The Australian-shot Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has opened strongly grossing $3.78 million to take top spot at the box office while action-comedy The Fall Guy, which was also shot locally, has passed the $10 million mark.
The latest installment in the long-running Planet of the Apes franchise was released across 580 screens giving it a screen average of $6521 – a similar opening weekend performance as The Fall Guy last month.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was shot in Australia in late 2022 and early 2023 at Disney Studios, employing more than 1000 cast, crew, and extras and injecting $135 million dollars into the Australian economy, according to Disney.
“The production provided a meaningful boost to our screen and creative sector through employment, skills development, and use of local businesses,” Walt Disney Company Australia and New Zealand senior vice president and managing director, Kylie Watson-Wheeler, said.
Industry representative Ausfilm has said that Australian-shot films have grossed close to a billion dollars this year in total at the global box office. That figure should rise substantially with the release of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga later this month.
The Fall Guy took second spot at the box office in its third week at cinemas. It grossed $1.72 million – a 30 per cent drop on the previous weekend – across 414 screens.
Paramount’s kid-friendly IF, starring Ryan Reynolds, posted $709,640 in preview screenings to take third spot. The Zendaya tennis drama Challengers grossed $528,165, taking its tally to $3.95 million, while Kung Fu Panda 4 added another $441,408 in its seventh week. The Jack Black-voiced animated film has now grossed $24.1 million at Australian cinemas.
Australian box office data is sourced via Numero.
Australian films box office performance (2024)
| Film | Budget (est) | Distributor | Opening w/e | Weeks | Box office |
| Force of Nature: The Dry 2 | Roadshow | $1.6m | 13 | $7.31m | |
| Late Night With The Devil | – | Maslow Entertainment | $242,000 | 5 | $835,000 |
| Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back | Maslow Entertainment | $88,000 | 9 | $365,278 | |
| The Trust Fall: Julian Assange | Journeyman Pictures/Films For Change | $1300 | 16 | $330,000 | |
| Before Dawn | $10m | Umbrella | $99,971 | 6 | $258,000 |
| Just a Farmer | $1.9m | VAM Paddock Productions | $40,070 | 8 | $137,000 |
| The Rooster | Bonsai Films | $24,480 | 7 | $71,000 | |
| The Emu War | – | Umbrella Entertainment | – | 17 | $13,298 |
| TOTAL | $9.31m |
Films shot in Australia box office performance (2024)
| Film | Budget (est) | Distributor | Opening w/e | Weeks | Box office |
| Anyone But You | $US25m | Sony | $2.87m | 15 | $22.64m |
| Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire | $US135-$US150m | Warner Bros. | $5.6m | 6 | $18.62 |
| The Fall Guy | $US125m | Universal | $3.7m | 2 | $10.02m |
| Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes | $US160m | Disney | $3.78m | 1 | $4.01m |
| TOTAL | $55.29m |