Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2025 action thriller ‘One Battle After Another,‘ starring Leonardo DiCaprio as a paranoid ex-revolutionary leader, drew strong reviews and widespread critical acclaim from both film critics and Hollywood veterans. It was even termed Anderson’s most entertaining work of his career.
Despite the praise, the film struggled at the box office, becoming one of the biggest big-budget disasters in DiCaprio’s illustrious career. Made on a massive $130-$175 million budget, the film only managed to earn $209 million worldwide after opening to $22 million domestically. This led to projected theatrical losses of up to at least $100 million (if not more). Here are the decisions that could have mitigated the financial shortfall.
1. A Significantly Lower Production Budget
The film’s biggest structural problem was always its bloated budget for an original. After all, an R-rated auteur project without any significant franchise elements and broad mass appeal has few takers.
Anderson’s previous projects, such as ‘There Will Be Blood‘ or ‘Inherent Vice‘ (both made on modest budgets), succeeded mainly because of prestige value and were not necessarily blockbusters.
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Ballooning to such a huge production budget made the possibility of breaking even almost impossible, even with solid grosses. A tighter budget of around $100 million, with fewer large set action pieces or even scaled-back VFX, could have given DiCaprio a realistic box office target of about $250 million.
It is no secret that high-production movies demand spectacle-driven tentpoles and not political satires written by Thomas Pynchon.
2. Broader Marketing To Attract A Wider Audience (Especially Women)
‘One Battle After Another’s marketing campaign was mysterious and enigmatic. The trailer emphasized the tone, atmosphere, and DiCaprio’s intense performance, but revealed little about the plot or intent. This may have worked for cinephiles or the viewers who have closely followed DiCaprio or Anderson’s career, but it largely alienated casual moviegoers.
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Audience demographics skewed heavily male, around 64% as per multiple reports, missing female moviegoers who are crucial for giving adult-oriented films strong box-office legs.
Sure, the film served up a delectable medley of chaotic action, absurdist comedy, and political commentary, but the promos gave female audiences little to connect with. A more accessible push, highlighting the father-daughter duo, thrilling action, and the film’s star power, could have balanced the aimless hype.
3. Trimming Runtime And Refining The Pacing For Mainstream Accessibility
In an era of shorter attention spans and competition from streaming, the film’s runtime of 2 hours 42 minutes demanded extra commitment from audiences. While critics praised the epic scope and set pieces (such as the standout desert highway chase), the duration contributed to perceptions of self-indulgence.
By cutting around 20-30 minutes, the film could have maintained the artistic integrity while making it more engaging for general audiences.
Ultimately, even though the ‘One Battle After Another‘ became a box office flop, it turned out to be the highest-grossing film of Paul Thomas Anderson’s career. It also built strong Oscar buzz and now stands as one of the red-hot favourites to win the award this year.
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