Faith-Based Audiences and History Lovers Embrace A Great Awakening at the Specialty Box Office

Box Office Report: ‘A Great Awakening’ Debuts Strongly at No. 6

Roadside Attractions’ A Great Awakening debuted at the domestic box office in the sixth position, earning $2.1 million across 1,298 screens. The film, produced by Sight & Sound, commemorates America’s 250th anniversary and delves into the historical relationship between firebrand preacher George Whitefield and Benjamin Franklin, highlighting how Franklin’s understanding of faith significantly shaped the course of American history.

The cast features John Paul Sneed as Franklin and Jonathan Blair as Whitefield, with direction and co-writing by Joshua Enck.

“We are very excited about Roadside’s first partnership with producers Sight & Sound on A Great Awakening,” said Roadside co-president Howard Cohen. “The film showed in our exit polls that it attracted both faith-based viewers and history buffs.” The film has also received an A+ CinemaScore, indicating promising audience reception as it continues its run in theaters.

Demographic data from CinemaScore revealed that 79% of the audience were over the age of 35, with 57% identifying as female. Notably, 66% of viewers were drawn to the film due to its subject matter.

The top designated market area (DMA) for the film was Harrisburg/Lancaster/York, Pennsylvania, where the Sight & Sound theater consistently sells out numerous shows each week for its faith-based live productions. Other prominent markets included Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., New York, Houston, Phoenix, Minneapolis, and Atlanta.

Leading theaters showing A Great Awakening include Penn Cinema in Lititz, PA; Regal Manor in Lancaster, PA; Regal Downingtown in Downingtown, PA; AMC Camp Hill in Camp Hill, PA; Cinemark North Canton in North Canton, OH; AMC Springfield in Springfield, MO; Harkins Mountain Grove in Riverside, CA; AMC Tyler in Tyler, TX; Cinemark Tulsa in Tulsa, OK; and Regal River Ridge in Lynchburg, VA.

In related box office news, Dhurandhar: The Revenge, in its third week, secured the eighth spot with $1.85 million over 464 screens, achieving a cumulative total of $26.2 million. The Bollywood film from Moviegoers Entertainment has become the highest-grossing Indian film in North America.

François Ozon’s black-and-white adaptation of Albert Camus’ The Stranger, released by Music Box Films, opened to $20.5k at the Angelika Film Center and Film at Lincoln Center, ranking as the top film at both venues. The film attained a remarkable average of $10.25k per screen, marking the best opening for an Ozon film in over a decade. Music Box’s partnership with Ozon dates back to Potiche in 2011, with plans for expansion to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and other markets next weekend.

In the holdover category, Greenwich Entertainment’s Fantasy Life transitioned from one screen at NYC’s Angelika to 215 theaters in its second week, grossing an estimated $322k and bringing its total to $361.5k. Written and directed by Matthew Shear, who stars alongside Amanda Peet, this comedy has been well-received across both art houses and commercial multiplexes, with further market expansions on the horizon.

Focus Features’ The AI Doc: Or How I Became An Aoocaloptimist garnered $271k from 635 theaters in its second weekend, raising its cumulative total to $1.2 million. Co-directed by Charlie Tyrell and Daniel Roher, the documentary portrays Roher’s quest to understand the complexities of the world his child is about to enter.

Lastly, IFC Films’ Forbidden Fruits earned $271k over 500 screens in its second week, accumulating a total of $2 million.