UK independent films released in 2025 accounted for a 1.3% share of the worldwide box office, down from 1.7% in 2024 but up from 0.9% in 2023, according to statistics compiled and published by the British Film Institute (BFI).
Total gross for the top 20 UK independent films was $289m – down from the $383m recorded by the top 20 in 2024. Seven films grossed over $20m in 2025, the same as in 2024.
Disney/ Searchlight’s The Roses was the highest-grossing UK independent film released in 2025, with Jay Roach’s film grossing $45m across 20 territories, followed by Alex Garland’s Warfare, grossing $34.2m from 13 territories. A24 released in UK-Ireland and North America.
A UK-qualifying independent film, according to the BFI’s definition, is a film which passes the UK cultural test to be certified as British and is made without major US studio or US streamer involvement, in which significant financial and creative control rests with UK-based independent producers and/or creatives.
The BFI said there is flexibility with productions that come from studio subsidiaries, taking into account the film’s budget level, the filmmaker and the independent production companies that have propelled the project.
The Roses is directed by US filmmaker Jay Roach, and stars Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch. It was shot in the UK and was produced by Colman’s South Of The River Pictures and Cumberbatch’s SunnyMarch, with US company Delirious Media, for Disney’s Searchlight Pictures.
Only one UK independent film in the top 20 was directed by a woman – Marianne Elliott’s The Salt Path.
I Swear and Marching Powder made it into the top 20, despite only being released in 2025 in UK-Ireland.
UK independent films at the worldwide box office 2025
| Rank | Film | Origin | Box office | Territories |
| 1 | The Roses | UK-US | $45.3m | 20 |
| 2 | Warfare | UK-US | $34.2m | 13 |
| 3 | We Live In Time | UK | $26.9m | 10 |
| 4 | The Brutalist | UK-US-Hun | $25.9m | 20 |
| 5 | Conclave | UK-US | $25.6m | 10 |
| 6 | Last Breath | UK-US | $23.9m | 13 |
| 7 | The Salt Path | UK | $22.5m | 8 |
| 8 | The Penguin Lessons | UK-Sp-Ire | $17.1m | 16 |
| 9 | Becoming Led Zeppelin | UK-US | $15.2m | 17 |
| 10 | I Swear | UK | $8.2m | 1 |
| 11 | The Choral | UK-US | $6.6m | 2 |
| 12 | The Ballad Of Wallis Island | UK | $6.4m | 6 |
| 13 | Ocean With David Attenborough | UK-Monaco-US | $5.4m | 7 |
| 14 | Chal Mera Putt 4 |
UK-India | $5.2m | 9 |
| 15 | Fight Or Flight | UK-US-Hun | $4.1m | 8 |
| 16 | Marching Powder | UK | $3.9m | 1 |
| 17 | Houseful 5 | UK-India | $3.6m | 11 |
| 18 | Hard Truths | UK-Sp | $3.1m | 11 |
| 19 | Fackham Hall | UK | $3.1m | 3 |
| 20 | A Pale View Of Hills | UK-Japan-Pol-Sing | $2.7m | 2 |
Source: Comscore, BFI. Box office figures run up to February 22 2026.
Territory breakdown
UK independent films accounted for 1.1% of the North American box office in 2025, down from 1.3% in 2024, with Warfare the best performer.
The market share was 1.9% across Europe, down from 4% in 2024 (excluding UK-Ireland). In Europe, the Netherlands had the biggest UK independent market share (outside of UK-Ireland), with 4.9%, led by The Salt Path.
New Zealand had the biggest market share of UK independent films of any international territory, at 5.8%, up from 4.6% in 2024. Australia is in third with a market share of 4%, up from 2.8% in 2024. Conclave was the highest-grossing UK independent film in both of these countries.
In Asia, UK independent films had a 0.2% market share (up marginally from 0.1% in 2024). Box office for UK independent films was highest in Japan ($12.2m; 0.7% box office share), where Conclave performed strongest, followed by South Korea ($3.2m; 0.5% box office share) and Hong Kong ($1.1m; 0.7% box office share).
The market share in China was less than 0.1%. Three UK independent films were released in China during 2025, up from two in 2024. The highest-grossing title in the territory was Bambi: The Reckoning. Also released was Planet Earth: Everything Has Its Own Reason and a repertory title.
Taneli Mustonen and Brad Watson’s survival thriller The Bayou, produced by the UK’s Cowboy Cosmonaut and Tea Shop Productions and sold by Architect, did not make the top 20 for UK independent films internationally but was the highest-grossing UK independent film in Russia and Malaysia.
No comments yet