The North American box office can be unforgiving. No matter how strong the opening, a film that doesn't receive unanimously positive feedback tends to falter quickly—sometimes within its very first weekend. Vijay Deverakonda’s Kingdom is the latest example.
The film surprised everyone, including its makers, with a stellar start — earning over $900K from Thursday premiere shows.
Despite Vijay Deverakonda not delivering a hit in recent times, Kingdom posted a phenomenal $1.2 million by the end of Day 1, surpassing Nani’s HIT 3. Many expected it to easily cross the $2 million mark over the extended weekend.
However, the momentum didn’t last. From Friday onward, collections began to decline, and by Sunday, the film had nearly collapsed, earning just $67K.
The box office numbers are as follows: Premieres and Day 1 brought in $1,202K, Day 2 added $189K, Day 3 collected $168K, and Day 4 (Sunday) contributed $67K, bringing the total weekend gross to $1,626,000.
While the total may seem impressive in isolation, Kingdom needs to gross $2 million in the U.S. to break even. At the current pace, that milestone looks increasingly unlikely.
The sharp drop is being attributed to a weak second half and the absence of hit songs — factors that failed to sustain the buzz beyond the initial hype.
