UK-Ireland box office up 18% year-on-year after ‘The Odyssey’, ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ boost strong July

UK-Ireland box office revenue jumped 35% year-on-year in July due to the performance of summer blockbusters The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

According to figures provided by Rentrak, the £178m earned last month is up on the £132m generated in July 2025. The year-to-date has passed £783m, running 18% ahead of 2025 and 34% ahead of 2024, and making it likely that 2026 will be the strongest box office year since the Covid pandemic.

July was the first time that two films have taken more than £50m in a single month of box office reporting. Universal’s The Odyssey led the way with £56.2m. It is the highest-grossing film of the year to date, ahead of Toy Story 5 (£53.2m) and Michael (a lower £53.2m). It is also likely to become Christopher Nolan’s highest-grossing film in the territory within the next few weeks, currently behind only Oppenheimer (£59.8m), Dunkirk (£56.8m) and The Dark Knight Rises (£56.5m).

Sony’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day is up to £53m from nine days in cinemas, including a £23.5m three-day opening weekend and £36.4m opening including previews, the fourth- and third-biggest ever respectively. It is tracking 14% ahead of 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, which ended on £97.3m and is still the fourth highest-grossing film of all time in the territory.

Holdover titles in the top 10 for the month included Disney’s Toy Story 5, in third place with £20.9m having been the top film in June. Its £53.2m cume makes it the seventh highest-grossing animated title of all time, and it will overtake films including Frozen 2 (£53.8m) before the end of its run.

Universal horror Obsession makes the top 10 for a third consecutive month, having added £2.5m in July towards its £19.5m cume. It is the third highest-grossing film ever with horror as a primary genre, behind only The Woman In Black (£21.3m) and It (£32.3m).

Universal dominated the month among distributors, with four of the top 10 titles including the number one. Disney took two spots, with one each for Sony, Black Bear – Olivia Wilde’s The Invite with a decent £3.7m – Studiocanal, and Warner Bros.

The Odyssey leads the year-to-date chart with £56.2m, although Brand New Day is likely to be in top spot by next weekend. Universal also has four titles in that chart including numbers one, three and five; while Disney and Sony have two each, with one each for Warner Bros and Lionsgate.

Summer holdovers will play well into August, with a softer schedule of new releases. New titles include Paramount’s Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie and Disney comedy Super Troopers 3 from today (August 7), with Warner Bros’ action film The End Of Oak Street and True Brit’s UK comedy-drama Sunny Dancer from August 14.

Later in the month are Sony horror Insidious: Out Of The Further on August 21 and Ridley Scott’s Dog Stars on August 28. Re-releases are filling schedules at the end of the month, with The Fast And The Furious, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone and La La Land among the back catalogue titles re-entering cinemas on August 28.

• From pre-sales to distribution: inside UK indie filmmaking with Sunny Dancer team - The Screen Podcast