Varun Dhawan’s Baby John continues to struggle at the box office. According to early estimates, the film recorded a new low on Thursday, with collections dropping to just Rs 1 crore.
The action drama, directed by Kalees and featuring an ensemble cast that includes Keerthy Suresh, Wamiqa Gabbi, Jackie Shroff, and Salman Khan, has been overshadowed by blockbusters like Allu Arjun’s Pushpa 2: The Rule and Disney’s live-action Mufasa: The Lion King. . While Pushpa 2 has crossed the Rs 1,100 crore mark and Mufasa has surpassed Rs 120 crore, Baby John has managed a total collection of only Rs 36.40 crore so far.
The decline in numbers can be attributed to poor footfalls, leading to a reduction in the number of shows. Initially released across more than 3,500 screens, the film saw a sharp drop in collections from Day 2 onwards. Over the past week, many single-screen theaters have reportedly dropped Baby John from their schedules due to low audience turnout.Baby John is an official adaptation of the 2016 Tamil hit Theri, which starred Thalapathy Vijay in the lead role. Vijay’s performance in Theri is considered iconic, and stepping into those shoes was always going to be a challenge for Dhawan.
Amidst the drama surrounding the film’s poor performance, director Atlee’s bold claims ahead of the release have now come under scrutiny. Atlee declared that Varun was Bollywood’s next “superstar” and positioned Baby John as the film that would elevate him to the status of industry legends like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, and Salman Khan.
Atlee also compared Dhawan to Ranbir Kapoor, who recently enjoyed massive success with Animal. According to Atlee, Baby John was supposed to do for Dhawan what Animal did for Kapoor. Unfortunately, these comments have backfired, with the film’s lackluster box office performance drawing criticism online. Many have accused Atlee of overhyping the project.
Meanwhile, producer Dinesh Vijan’s Maddock Films has announced the sequel to Bhediya, starring Varun and Kriti Sanon. As per the announcement, Bhediya 2 is slated for release on August 14, 2026.
