Summary

The Until Dawn film disappoints fans and critics, with low ratings on CinemaScore and Rotten Tomatoes.
Commercial performance is uncertain due to lackluster reviews and marketing.
There are continuing challenges to box office profitability with competition and the post-pandemic cinema landscape.

The Until Dawn live-action film is out, and the consensus coming out from fans and critics alike is that it’s neither a solid movie nor a solid adaptation. Such reviews are likely to take a toll on its commercial performance.

Until Dawn is a film adaptation of Supermassive Games’ 2015 sleeper hit video game. Director David F. Sandberg and writers Gary Dauberman and Blair Butler decided to take a different route from the source material. The premise is the same in that it follows a group of teens arriving at a remote cabin in the snowy wilderness, but instead of being a blind copy-and-paste, the film instead focuses on the mechanics of the game, particularly decision-making and consequences. Although novel, players of the game found this choice distasteful and reacted disappointingly to Until Dawn’s first trailer.

Until Dawn Review: Some Convoluted Storytelling Doesn't Completely Kill This Fun Horror Adaptation

Until Dawn sometimes falters under its convoluted plot mechanisms, but it's a fun, scary ride nonetheless.

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By Colin Leggett

Until Dawn released theatrically on April 25 and a day later, reviews and scorecards were out from audiences. On CinemaScore, the movie received a paltry C+ and 53% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Compared to other R-rated horrors on CinemaScore, Until Dawn sits at the lower end of the barrel, even for a post-pandemic film. For reference, it’s ranks below the unprecedented A of Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, the A- of A Quiet Place II, and the B+ of Scream 6, The Conjuring 3, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, A Quiet Place: Day One, and Haunted Mansion. The film shares the C+ room with titles like The Nun 2 and Insidious: The Red Door. Among video-game-to-film adaptations, it’s a similar story — all the Sonic the Hedgehog movies have an A, as did The Super Mario Bros. Movie; even fellow horror, Five Nights At Freddy's, had a respectable A-.

A C+ on CinemaScore Is Not Good News For Until Dawn's Box Office Hopes

It Gets Even Worse for R-Rated Horrors

After years away from his roots, Until Dawn’s reviews are certainly not a return to the horror genre that Sandberg envisioned, having been mostly accustomed to at least decent scores in Annabelle: Creation and Lights Out. Meager reviews wouldn't trouble many filmmakers if the commercial front is doing okay. Sadly, that is likely not to be the case for Until Dawn. In post-COVID-saturated cinema, even a B on CinemaScore is shaky ground, talk more of a C+. Hollywood is still only witnessing the power of an A in Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, which is poised to lead the box office for two consecutive weekends.

Reviews aren’t the only thing that threatens Until Dawn’s commercial performance. The movie’s marketing has been lackluster and, despite having a cult following, theaters aren’t going to be filled with only this demographic. Currently tracking to open domestically with $8-$12 million over the weekend on a $15 million budget, the film’s profitability prospects are still uncertain, especially considering the arrival of fresh competition in the coming weeks. No doubt, Epic Pictures’ The Mortuary Assistant would be watching closely. The film adaptation of Brian Clarke’s 2022 indie horror game of the same name recently announced its lead actors and would likely want to appeal to both fans and their pockets.

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Release Date: April 25, 2025
Runtime: 103 Minutes
Director: David F. Sandberg
Writers: Gary Dauberman, Blair Butler
Producers: Carter Swan, Roy Lee, Gary Dauberman, Charles Miller, Lotta Losten, Asad Qizilbash