This week, the top 20 films at the Australian box office grossed $17,847,689, a 10% increase from last weekend’s $14,463,353. The per-screen average was $4,546, up from $4,517 last week. With school holidays and a long weekend in several states, it proved a strong weekend for audiences.
Top five
1. The Bad Guys 2
The Bad Guys mounted their greatest heist yet: Stealing the weekend from Taylor Swift even in its third week of release.
Universal sat on the release of this film for two months waiting for the school holidays and it has paid off handsomely for the film, dominating the local box office for the past three weeks.
The film pulled in $3,682,207 over the week across 398 screens. Since release, the film has netted $12,796,732.
The movie includes voice stars Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, and Alex Borstein, while adding new voice talent including Natasha Lyonne.
Next month Netflix debuts a 6-episode prequel series, The Bad Guys: Breaking In.
Synopsis: Reformed criminals Mr. Wolf, Mr. Snake, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Shark and Ms. Tarantula are trying very hard to be good. However, they soon find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes heist that’s masterminded by a new team of delinquents they never saw coming… the Bad Girls.
2. Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl
Announced only a few weeks ago, this Taylor Swift promotional fan event film timed with the release of her new album wasn’t well-received by critics who noted that the film was a compilation of material usually just published to YouTube. The Guardian film critic Adrian Horton said that “it barely qualifies as a visual aid to the album, let alone one worthy of note in her vast universe of content.”
Swift’s album, The Life of a Showgirl, broke records with 3.5 million sales in the first week.
The film pulled in $3,253,207 over the week across 396 screens.
Synopsis:Taylor Swift presents a behind the scenes look at the making of her record The Life of a Showgirl.
3. One Battle After Another
In week two of One Battle After Another, the film dropped to third place on the charts, pulling in $2,130,862 across 325 screens. Since release, the film has netted $5,134,881.
The Leo DiCaprio film from writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson was one of the best reviewed movies of the year at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes and will feature in many best-of 2025 critics lists at the end of the year. And deservedly so – the sequence at the end of the film is especially gripping.
Synopsis: Bob is a washed-up revolutionary who lives in a state of stoned paranoia, surviving off-grid with his spirited and self-reliant daughter, Willa. When his evil nemesis resurfaces and Willa goes missing, the former radical scrambles to find her as both father and daughter battle the consequences of their pasts.
4. Kangaroo
In its third week of release, Australian family film Kangaroo holds fourth place on the chart, pulling in $1,417,474 across 336 screens. Since release, the film has netted $4,068,203.
Box office was only down 7% on last week, but with more kids on school holidays across Australia than in week one of release, it still doubled the first week’s takings.
While he isn’t the focus of the film, the movie is inspired by the real-life story of Chris “Brolga” Barns and his work at The Kangaroo Sanctuary in Alice Springs, Australia, where he rescues orphaned kangaroo joeys.
Synopsis: A pro surfer teams up with an 11-year-old Indigenous girl to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned kangaroos in a remote community.
5. Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie
After making the leap from TV to the cinema last week, the movie spin-off from the popular Netflix kids franchise is in week 2 of release. It made $1,354,021 across 300 screens, down 17% from week one. The screen count was lower than rival kids film Kangaroo (336 screens), bringing in a higher average per screen ($4,513 for Gabby vs 4,219 for Kangaroo).
Since release, the film has netted $3,906,074.
Synopsis: When Gabby’s dollhouse, her most prized possession, ends up in the hands of an eccentric cat lady named Vera, she sets off on an adventure through the real world to get the Gabby Cats back together before it’s too late.
Rounding out the top 10 this week:
6. Kantara A Legend: Chapter 1 – $995,771
7. The Conjuring: Last Rites – $779,530 (total gross: $14,430,544)
8. Avatar: The Way of Water (re-release) – $721,728
9. Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale – $657,302 (total gross: $5,996,069)
10. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle – $640,421 (total gross: $9,844,880)