Universal Pictures’ new romantic comedy One Night Only opened to a positive start at the box office. The movie grossed $1.35 million from its Thursday previews and Monday secret screenings. The figure is nearly the same as the one Sydney Sweeney‘s Anyone But You made during its Thursday previews before its 2023 Christmas weekend release. The box office numbers may have similarities, but there’s a catch.
One Night Only entered theaters under very different circumstances compared to Anyone But You. The latter benefited from a release window with little real competition, giving it room to build momentum week after week. However, the latest release does not have the same luxury.
One Night Only’s Thursday previews alone brought in $750,000, and its Rotten Tomatoes score sits at 47% currently, lower than Anyone But You’s 53% score. On top of that, the movie faces stiffer competition from the box-office hit Spider-Man: Brand New Day and other newcomers like Super Troopers 3 and Ice Cream Man.
While rom-com films often rely on audience word of mouth instead of critical response, the mixed reception could push the film down an unsettling road ahead.
One Night Only and Anyone But You share a connection beyond their box office numbers
The similarities between the two movies don’t stop at the box office figures. Both rom-coms come from the same director, Will Gluck, who returned to the genre after the surprise success of Anyone But You. The filmmaker also produced both titles along with others.
Gluck’s latest film stars Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro as two New Yorkers searching for love on the one night each year when premarital sex is legal. The supporting cast includes Maya Hawke, Julia Fox, Molly Ringwald, King Princess, Ben Marshall, and Pete Davidson, among many others.
Deadline reports that the film would appeal to women both under and over 25 and deliver an opening weekend above $10 million across 3,012 theaters.
One Night Only is currently playing in theaters, distributed by Universal Pictures.
Originally reported by Manoj Chekkilla on ComingSoon.
