2023’s breakout romantic comedy, Anyone But You, has surpassed yet another massive milestone at the global box office. The movie, directed by Will Gluck and starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, initially received mixed reviews from critics during its release. However, it slowly became a sleeper hit at the box office, with each subsequent weekend increasing more grosses than its opening weekend.
According to The Numbers, the movie has now surpassed the $100 million mark at the global box office. Its domestic grosses stand at $64.2 million, while internationally, the film has so far made $36.0 million. With a budget of $25 million, Anyone but You has emerged as one of the most profitable movies of 2023.
Anyone But You’s Success Bodes Well For Future Rom-Coms
While Anyone But You wasn’t critically well-received, its commercial viability, with a relatively low budget, has brought the romantic comedy back to the big screen after three years marked by changes in movie-going habits. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many studios have relegated their romantic comedies to their respective streaming services instead of purely releasing them in theaters. For example, the Jennifer Lopez/Owen Wilson rom-com Marry Me was released simultaneously in theaters and on Peacock, which became the most-streamed day-and-date film on the service at the time.
For Anyone But You‘s release, Sony immediately positioned it as a theatrical experience. During its title announcement at the Sony Pictures panel at CinemaCon, the official Twitter account of the film directly said, “We’re bringing rom-coms back” in relation to the film’s Christmas release. And while its debut was nothing to write home about, its subsequent weekends have proven rom-coms can still find success on the big screen, and in a massive way.
Its success has sent a massive signal to Hollywood that the viability of a star-studded romantic comedy isn’t on streaming but on the big screen. If the film is crowd-pleasing enough, it does have chances to be as big of a hit as Anyone but You, even if its debut wasn’t as big as the studio thought. However, the positive word of mouth from audiences helped Anyone but You become one of the most surprising hits of 2023 and one that likely saved the rom-com from becoming a streaming-only affair.
Anyone But You
Anyone But You is a romantic comedy by director Will Gluck starring Sydney Sweeny and Glen Powell. Sweeny and Powell star as Bea and Ben, two strangers with an incredible first date that goes sour following one incident at the tail end. Thinking the worst is behind them, the two are roped into a destination wedding in Sydney, Australia, where they’ll have to pretend to be a couple despite absolutely hating each other.
- Release Date
- December 22, 2023
- Director
- Will Gluck
- Cast
- Sydney Sweeney , Glen Powell , Alexandra Shipp , GaTa , Hadley Robinson , Michelle Hurd , Dermot Mulroney , Darren Barnet , Rachel Griffiths
- Distributor(s)
- Sony Pictures Releasing
