Hollywood Films in India: A Mixed Bag with Only One Real Winner | English Movie News

Hollywood’s 2025 releases underperformed in India, with only ‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’ crossing Rs 100 crore. Other big-budget films like ‘Captain America’ and ‘Thunderbolts’ struggled, facing competition from strong local cinema and changing audience preferences favoring OTT releases. ‘F-1’ and ‘Jurassic Park: Rebirth’ showed promise, but overall, Hollywood needs a new strategy to engage Indian viewers effectively.

Despite the increasing global popularity of Hollywood blockbusters and the expanding Indian market for international cinema, the 2025 Hollywood film slate has largely underperformed in Indian theaters. With just Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning crossing the coveted Rs 100 crore mark at the Indian box office, the rest of the lineup has posted modest earnings — highlighting both the changing tastes of Indian audiences and the shifting dynamics of global cinema consumption.

The Sole Success: Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning

Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning stood as the only clear winner, earning Rs 103.77 crore in India as per Sacnilk. This success is no surprise, considering the franchise’s long-standing popularity, Tom Cruise’s star power, and the film’s high-octane action, which appeals to Indian audiences who have long embraced spectacle-driven entertainment.The Mission: Impossible franchise has always fared well in India, and the latest installment benefited from its loyal fan base, aggressive marketing, and favorable release window. However, even with its success, the fact that only one film surpassed Rs 100 crore paints a broader picture of Hollywood’s struggle to dominate Indian box offices this year.

Box Office Underachievers

Several other high-profile releases, despite big names and significant marketing budgets, failed to crack the Rs 50 crore barrier — with a few barely crossing Rs 10 crore. Out of the list two films are currently performing better are Brad Pitt’s F-1 and Scarlett Johansson‘s Jurassic Park- Rebirth, both have managed to cross Rs 50 crore mark, while Final Destination Bloodline also crossed that mark with the latest film in the franchise.. Here’s a look at how they performed:

Even franchises like Captain America and Thunderbolts, which typically enjoy strong openings and sustained collections worldwide, couldn’t make a deep mark in India. This underperformance suggests more than just market fatigue — it points to a change in the Indian moviegoer’s viewing preferences.

What Went Wrong?

There are several factors contributing to the lackluster box office results of these Hollywood films:

1. Franchise Fatigue

Audiences, especially in India, may be growing tired of long-running franchises. Marvel’s Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts, for example, struggled to generate buzz. The decline in enthusiasm toward the Marvel Cinematic Universe globally is reflected in India as well, where earlier MCU releases like Avengers: Endgame had set the bar extremely high. Without fresh storytelling and compelling character arcs, even brand loyalty has limits. Jurassic Park: Rebirth has pretty much rebooted the entire franchise and with the addition of Scarlett after running her course with Marvel films added to the charm of the film and the same thing happened with Final Destination Bloodline.

2. Strong Local Competition

Hollywood films now face stronger competition from local industries. Bollywood and regional films, particularly South Indian cinema, have been producing high-quality content with mass appeal. Movies like Pushpa, Kalki 2898 AD, and others have dominated the Indian box office, leaving little room for foreign language films unless they offer something truly exceptional.

3. Limited Appeal of Niche Genres

Some films, such as Mickey 17 and Sinners, are niche sci-fi or philosophical thrillers that may appeal to urban cinephiles but not the broader Indian movie-watching public. Their modest collections (Rs 8.84 crore and Rs 10.47 crore respectively) reflect limited market penetration beyond major metros.

4. OTT and Changing Viewing Habits

Many audiences now prefer to wait for OTT releases. Unless a Hollywood film is a visual spectacle or a franchise event, the motivation to watch it in theaters diminishes. With platforms acquiring post-theatrical rights quickly, the theatrical window is shrinking — reducing box office potential.

Bright Spots and Missed Opportunities

While Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning dominated, F-1 (Rs 61.27 crore) and Jurassic Park: Rebirth (Rs 54 crore) showed respectable performance, especially for fans of action and nostalgia. These films could have earned more with better timing and marketing but still stood above others.How to Train Your Dragon (Rs 24.96 crore) and Thunderbolts (Rs 23.92 crore) posted near-identical figures but failed to break out despite being part of beloved franchises. Their inability to scale higher reveals diminishing returns on franchise familiarity alone.Meanwhile, animated and fantasy films like Snow White (Rs 6.54 crore) and Lilo and Stitch (Rs 8.95 crore) struggled significantly, likely due to their positioning as children’s content and weak theatrical draw compared to Indian family-oriented films.While Hollywood films continue to hold a place in Indian hearts, 2025 has made it clear that brand names and big budgets alone aren’t enough. With Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning being the sole Rs 100 crore club member, the rest of the films serve as a wake-up call. In a rapidly evolving and competitive entertainment landscape, Hollywood must rethink its approach if it wishes to keep the Indian audience engaged.