Anne Hathaway's psychological thriller "Verity" topped the domestic box office in its opening weekend, grossing an estimated $35 million across 3,800 theaters. The Amazon MGM Studios release, adapted from Colleen Hoover's bestselling 2018 novel, marks Hathaway's third number-one opening of 2026 and signals the enduring commercial appeal of the author's literary universe on screen.

Hathaway stars as Verity Crawford, a bestselling thriller author who suffers severe injuries in a car accident, leaving her unable to communicate. Her husband hires struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh, played by Dakota Johnson, to complete Verity's book series. As Lowen works through Verity's notes and manuscripts at the Crawford estate, she uncovers disturbing secrets about the author's past that blur the line between fiction and reality. Josh Hartnett rounds out the principal cast as Verity's husband Jeremy.

The film opened to strong reviews from audiences, earning an A-minus CinemaScore and drawing primarily female moviegoers. Exit polling showed that 72 percent of the opening weekend audience was female, and 58 percent were under the age of 35. The demographic breakdown mirrors the reader base that made Hoover's novel a viral sensation on social media platforms, particularly BookTok, where the book has accumulated more than 1.2 billion views since 2020.

"Verity" benefited from Amazon MGM's wide theatrical release strategy, which prioritized major multiplexes ahead of an eventual streaming debut on Prime Video. The decision to give the film a traditional theatrical window reflects Hollywood's renewed confidence in book-to-screen adaptations following the success of "It Ends With Us" earlier this year, which also adapted a Colleen Hoover novel and crossed $200 million worldwide.

The opening weekend performance positions "Verity" for a potential $100 million-plus domestic run, depending on word-of-mouth and competition from upcoming October releases. The film's $35 million debut exceeded industry tracking, which had projected an opening in the $28-32 million range. Strong Thursday night previews of $5.2 million, among the highest for an adult-skewing drama this year, signaled robust interest ahead of the weekend.

Tom Cruise's "Digger" stumbled in second place with just $10 million, far below the $30-35 million Warner Bros. had projected for the big-budget satirical comedy. The film, which cost a reported $150 million to produce, faced a challenging marketplace dominated by "Verity" and holdovers "Resident Evil" and "Heart of the Beast," which rounded out the top five with $9 million and $8.5 million respectively.

The success of "Verity" cements Hathaway's status as one of Hollywood's most bankable stars in 2026. Her previous two number-one openings came with "The End of Oak Street" in August and "Monster Protocol" in April, giving her a rare trifecta of top debuts in a single calendar year. The actress has dominated the box office conversation throughout the year, leveraging her star power across genres from action thrillers to literary adaptations.

Amazon MGM has not yet announced a streaming release date for "Verity," but industry observers expect the film to land on Prime Video sometime in December, following a traditional theatrical window of 45-60 days. The studio's dual-platform strategy aims to maximize both box office revenue and subscriber engagement, a model that has proven successful with earlier releases like "Road House" and "Red One."