While the headlines will most likely be dominated by director Paul Thomas Anderson‘s latest film, One Battle After Another, this week, an altogether unexpected new movie is putting up a strong challenge against it at the box office. The film in question is They Call Him OG, an Indian Telugu-language action thriller starring Pawan Kalyan. He’s one of the biggest movie stars of the Telugu film industry in India; this is the same industry that produced hits such as RRR, and the Baahubali duology. In fact, Pawan Kalyan is the uncle of RRR star Ram Charan.

They Call Him OG grossed $3.8 million at the domestic box office on Thursday, beating the $3.1 million haul posted by One Battle After Another. This is notable for many reasons; one, They Call Him OG is playing in roughly 800 screens as compared to One Battle After Another‘s estimated 3,200 screen-count; and two, it’s a foreign-language movie pitted against a Leonardo DiCaprio-led tent pole with tremendous reviews. And yet, the Indian film topped the domestic box office charts on Thursday. There can be no further doubts about just how robust and diverse the domestic theatrical market can be.

Thanks to RRR‘s success a few years ago, Indian movies have gradually been making their presence felt across the world, not just in North America. In 2023, three movies — Pathaan, Jawan, and Animal — grossed over $15 million each at the domestic box office. Last year, Pushpa 2: The Rule and Kalki 2898 AD grossed $13 million and $18 million, respectively. While the first three films are what Western audiences would describe as “Bollywood” — Hindi-language movies that are produced in the state of Maharashtra — the other two are Telugu-language films, produced in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

‘One Battle After Another’ and ‘They Call Him OG’ Have Both Been Acclaimed

Also featuring Benicio del Toro, Sean Penn, and Regina Hall, One Battle After Another is looking at a $45 million haul by Sunday, while They Call Him OG is projected to gross around $40 million globally in its extended debut. The movie is eyeing around $21 million domestically, making it the biggest opener of Anderson’s career. Produced on a reported budget of $140 million, One Battle After Another is currently sitting at a near-perfect 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes, while They Call Him OG holds an 88% score on the aggregator website. You can watch both movies in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

Release Date

September 26, 2025

Runtime

162 minutes

Director

Paul Thomas Anderson

Writers

Paul Thomas Anderson, Thomas Pynchon

Producers

Adam Somner