Jordan Peele-backed horror ‘Him’ earns $6.47m on opening day, trails behind anime hit ‘Demon Slayer’ at box office

Universal’s ‘Him’ has opened in second place at the North American box office, just behind last weekend’s top film ‘Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle’.

Jordan Peele's ‘Him’ box office

The R-rated horror collected $6.47 million on its opening day, including $2 million from preview screenings, across 3,168 locations.

Boosted by IMAX and premium large format screenings, the film is now tracking for a $15 million opening weekend. While that figure falls short of early estimates of $18 million or more, it is still considered a steady start given the film’s modest $27 million production budget.

Directed by Justin Tipping and produced under Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions, ‘Him’ is described as a Faustian football fable that critiques the darker side of professional sports. Tipping explained, “For me, this is a story about what happens when the athlete becomes the commodity.”

The filmmaker further added, “Football is body horror. Suddenly you are just a warm body being moved around by institutions that are there to drive profit.”

Jordan Peele, whose company has built a reputation for original horror, praised Tipping’s vision. “Justin is an incredible visionary,” Peele said.

“There is so much striking imagery in ‘Him’ that you will never see in another film… Above anything else, Justin is cool, and he has this ability to capture that over-the-top polish of pro football, while also allowing this creepy sense of humour to sneak in underneath it.”

The film explores the pursuit of greatness in sport, linking modern-day football culture to historical “mob football” games of medieval England. Its title, ‘Him’, references the modern phrase “the G.O.A.T.” — the Greatest of All Time.

Distributed by Universal Pictures India and Warner Bros. Discovery, Him releases in Indian cinemas on 19 September 2025.