A24’s Anthony Bourdain biopic “Tony” posted the best limited opening of the year so far, headlining a strong weekend at the specialty box office that also saw a Cannes prizewinner and a documentary anthology find early traction. The film, directed by Matt Johnson and starring Dominic Sessa as a 19-year-old Bourdain, earned close to $349,000 across six theaters in New York and Los Angeles for a per-theater average of $58,159.
The story follows a young Bourdain during a transformative summer working in a Provincetown kitchen, where he first discovered his passion for food, years before he became the bestselling author of “Kitchen Confidential” and the host of television series including “Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown.”
Backed by the Bourdain estate, the film features Antonio Banderas as his mentor alongside Emilia Jones, Stavros Halkias and Leo Woodall, and has drawn strong reviews from critics as well as endorsements from the restaurant and food industry. A24 will expand the release into additional major cities next weekend ahead of a nationwide rollout on August 21.
Also opening in platform release was Jane Schoenbrun’s “Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma,” a self-aware entry in the slasher genre that won the Queer Palm at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and has drawn strong reviews from critics ahead of its wider expansion. Elsewhere on the specialty circuit, “CatVideoFest 2026” cracked the overall box office top ten, while the documentary “Cookie Queens” posted a notable debut.
Among films further into their runs, Olivia Wilde’s “The Invite” continued performing steadily for A24, projected to add roughly $717,000 across 342 screens for a ninth-place finish domestically and a cumulative total of $24.2 million after seven weeks in release.
The specialty rebound came during a record-setting weekend for the wider marketplace. The summer domestic box office stood at $3.985 billion for the May 1 through August 9 period, just short of the $4 billion mark, with “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” driving the bulk of the gains. Distributors say the strength of both blockbuster and independent releases this month points to a healthier overall theatrical marketplace heading into fall awards season, when several of this weekend’s new arrivals are expected to factor into the conversation.
