The Forge box office explained – How it compares to other Christian movies
Sony Pictures ReleasingThe new Christian movie The Forge has put The Kendrick Brothers back on the map, but there’s a lot of friendly box office competition from the past few years.
The Forge follows 2015’s War Room, which they directed together. The 2024 drama is a spin-off of that, starring actors like Cameron Arnett, Priscilla Shirer, and Aspen Kennedy.
Sony Pictures released the new movie on August 23, 2024, under its AFFIRM Films division, described as “the industry leader in Faith-based films.” Its direct competition, then, was The Crow remake and Blink Twice.
Here’s a look at The Forge’s theatrical takings so far and how it stacks up to similarly successful Christian movies like Sound of Freedom.
How much money has The Forge made?
The Forge made $2.4 million in the US and Canada on its opening day, including $600,000 from Thursday night previews. Its worldwide total as of August 26, 2024, is $6,600,000.
Sony Pictures ReleasingIt’s worth noting there hasn’t been a full international rollout; its opening weekend put it in 2,500 theaters. Box Office Mojo’s report therefore is from domestic sales only.
How it compares to the highest-grossing Christian films
The Forge had a smaller opening weekend compared to the biggest Christian movies. However, it still performed well in the niche when limited distribution is taken into account.
Its opening weekend also fell short of War Room and The Sound of Freedom’s box office.
Box Office Mojo has a list of Christian-themed films so you can see the bigger picture. However, it’s more relevant to narrow this down to the movies that lean much heavier into religious themes and were marketed primarily around them (we wouldn’t say The Chronicles of Narnia, for example, is that religious).
Highest-grossing Christian films:
- The Passion of the Christ: $370,274,604
- The Sound of Freedom: $250,570,396
- Heaven Is for Real: $91,443,253
- I Can Only Imagine: $83,482,352
- War Room: $67,790,117
- Miracles from Heaven: $61,705,123
- God’s Not Dead: $60,755,732
- Son of God: $59,700,064
- The Shack: $57,386,418
- Soul Surfer: $40,852,824
- The Star: $40,852,824
The market has grown
Christian films have steadily grown in presence in theaters over the late 2010s and 2020s.
Even TV series have made a splash on the silver screen: The Chosen Season 4 played exclusively in theaters before any streaming plans were solidified. The Chosen episodes and the ‘Christmas with the Chosen’ special raked in $59,688,618 overall, according to The Numbers.
As the cinema industry continues to face struggles following the catastrophic effects COVID-19 had on theatrical distribution and consumer habits, niche markets have been an island in the storm.
There’s an opportunity for studios to get in on the action, too, evidenced by Sony’s joint venture with AFFIRM, launched to “meet the increasing demands from audiences looking for quality, mainstream films that reflect their spiritual beliefs and values.”
Alongside alternative strategies like increased classic movie showings, anniversary events, and the like, tapping into pockets of viewers usually underserved on the big screen has provided a steady cash flow from an unlikely source.
As pointed out by Deseret News’ report on increased demand, there’s a big overlap between Christian films and indie filmmaking and ‘clean entertainment’. The latter is “directed toward people who have content concerns and this audience encompasses people of all different kinds of faith or no faith at all.”
The Forge smartly opted to be kid-friendly, earning a PG rating from The Motion Picture Association (MPA). This in turn usually means a bigger audience and more opportunity for higher ticket sales.
The Forge’s box office gross will continue to increase as it plays in cinemas during August 2024.
Check out The Chosen Season 5, The Chosen filming locations, or how to watch Sound of Freedom for similar content.