A Complete Unknown has landed on a major box office chart by the end of its first full week in theaters. The movie, which was directed by Walk the Line's James Mangold, follows iconic musician Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) during the early years of his career in the 1960s. The Complete Unknown release kicked off on Christmas Day, 2024, with an $11.6 million debut seeing it land at No. 6 on the chart as the second-best new release of the weekend behind Robert Eggers' horror remake Nosferatu.
Per The Numbers, A Complete Unknown has reached a cumulative domestic box office total of $25.68 million as of Monday, December 30. This means that it has taken the movie less than a week to land on the chart of the Top 100 highest-grossing movies based on a factual book or article at the domestic box office. With its total as of Monday, it has landed at No. 98 on the chart, surpassing the domestic grosses of Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World ($25.1 million) and the Mark Wahlberg-led inspirational dog movie Arthur the King ($25 million).
What This Means For A Complete Unknown
The Bob Dylan Biopic Could Keep Climbing
The Complete Unknown true story is likely what is helping drive audience interest in the movie, but it is already excelling even among similar movies. As it approaches its second weekend in theaters, it is entirely possible that the movie willhit a total of more than $30 million by Sunday, even if it drops 60% in its second weekend. This would see it climb to No. 89 on the chart by the end of just 10 days in theaters. Below, see the movies that are currently above it on the chart:
Rank
Title
Domestic Box Office
#97
Yours, Mine and Ours (1968)
$25.9 million
#96
The Elephant Man (1980)
$26 million
#95
Serpico (1973)
$27.3 million
#94
The Hindenburg (1975)
$27.9 million
#93
Molly’s Game (2017)
$28.8 million
#92
The Insider (1999)
$28.9 million
#91
Reagan (2024)
$29.4 million
#90
A Walk in the Woods (2015)
$20.5 million
#89
When the Game Stands Tall (2014)
$30.1 million
#88
Deliver Us from Evil (2014)
$30.6 million
However, it remains to be seen how high the movie can climb up the chart. The No. 1 title is Clint Eastwood's American Sniper, which grossed $350.1 million after debuting with a $58.8 million weekend in 2014. Although holiday season releases tend to have slow-and-steady box office growth, it seems unlikely that the Bob Dylan biopic has the same kind of blockbuster appeal. However, if it has the same level of growth as Walk the Line, which opened with $22.3 million, it could eventually hit $62.2 million overall, making it No. 45 on the chart, above 2016's Miracles from Heaven.
More to come...
Enjoy Screen Rant's box office coverage? Click below to sign up for my weekly box office newsletter (make sure to check "Box Office" in your preferences) and get exclusive analysis, predictions, and more:
A Complete Unknown is a biographical movie that follows a young Bob Dylan as he integrates with New York and catches the eye of the folk singers in the area, eventually propelling him into stardom.
Release Date
December 25, 2024
Runtime
140 minutes
Main Genre
Biography
CastTimothée Chalamet
, Edward Norton
, Elle Fanning
, Monica Barbaro
, Nick Offerman
, Boyd Holbrook
, P.J. Byrne
, Scoot McNairy
, Dan Fogler
, Will Harrison
, Charlie Tahan
, Jon Gennari
, Norbert Leo Butz
Character(s)
Bob Dylan
, Pete Seeger
, Sylvie Russo
, Joan Baez
, Alan Lomax
, Johnny Cash
, Harold Levanthal
, Woody Guthrie
, Albert Grossman
, Bob Neuwirth
, Al Kooper
, Stage Manager
Studio(s)
Searchlight Pictures
, The Picture Company
, Automatik Entertainment
Distributor(s)
Searchlight Pictures
This article covers a developing story. Continue to check back with us as we will be adding more information as it becomes available.
Custom image by Brennan Klein
English (US) ·