SONY Pictures executives woke up on Christmas Day convinced their new romantic comedy Anyone But You was a dud.

The movie, starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell as arch-nemeses forced to pose as a couple, generated just US$6 million in ticket sales in its first weekend. Considering that most films peak in the first few days, the studio estimated Anyone But You would be lucky to hit US$25 million in the US.

Then a funny thing happened. Ticket sales increased for six days in a row and Anyone But You delivered higher sales for two straight weekends – a rare achievement, according to Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at researcher Comscore. The film, which cost about US$25 million to produce, has grossed about US$60 million worldwide and is expected to ultimately cross US$100 million.

The film’s success shows there’s still a place in theatres for a romantic comedy made on a lean budget – especially when aided by strong social-media momentum. The genre has been all but surrendered to Netflix by major studios, which have cut back on such pictures in favour of superhero franchises and inexpensive horror films.

“The success of Anyone But You has been led by the audience,” the film’s director, Will Gluck, said in an email. “They seem to have a great time watching it, feeling it, humming it – and have echoed this to their friends, family and social media. And there is no better marketing than that.”

Anyone But You almost never made it to theatres. The film wasn’t yet connected with a studio when Gluck agreed to rewrite the script and take on the project. He signed on after finding out that Sweeney and Powell, two rising stars, had signed on to play opposite each other.

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Netflix and Amazon.com both looked at the project, but Gluck urged Sony, where he made Easy A and Peter Rabbit, to jump on it. Production began last February in Australia.

Sony took a big swing at an R-rated sex comedy last year with the Jennifer Lawrence film No Hard Feelings. Produced at almost twice the cost of Anyone But You, it grossed US$87 million worldwide.

Neither Sweeney nor Powell is as big a star as Lawrence, but they have gained loyal followings after starring in HBO’s Euphoria and Paramount’s Top Gun: Maverick, respectively.

That’s helped make Anyone But You especially popular with women ages 14 to 40, who have turned the picture a social-media phenomenon. Although the film received mixed reviews from critics, it has an 86 per cent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Screenings have become events where fans sing along to Unwritten, a 2004 pop song by the British singer Natasha Bedingfield that serves as the film’s unofficial anthem. Many women have written about their experiences on TikTok, Instagram and X, with Sweeney sharing the posts to a wide audience.

Other recent successes – like Encanto or Sound of Freedom – have fit a similar pattern, with powerful social-media momentum proving more effective than the official marketing. BLOOMBERG