Last weekend saw the release of three major Indian films in North America—representing the Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi film industries.
Among them, Siddhu Jonnalagadda’s Jack appeared to have the best prospects, thanks to the young actor’s strong track record.
Siddhu’s previous film Tillu Square grossed $2 million and became one of the all-time biggest Telugu hits in North America.
Riding on that success, Jack became a hot property, and the distributor acquired it for a hefty advance. However, after multiple delays and a weak opening, the film is now expected to incur significant losses — reportedly up to 80% of the distributor's investment.
Jack managed to gross only around $195,000 over its four-day opening weekend and is expected to end its total run just above $200,000. The film needed at least $1 million to break even, underlining the scale of the loss.
In contrast, the Hindi film Jaat, directed by Telugu filmmaker Gopichand Malineni and produced by Mythri Movie Makers, also ended up as a major flop.
It earned approximately $300,000 in its opening weekend, reflecting limited interest in both Malineni’s directorial appeal and Sunny Deol’s star power. The film was largely rejected due to its clichéd narrative.
Ajith’s Good Bad Ugly emerged as the surprise winner of the weekend. The film resonated well with core Tamil audiences, grossing over $1 million in its first weekend and becoming a solid hit.
Meanwhile, Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi, starring Pradeep Machiraju, did not have a North American release.
