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'The Drama' Scores $14.4 Million Debut as Polarizing Reactions Test A24's Secretive Campaign

A stealth marketing strategy that hid a major reveal is drawing pushback from advocates.

Overview

  • - A24's The Drama opened to about $14.4 million, ranking among the distributor's stronger premieres for an original film.
  • - Audience responses are sharply split, with some praising the daring tone and others saying the promotion sold a lighter rom-com than the movie delivers; March For Our Lives called the campaign “deeply misaligned.”
  • - Reviews broadly commend Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, with critics framing the movie as a genre-flipping dark comedy that questions how much a partner’s past should shape a future together.
  • - Writer-director Kristoffer Borgli and editor Joshua Raymond Lee said they cut the film to “move at the speed of thought,” using rapid, non-linear edits to mirror characters’ racing minds.
  • - The choice to keep a pivotal story turn out of trailers boosted curiosity and box office yet is fueling a wider conversation about how studios market sensitive material.