Following the surprise box office success of the 2025 original comedy movie cast of One of Them Days alongside Katt Williams, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Lil Rel Howery, and Maude Apatow, are set to reprise their leading roles as best friends and roommates Dreux and Alyssa. Set in a vibrant Los Angeles landscape, One of Them Days is written by Syreeta Singleton, directed by Lawrence Lamont, and is currently streaming exclusively on Netflix.

With the slate of summer 2025 blockbusters set to ramp up in June 2025, there have only been a handful of financially successful non-franchise movies so far. Bong Joon-ho's Disney's The Amateur, a remake of a forgotten 1981 espionage film, also amassed just under $96 million. Perhaps the biggest box office success story for an original concept is Ryan Coogler's Sinners, which currently stands as the seventh highest-grossing movie of the year with a worldwide total of $351.5 million.

One Of Them Days Was 2025's First Success Story

It Did So Well, It's Getting A Sequel

One of Them Days was the first truly unexpected box office hit of 2025. Following its theatrical release date of January 17, 2025, One of Them Days earned a worldwide box office total of roughly $51.9 million against a reported production budget of $14 million.

One of Them Days was also one of the first critically acclaimed movies of 2025, earning a Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 94% paired with a Verified Hot 90% audience score.

One of Them Days was also one of the first critically acclaimed movies of 2025, earning a Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 94% paired with a Verified Hot 90% audience score. It remains one of the few 2025 films that received both Certified Fresh and Verified Hot ratings, ing the likes of Sinners, Warfare, and Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning.

Once One of Them Days hit Netflix in April 2025, it quickly became a streaming hit, which – combined with its critical acclaim and box office performance – likely contributed to it getting a sequel. According to Variety, "Palmer and SZA are expected to return for the new movie, along with the film’s original creative team, but plot details are still being kept under wraps." While a $50 million box office may not seem like anything groundbreaking, it is an undeniable achievement considering its January release, low budget, and R-rating.

One Of Them Days Is A Win For Original Stories And Straightforward Comedies

Both Are Movies Hollywood Tends To Ignore

Given that nearly every major theatrical release in the top 20 highest-grossing movies of 2025 on the domestic box office chart is some kind of established IP, One of Them Days arrives as a breath of fresh air. With Hollywood studios trending towards relying heavily on their franchise expansions in the form of various sequels and prequels, One of Them Days proves that there is still a large appetite for original content, especially those that are created by proven auteurs. Issa Rae was heavily involved in the production of One of Them Days, known best for her celebrated Emmy-winning HBO series Insecure.

Hollywood Needs To Pay Attention To 2025's Original Stories

In A Year Heavy With Franchises, Originality Stands Out

Based on the demonstrated success of original 2025 films like One of Them Days and Sinners, it would be nice if Hollywood started to invest in these kinds of fresh and unique movies more frequently. While the Marvel train will likely never stop chugging, these formulaic blockbusters are quite financially safe for studios to bank on. Still, franchises like Disney's live-action remakes have been quite hit-or-miss despite their conservative approach pulling from their own vault.

Establishing a new and original film franchise is incredibly challenging, especially in the current Hollywood landscape. Both One of Them Days and Sinners are alike in that they are now expected to produce sequels after becoming surprise box-office hits. Hopefully, this will revive the Hollywood trend to invest in more financially risky projects and visionary filmmakers. Other 2025 original movies, such as Ari Aster's Eddington, Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme, and Ben Safdie's The Smashing Machine, will continue this streak started by One of Them Days.

Sources: Box Office Mojo, Rotten Tomatoes, Variety