Could Companion Be the First Horror Box Office Hit of 2025?

2025 got off to a slow start at the box office, but that’s true for most years. January is not exactly a great month; in fact, it’s usually an opportunity for studios to drop movies they have less faith in. of course every now and then we get a breakout hit like Liam Neeson’s Taken, but this is the exception rather than the rule. However, as January gives way to February, we must look to greener pastures. Leading the charge will be new sci-fi horror film The Companion , which looks set to end this year’s crop of January releases on a high note.

Hailing from Warner Bros., first-time feature director Drew Hancock’s “Satellite” is now eyeing an opening in the $10 million to $15 million range when it opens next weekend, for Cash theory. WB was frugal with this one, which only cost $10 million. Even with significant marketing spend, an opening in that range will set Companion up for success out of the gate. The only major problem is that there will be a lot of competition for the horror crowd: Steven Soderbergh’s The Presence isn’t out until a week later; slasher “Heart Eyes” arrives next weekend; and “Monkey” will also be around the corner.

Working towards this film will be a positive buzz. / Film director Chris Evangelista called The Companion “the first great movie of 2025” in his review 9 out of 10. He’s not the only one because he has an 89% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. If audiences agree, it should help the film beyond its opening weekend, which will help a lot in the genre’s fierce competition.

An opening in the $10 million to $15 million range would put “Companion” on par with last year’s “Speak No Evil” remake ($11.4 million opening / $76.7 million worldwide). If things go really well, we could be looking at something closer to Long Legs ($22.4M opening/$126.9M worldwide). Even at the lowest level, we’re sure to expect a hit.

While the studio is wisely keeping plot details under wraps to maintain a sense of mystery, Companion is being called “a new kind of love story.” Broadly speaking, the focus is on a highly advanced female robot wreaking havoc. The cast is led by Jack Quaid (“The Boys”) and Sophie Thatcher (“Yellow Jackets”).

Another thing that WB is leaning towards is that this is coming from the producers of Barbarian, and specifically from that film’s director, Zack Kreger. WB and New Line quickly settled on Kreger after his 2022 horror film became a surprise hit, signing a contract with the director, as well as acquiring the rights to his new film “Weapons”. It makes sense that they would use a similar playbook for this one as they did for The Barbarian, leaning towards the mystery of it all.

While the horror genre has been a very reliable genre during the pandemic era, things haven’t been so good lately. Blumhouse’s The Wolf Man recently disappointed with a less than $11 million opening despite ​​projections showing it will open closer to $20 million. In this case, reviews and word of mouth were hard to beat. These things happen. Fortunately, with the information we have in front of us, it looks like Hancock’s debut will avoid that outcome.

The Satellite opens in theaters on January 31, 2025.