Young Washington Earns $20 Million, Angel’s Largest Live-Action Debut

Young Washington took $20 million over the July 4 holiday weekend, playing on fewer than 3,000 screens and finishing #2 at the U.S. box office on the holiday itself. The Angel Studios and Wonder Project film, a PG-13 historical drama on the early military life of George Washington, opened July 3, the day before America’s 250th birthday. Hollywood in Toto, the trade newsletter that broke out the figures, called the run the perfect counter-programming to a weekend otherwise dominated by franchise tentpoles.

Those numbers gave Angel Studios its largest-ever three-day opening for a live-action title, per Hollywood In Toto. The film also ranks as the company’s second-biggest opening weekend overall, behind the animated musical David. General audiences gave the film a 92 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, while mainstream critics cuffed it at 59 percent “rotten.” Director Jon Erwin has already begun writing a follow-up, a Revolutionary War film he has titled 1776.

A $20 Million Opening on a Fraction of the Screens

The July 4 holiday aligned on a Saturday in 2026, a calendar alignment Box Office Theory noted hadn’t occurred with a normally functioning box office in 11 years. Young Washington landed in the middle of it, taking in $20 million over the long weekend, with daily tracking putting it ahead of several major franchise titles on the actual July 4 day. Hollywood In Toto reported the figure alongside details of the theater footprint: fewer than 3,000 screens, against the 4,000-plus that bigger studio releases typically deploy.

The 250th birthday landed at a moment when Hollywood’s major studios had mostly sat out the anniversary, with most patriotic-themed programming going to streaming or cable rather than wide theatrical release. Angel and Wonder Project stepped into the gap with a young George Washington biopic aimed at families and history-minded adults. Hollywood In Toto framed the result as an adult alternative to the weekend’s bigger franchise releases, including Toy Story 5, Supergirl, and Minions and Monsters. Young Washington came in second overall on July 4 itself, per the report.

• Opening weekend: $20 million
• Theater count: fewer than 3,000 screens
• Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 92 percent fresh
• Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 59 percent rotten
• Rank on July 4: #2 at the U.S. box office

Angel’s Largest Live-Action Debut Ever

The $20 million run is Angel Studios’ biggest three-day opening weekend for a live-action title, surpassing any previous entry the company has released in that format. It also slots in as Angel’s second-biggest opening weekend overall, a rung below the $22 million earned by David, the studio’s animated musical on the biblical king, when it opened in December 2025. Angel’s press release on the David opening called that animated musical the company’s “best 3-day theatrical opening in Angel history,” at the time noting it had surpassed Sound of Freedom’s $19.6 million opening. Young Washington now sits between those two figures in Angel’s overall rankings and ahead of Sound of Freedom for the live-action crown. Angel’s distribution slate has rotated between animated musicals and live-action dramas, and Young Washington tops the live-action half of that ledger.

Sound of Freedom, the child-trafficking drama that put Angel on the map as a theatrical force, was the studio’s previous live-action record-holder at $19.6 million. That film went on to gross more than $250 million worldwide, the company has said, on a path that established Angel’s guild-driven marketing model. Young Washington’s $20 million opening is now Angel’s largest live-action debut, just above that previous benchmark.

Angel’s guild-style distribution model, in which paying guild members help drive opening-weekend turnout, has been the company’s calling card since Sound of Freedom broke out. Young Washington introduces William Franklyn-Miller in the title role, with Kelsey Grammer, Mary-Louise Parker, and Sir Ben Kingsley in supporting parts, per Angel’s December 2025 announcement of the film’s release slate. Angel Studios distributes the film jointly with Wonder Project, the same studio behind the House of David series on Amazon Prime. The runtime is 2 hours and 5 minutes and the rating is PG-13.

Where Critics Stopped and Audiences Started

Rotten Tomatoes registered a familiar split for Angel Studios releases: a strong audience score alongside a softer critic score. General audiences gave Young Washington a 92 percent “fresh” rating on the platform, while the critics’ tally came in at 59 percent “rotten”. On the separate CinemaScore measure, Young Washington’s official film page lists a 93 percent Audience CinemaScore for the movie. The audience rating sits firmly “fresh” while the critic rating sits in “rotten” territory.

Pre-release tracking had the critics’ number higher. Box Office Theory’s forecast piece the week before the opening put the Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score at 71 percent fresh. The post-opening number, per Hollywood In Toto, came in at 59 percent rotten, with the figure moving between forecast and final as more reviews landed. Hollywood In Toto wrote that mainstream critics cuffed the movie at 59 percent “rotten.” The audience numbers, by contrast, came in at 92 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and 93 percent on CinemaScore, both figures that place the film in the highest audience tier on their respective scales.

Counter-Programming on the 250th

July 4 fell on a Saturday in 2026, a calendar alignment Box Office Theory noted hadn’t occurred with a normally functioning box office in 11 years. The 250th birthday of the United States, on top of the calendar coincidence, gave patriotic counter-programming a natural runway. Box Office Theory’s pre-release piece flagged the wide range of America 250 celebrations taking place around the country, with moviegoing competing against multi-day civic events.

Hollywood’s major studios did not commit to the anniversary in any concentrated way, and most studios left patriotic-themed programming to streaming or cable. Angel and Wonder Project, both relatively newer entrants to the wide-release business, stepped into the gap. Young Washington opened on fewer than 3,000 screens, per Hollywood In Toto’s box office recap, against the 4,000-plus that the weekend’s bigger franchise releases deployed. The film was framed by Hollywood In Toto as an adult alternative to the weekend’s bigger franchise releases, including Toy Story 5, Supergirl, and Minions and Monsters.

The audience showed up at a level that put the film inside the top three of the holiday weekend. Young Washington landed at #2 on the actual July 4 day, ahead of the rest of the wide-release slate on the holiday itself. Box Office Theory had flagged the holiday as a difficult window for family films, with one analyst noting that those titles typically see business decline sharply on July 4th.

‘1776’ Is Already in the Works

Erwin’s video addressing questions about a sequel ran over the holiday weekend. The reel’s opening card asks: “Is there a sequel to Young Washington coming?” Erwin then asks the same question inside the video before answering it himself. The new film, a Revolutionary War project, will continue the Washington story past Young Washington’s early-military timeframe, per Hollywood In Toto’s report of the announcement. The reel was posted through the Wonder Project account, which co-produced Young Washington with Angel Studios.

“If you think ‘Young Washington’ is big, wait until you see ‘1776.’ It’s epic in every way. It’s another incredible chapter in this man’s life and legacy.”

Jon Erwin, who directed and co-wrote Young Washington and is now writing 1776, made the announcement in a reel posted through the Wonder Project account over the July 4 holiday weekend. The reel pulled thousands of likes and a wave of comments from viewers who saw the film, per the post’s public engagement. The script is still being written, per Hollywood In Toto’s report.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Young Washington about?

Young Washington is a PG-13 historical drama about the early military life of George Washington, before he became the first U.S. president. The film follows a young Washington as he faces war, betrayal, and “impossible choices that will forge a leader,” per the official Angel Studios synopsis. The cast includes Kelsey Grammer, Mary-Louise Parker, and Sir Ben Kingsley, with William Franklyn-Miller in the title role.

Who made Young Washington?

Young Washington was directed by Jon Erwin and Daniel Edwards, with Erwin also producing and co-writing. The film is a co-production between Angel Studios and Wonder Project, with Angel distributing. The runtime is 2 hours and 5 minutes, and the rating is PG-13.

How much did Young Washington earn opening weekend?

Young Washington earned $20 million over the July 4 holiday weekend on fewer than 3,000 screens, per Hollywood In Toto’s report. It landed at #2 at the U.S. box office on the actual July 4 day. The figure makes it Angel Studios’ largest three-day opening for a live-action title.

Is there a sequel to Young Washington?

A follow-up film titled 1776 is in the works. Director Jon Erwin announced the project in a video posted through the Wonder Project account over the holiday weekend. The new film will cover the Revolutionary War period and continue Washington’s life story. Erwin described 1776 as “epic in every way” and “another incredible chapter in this man’s life and legacy.”

How does Young Washington compare to other Angel Studios openings?

At $20 million, Young Washington is Angel Studios’ largest three-day opening for a live-action title. It ranks as the studio’s second-biggest opening weekend overall, behind the $22 million earned by the animated musical David in December 2025. The previous live-action record was Sound of Freedom’s $19.6 million opening.