The onset of "Twilight": why the Russian film distribution was led by a film from the noughties

The first part of the "Twilight" movie saga was released in a repeat Russian film distribution and unexpectedly headed the box office. Over the weekend, from September 17 to September 20, the film earned 164.1 million rubles, according to the EAIS data. He surpassed all the new products, including the work of director Alexei Nuzhny "How Ivan got into a fairy tale," which collected exactly 164 million. Fees for other releases did not exceed 26 million rubles. Why viewers are more willing to watch the 2008 film than a fairy tale with a stellar cast, a fresh Hollywood action movie and another story about Luntik, is in the "Izvestia" material.

The Return of the Vampire Saga

Usually, the years take their toll, but not in the case of "Twilight." For 18 years, the film franchise based on Stephenie Meyer's novels has not lost its fanbase, but, on the contrary, has multiplied it. On September 17, the saga returned to the big screens as part of a re-run and proved it. According to the EAIS Film Foundation, the film collected 40.8 million rubles on the first day of screenings alone. According to the results of the first weekend, this amount exceeded 164 million rubles, and the total fees of the film are approaching 200 million.

In 2008, when "Twilight" was released on big screens for the first time, there was no such result. The film was released in theaters on November 20 and, according to " <url>", earned 25.4 million rubles in the first weekend - even taking into account inflation, this is noticeably less than the current figures. The total fees of the film then amounted to $ 3.5 million, "Kinopoisk" indicates.

The cash register was only multiplied. In 2010, the third part of "Eclipse" showed a record start — it earned 122.5 million rubles on the very first day. The total fees in Russia then amounted to $ 26.3 million, surpassing even the first part of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." And all this despite the skeptical reviews of film critics.

Today, "Twilight", despite its age, is collecting the box office again. The average number of viewers per session, according to the EAIS, is 22. This is the best indicator among other films officially presented on the big screen in Russia last weekend.

Revisiting ""Twilight"" in the fall has become a kind of tradition for fans of the franchise — it's like revisiting "Harry Potter" in winter. The current interest is fueled by the format of going to the cinema — a collective experience when you can share your impressions with a large number of people. There are dozens of videos on social media where viewers quote the meme dialogues of Edward and Bella in unison.

""""It was clear from the results of the pre—sales that "Twilight" would be able to compete with the new films, although such fees are a unique story for a film to be re—released," Olga Zinyakova, general director of the KARO cinema chain, explained to Izvestia. — This weekend, the film deservedly took the first place in the top — its operating time is twice as high as that of its closest competitor. "Twilight" on the big screen is going viral on social networks, and big companies go to the sessions. Such a wave of success guarantees the film a good continuation of the rental, and on October 8 the second part of the vampire saga "New Moon" will be released, which will also compete for the box office with new releases.

From fairy tales to action

The second box office result of the weekend was the film "How Ivan got into a fairy tale." A new story from director Alexei Nuzhny about the boy Vanya, who has to save the fairy—tale characters from oblivion, lagged behind "Twilight" by less than 100 thousand rubles - 164 million. The total fees exceeded 170 million rubles. The average attendance is 18 viewers per session.

— "How Ivan got into a fairy tale" gathered a good cast with Miron Provorov, Maria Aronova, Irina Gorbacheva and Pelageya, which helped him stand out among other novelties. The project is running on an excellent sundress, and he has every chance to replenish his cash register next weekend," said Olga Zinyakova.

The top 3 of the domestic box office, noticeably inferior to the leaders, was rounded out by another novelty — "Courier" starring Alan Richson. He has only 26.5 million rubles for the weekend. In the center of the plot is Hank Malone, an Afghan veteran. He leads a lonely life and works as an elite courier. During the next order, Malone will have to deliver a donor liver for an emergency transplant to a little girl in three hours. However, one of the criminal gangs also finds out about the valuable cargo. This is how routine work turns into a series of shootouts and chases.

— Despite the fact that "Courier" took the third place in the top rental, the result for a large-scale thriller is not the most promising. The novelty lacked a more stellar cast — Alan Ritchson is practically unknown to the Russian audience, and Owen Wilson is more likely to be perceived as a comedic actor," said Olga Zinyakova.

Below is the "Sly Coyote" with the heroes of the Looney Tunes universe. A week after the premiere, the film's collections dropped by about 40%, amounting to 21.4 million rubles. At the same time, the running time for the session was 10 people, which is more than that of the action movie with Alan Richson, who has around eight viewers.

Cartoon "Luntik. The other side of the Moon" is located on the fifth line of the top. He added another 19.4 million rubles to his cash register. The total fees after four weeks at the box office are slowly but surely approaching 250 million. The number of viewers per session remains quite high — 15. According to the plot of the full-length cartoon, Luntik goes in search of his father, who once disappeared on the far side of the moon. At the moment, this story is the highest—grossing animated Russian project of 2026. However, the appearance of new products in the cinema repertoire in the foreseeable future may displace it from its leading position.

The historical adventure drama "The Hunt for the Emperor" continues to attract the attention of viewers. Over the past weekend, the film starring Stanislav Bondarenko and Milana Bru added another 15.3 million rubles to the box office. The total result has already exceeded 48 million. Alexey Pimanov's latest directorial work, which died in April 2026, tells about the events of 1812. In the story, Napoleon occupies the Kremlin. The monks of the Chudov monastery are preparing an assassination attempt on the emperor and mining the Arsenal. At the same time, a young noblewoman, Maria, is trying to shoot Napoleon to avenge her brother's death.