Pirated Hollywood movies topped the box office in Russia for the first time in two years

For the first time since 2024, Hollywood films—which are being shown in theaters as part of pirated screenings—have topped the box office in Russia.

This was reported by Russian media, citing data from the Unified Automated Information System.

According to the results of the weekend of May 16–17, the highest-grossing “release” was the short film “Farewell,” which grossed about 54 million rubles. At the same time, Hollywood films were actually being shown under this title—the sequel to “The Devil Wears Prada” starring Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, as well as the thriller “Project ‘End of the World’” starring Ryan Gosling.

Other major Hollywood premieres were also shown under the guise of the short films “Edge of Inspiration” and “Take the Plunge.”

Such screenings are taking place in a number of Russian cinema chains.

The previous instance of pirated content topping the Russian box office was recorded in June 2024, when the animated film “Inside Out” was screened under the guise of a short film.

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