Hollywood
Instructions Not Included becomes highest grossing Spanish Language film in the US
MUMBAI: Pantelion Films’ Instructions Not Included has become the highest grossing Spanish Language film ever released in the US, according to distributor Lionsgate. With this weekend’s estimate of $3.38 million, the breakout family comedy/drama has a cumulative of $38.567 million in its fifth weekend at the American box office.
Starring and directed by Eugenio Derbez, the movie has passed Pan’s Labyrinth‘s $37.6 million as the new record holder. It’s also the fourth biggest grossing foreign language film ever in the US, behind only Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Taiwan), Life is Beautiful (Italy), and Hero (China).
Meanwhile, Instructions Not Included is yet to release in Canada. Word of mouth spread is also helping the pic garner eyeballs, and Instructions Not Included expanded its US run to target crossover audiences.
Made for a $5 million budget and acquired by Pantelion, it was the big story coming out of Labor Day Weekend for the best-ever domestic debut for a Spanish language film. Pantelion Films is a joint venture between Lionsgate and Mexico’s media powerhouse Televisa with plans for eight to10 films per year.
Hollywood
US theatre group opposes Paramount, Warner Bros. merger, calls it ‘harmful’
Exhibitors warn mega deal could shrink film output and weaken cinema ecosystem
LAS VEGAS: Cinema United has come out strongly against the proposed merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery, warning it could concentrate too much power in the hands of a single player and disrupt the global film ecosystem.
Speaking at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, the group’s chief executive Michael O’Leary did not mince words as he addressed thousands of theatre owners. The deal, reportedly valued at $110 billion, was agreed in March after Netflix exited the bidding process.
“We believe this transaction will be harmful to exhibition, consumers and the entire entertainment ecosystem,” O’Leary said, cautioning that greater consolidation would allow fewer distributors to dictate terms around release windows, scheduling and access to film libraries. Theatre owners argue that such scale could reduce competition and ultimately mean fewer films making it to cinemas.
Pushing back, a spokesperson for Paramount Skydance said the merged entity plans to release 30 films annually in theatres, while continuing to operate both studios separately. The company added that the deal would expand opportunities for creators and strengthen competition by backing more projects globally.
However, exhibitors remain unconvinced. Drawing parallels with The Walt Disney Company’s 2019 acquisition of Fox, O’Leary noted a drop in wide theatrical releases post-merger, reinforcing concerns that consolidation often leads to fewer films.
“Unfortunately, history shows us that consolidation results in fewer films being produced for movie theaters,” O’Leary said.
Beyond output, Cinema United also flagged concerns around theatrical windows, warning that a combined Paramount-Warner entity could exert greater control over how long films remain exclusively in cinemas before shifting to other platforms.
With the debate set to intensify, the clash highlights a familiar tension in Hollywood: scale versus diversity. For theatre owners, the stakes are clear, as they push to ensure that bigger does not mean fewer stories on the big screen.
