I know What You Did Last Summer reboot underwhelms at box office as cult classic maintains top spot
The latest installment of the legacy slasher, which reunited Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt, opened to a lukewarm $13 million domestically, the lowest debut in the franchise's nearly three-decade history.
Caught between two superhero juggernauts — DC 's Superman and Marvel's upcoming Fantastic Four: First Steps (which hits theaters this Thursday) — the horror reboot failed to make a splash.
This is a sharp contrast to the original 1997 film, which opened to $15.8 million and went on to gross over $125 million worldwide.
Released in the wake of Scream's success, I Know What You Did Last Summer helped define the teen slasher boom of the late 1990s.
With a tight, suspenseful plot — four friends cover up a hit-and-run, only to be stalked a year later by a hook-wielding figure who 'knows what they did' — it became a horror staple and cultural touchstone.
The 1998 sequel, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, wasn't as well-reviewed but still pulled in over $84 million globally.
Together, the first two films built a recognizable franchise out of Lois Duncan's original novel.
The 2025 reboot follows the now-adult survivors, who find themselves drawn back into a fresh cycle of terror after a new group of teens faces eerily similar threats.
Ultimately, it landed in third place, narrowly beating out Smurfs and the polarizing A24 Western Eddington.
While the film's $18 million budget keeps it in the realm of possible profitability, its lukewarm reception didn't help.
Critics gave it a 38% Rotten Tomatoes score, and audiences were equally unimpressed, handing it a tepid 'C+' CinemaScore.
Even director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson took the underwhelming reviews in stride, cheekily tweeting just one word: 'camp.'
Meanwhile, Superman continued to fly high, hauling in $57.3 million in its second weekend and bringing its global total to over $400 million.
With a modest 54% drop from its opening weekend, the reboot is holding strong — a crucial win for Warner Bros., which is betting on the film to launch a new era of DC superheroes.
Spinoffs like Supergirl and Clayface are already in the pipeline, along with a rebooted Wonder Woman.
Other newcomers didn't fare much better.
The Rihanna-led animated Smurfs movie opened to a soft $11 million, despite a sprawling A-list voice cast, and Eddington, Ari Aster's Western satire starring Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal, debuted with a sluggish $4.2 million and a less-than-stellar 'C+' CinemaScore.
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