether they were mentally fit to face trial. Crowe earned strong reviews for his portrayal of Hermann Göring. Based on a budget of about $10 million, this has made $70 million worldwide so was a really successful release.
April 10Apr 10 I feel like I need to find and watch the penguin lessons does anyone know if its om streaming
April 11Apr 11 Author 20 hours ago, 777666jason said:I feel like I need to find and watch the penguin lessons does anyone know if its om streamingIt doesn't look its on any streaming services yet.
April 11Apr 11 Author 60. Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party Of A Showgirl - £3.5 million The exclusive world premiere of the music video “The Fate of Ophelia”, along with behind-the-scenes footage from the music video shoot, brand new lyric videos, and Taylor Swift’s personal reflections on songs from her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl.Director: Taylor SwiftCast: Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Fletcher AllistonRelease Date: 3rd October 2025Distributor: Piece of MagicCertification: 12AGenre: DocumentaryRotten Tomatoes: 64%IMDb: 6.8 Top 15 Chart Run: 1 (1 week)Opening Weekend: £3,471,544 (#1) The second #1 film to drop out, this was a one-weekend-only release to celebrate Taylor Swift's studio album. Featuring the debut of the music video of lead single 'The Fate of Ophelia', lyric videos of each other song and additional information about each song by Taylor herself, this is far from a typical cinema release. In 2023, 'The Eras Tour' opened at #1 with £5,729,998 on its way to £12.2 million (EOY #22). There is still one more event cinema release to come.
April 11Apr 11 Author 59. A Real Pain - £3.6 million Join the family. Mismatched cousins David and Benji reunite for a tour through Poland to honour their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair’s old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.Director: Jesse EisenbergCast: Jesse Eisenberg, Kieran Culkin, Will SharpeRelease Date: 8th January 2025Distributor: DisneyCertification: 15Genre: ComedyRotten Tomatoes: 96%IMDb: 7.0 Top 15 Chart Run: 6-10-12-15-13 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £998,818 (#6) We go all the way back to January 2025 for this Oscar winning comedy/drama written, starring and directed by Jesse Eisenberg. Although it was co-star Culkin that stole all the headlines, sweeping the best supporting actor awards across the whole award season. A rare 90-minute film, it packs a lot into that runtime and was a huge success, grossing $25 million worldwide against a $3 million budget. Eisenberg is now a director to watch out for in the future.
April 11Apr 11 Author 58. Black Phone 2 - £3.8 million Dead is just a word. Four years after defeating The Grabber, Finney Blake is struggling with life after captivity. When his younger sister Gwen begins receiving calls in her dreams from the Black Phone and seeing disturbing visions of three boys being stalked at a winter camp, the siblings become determined to solve the mystery and confront a killer who has grown more powerful in death and more significant to them than either could imagine.Director: Scott DerricksonCast: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Ethan HawkeRelease Date: 17th October 2025Distributor: UniversalCertification: 18Genre: HorrorRotten Tomatoes: 72%IMDb: 6.1 Top 15 Chart Run: 2-5-6-11 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,100,233 (#2) The fact that we've already had a sequel to the film Scott Derrickson made after dropping out of 'Doctor Strange 2' is making me feel like time is passing too fast. This opened slightly below the preview-inflated debut of the original (£1,384,344, #5, 2022) and didn't have the same legs, falling about £800k short of its final gross. Worldwide, the drop was even more pronounced when you consider the higher budget ($132 million against a $30 million budget verses $160 million against a $10 million budget). However, this was still a huge money-maker and I wouldn't bet against a third film. The once consistent Blumhouse needed a win like this, especially when you think about the disaster of 'M3GAN 2.0' earlier in the year.
April 11Apr 11 Author 57. Black Bag - £3.8 million It takes a spy to hunt a spy. When intelligence agent Kathryn Woodhouse is suspected of betraying the nation, her husband – also a legendary agent – faces the ultimate test of whether to be loyal to his marriage or his country.Director: Steven SoderberghCast: Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Marisa AbelaRelease Date: 14th March 2025Distributor: UniversalCertification: 15Genre: DramaRotten Tomatoes: 96%IMDb: 6.7 Top 15 Chart Run: 3-4-6-6 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £915,377 (#3) We must be in the 'black' section of the chart with 'Bag' following 'Phone 2'. Approximately Steven Soderbergh's 90th film of the past two years, this is a lean (another 90 minute-r) spy flick which focuses more on the intrigue than the action. Blanchett and Fassbender play well as a couple where you're never sure whether they are loyal to each other or not. It has some really tense sequences and I enjoyed it, but the rave reviews left me expecting more. There was a time where this would have been a huge hit thanks to the name-power alone but this underwhelmed with $44 million grossed against a $50 million budget.
April 11Apr 11 Author 56. The Brutalist - £3.8 million Welcome to America. When an innovative modern architect flees post-war Europe, he is given the opportunity to rebuild his legacy. Set during the dawn of the modern United States (in Pennsylvania), his wife joins him and their lives are forever changed by a demanding, wealthy patron.Director: Brady CorbetCast: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy PearceRelease Date: 24th January 2025Distributor: UniversalCertification: 18Genre: DramaRotten Tomatoes: 93%IMDb: 7.2 Top 15 Chart Run: 5-5-6-9-14-13 (6 weeks)Opening Weekend: £754,678 (#5) The second Oscar winner of the section, Brady Corbet's epic didn't get the memo of this being the short-film section, clocking in it 215 minutes with a built-in intermission. I enjoyed the pre-intermission half but found it a bit of a chore after that. The fact that a film this uncommercial can make 5x its budget worldwide shows that there's still life in cinemas yet.
April 12Apr 12 Author 55. Materialists - £3.9 million Some people just want more. A young, ambitious New York City matchmaker finds herself torn between the perfect match and her imperfect ex.Director: Celine SongCast: Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, Pedro PascalRelease Date: 13th August 2025Distributor: SonyCertification: 15Genre: Rom-ComRotten Tomatoes: 77%IMDb: 6.2 Top 15 Chart Run: 2-3-11-12 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,287,221 (#2) Celine Song followed her indie-favourite 'Past Lives' with a more comedic take on relationships with this starry love-triangle that sees Dakota Johnson having to chose between Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal. This beat the £3.1 million gross of 'Past Lives' but fell just short of Johnson's infamous box-office superhero flop 'Madame Web' (£4.1 million, EOY #48, 2024). With a gross of over $100 million worldwide on a $20 million budget, Song is 2/2 on big hits and I imagine she will have a lot of takers ready to make her next project.
April 12Apr 12 Author 54. Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere - £3.9 million Witness a true story of risking it all to fight for what you believe in. Bruce Springsteen, a young musician on the cusp of global superstardom, struggles to reconcile the pressures of success with the ghosts of his past.Director: Scoot CooperCast: Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter HouserRelease Date: 24th October 2025Distributor: DisneyCertification: 12AGenre: BiopicRotten Tomatoes: 61%IMDb: 6.6 Top 15 Chart Run: 1-4-6 (3 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,306,627 (#1) The third #1 hit to drop-out and we haven't even reached the half way point of the countdown yet. Music biopics have been a consistent genre at the box office in recent years but this is definitely at the lower end only beating 'Kneecap' (£2.2 million, EOY #65, 2024) from recent years. I think Springsteen just isn't that flamboyant of a personality so a film about his life doesn't sound too exciting. We have another musician biopic also released by Disney to come that succeeded where this failed and picked up awards hype to become a decent sized hit.
April 12Apr 12 Author 53. The Choral - £4.3 million They were divided by war. He united them in song. As World War I rages on, Dr. Henry Guthrie takes over a British choral society that’s lost most of its men to the army. The community soon discovers that the best response to the chaos of war is to make beautiful music together.Director: Nicholas HytnerCast: Ralph Fiennes, Roger Allam, Mark AddyRelease Date: 7th November 2025Distributor: SonyCertification: 12AGenre: DramaRotten Tomatoes: 67%IMDb: 6.4 Top 15 Chart Run: 2-6-6-13 (4 weeks)Opening Weekend: £917,177 (#2) Sir Nicholas Hytner made this first film in 15-years and teamed up with legendary playwright Alan Bennett, just as he did with his last film, 2015's 'The Lady In The Van' which was a huge hit, grossing £13.2 million in the UK. This didn't hit the same heights but still made a tidy £4.3 million. It's classic 'Sunday afternoon British drama' affair with Fiennes starring as a choirmaster who recruits from military hospitals during WWI.
April 12Apr 12 Author 52. Babygirl - £4.3 million Get exactly what you want. A high-powered CEO puts her career and family on the line when she begins a torrid affair with her much younger intern.Director: Halina ReijnCast: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Antonio BanderasRelease Date: 10th January 2025Distributor: Entertainment FilmCertification: 18Genre: ThrillerRotten Tomatoes: 76%IMDb: 5.8 Top 15 Chart Run: 5-6-9-13-15 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,091,180 (#5) It feels like the erotic thriller genre had disappeared from big screens but 'Babygirl' brought it back in a big way, opening above £1 million in January last year despite the restrictive 18-rating. It debuted at Venice in 2024 so I definitely feel like they wanted this to be an Awards contender which it ultimately fell short of doing. I remember this getting a lot of hype, especially for the milk scene, but it already feels a bit forgotten about now.
April 12Apr 12 The official release party if a showgirl did pretty respectfully considering was only out for a weekend and what it actually was
April 12Apr 12 Author 51. The Amateur - £4.4 million Don't underestimate him. After his life is turned upside down when his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack, a brilliant but introverted CIA decoder takes matters into his own hands when his supervisors refuse to take action.Director: James HawesCast: Rami Malek, Laurence Fishburne, Rachel BrosnahanRelease Date: 11th April 2025Distributor: DisneyCertification: 12AGenre: ThrillerRotten Tomatoes: 61%IMDb: 6.5 Top 15 Chart Run: 2-4-8-13-11 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,101,452 (#2) We conclude the first half of this countdown with this old-fashioned thriller from James Hawes ('One Life'). When I first heard about this, I was sure that this had already been released a few years ago but it turned out that I was thinking of 2021's 'The Little Things' that also stars Malek and had similar marketing. This is an adaptation of a 1981 novel that was also made into a film in the same year. This had flop written all over it in my eyes but ended up making $100 million worldwide on a $60 million budget so probably came close to breaking-even with all subsidiary streams considered.Now where halfway through, has there been any shocks so far? Anything you thought would be higher or anything you're surprised is still to appear?
April 13Apr 13 Author 50. The Long Walk - £4.7 million The task is simple: walk or die. In a dystopian 1970s America, fifty teenage boys take part in a deadly annual walking contest, forced to maintain a minimum pace or be executed, until only one survivor remains.Director: Francis LawrenceCast: Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett WareingRelease Date: 12th September 2025Distributor: LionsgateCertification: 15Genre: HorrorRotten Tomatoes: 88%IMDb: 6.7 Top 15 Chart Run: 4-4-5-7-10 (5 weeks)Opening Weekend: £1,156,220 (#4) The second Stephen King adaptation, this was long thought unfilmable after many attempt to adapt it ended up falling through, starting with George A. Romeo in 1988. Francis Lawrence ('I Am Legend', 'The Hunger Games') was the man to finally make it happen and he did so successfully with favourable reviews and a $63 million gross against a $20 million budget. If it wasn't for the other one still to come, this would have been the biggest King adaptation since the two 'IT' films. I've heard this really nails the bleak, nihilistic tone of the novel.
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