Darshan-starrer The Devil, which released in theatres on Dec 11, 2025, opened to a smashing start at the theatres. The action-packed Kannada film which sees the star appear in a double role surpassed all expectations by earning Rs 10 crores on its first day at the Box Office.
This comes as a surprise as the lead actor of the film, Darshan Thoogudeepa was arrested in June 2024 in connection with the Renukaswamy murder where he stands accused. Though he was granted bail in December 2024, the actor was recently sent back into custody after the cancellation of the bail. With these circumstances on hand, few had expected the film to do well but it has proven otherwise.
Box Office collection and theatre occupancy on Day 1
The Devil had a successful first day at the Box Office, seeing a record number of footfalls in theatres across Karnataka. As mentioned previously, the film earned Rs 10 crores on the very first day of release according to industry tracker Sacnilk and if the momentum keeps up, it is highly likely that it will attain blockbuster status.
Theatres across Karnataka saw massive footfall with Bengaluru getting the most density. The Devil had an overall Kannada occupancy of 63.75% on December 11, 2025 as per Sacnilk with night shows pulling in the most numbers with 79.34% occupancy followed by evening shows with 63.47% occupancy.
Notably, Bengaluru also had the most number of shows with 901, followed by Mysuru with 102 shows and Mangaluru with 49 shows. Overall theatre occupancy in Bengaluru was 64% while Mysuru had 88.75% occupancy and Mangaluru, a meagre 22% occupancy as per Sacnilk. Theatre occupancies in other areas with fewer shows maintained an average of 62% occupancy.
About The Devil
Starring Darshan Thoogudeepa, Rachana Rai,Mahesh Manjrekar, Achyuth Kumar and Sharmiela Mandre in key roles, The Devil follows Darshan in a dual role as the innocent and simple Krishna and Danush Rajasekhar, the arrogant and corrupt son of a Chief Minister.
The story unfolds as Krishna’s quiet life is thrown into turmoil when he becomes entangled in Danush’s world of power and crime, leading to a gripping clash of morality versus corruption, innocence versus arrogance, and ultimately a battle for justice. Despite the film receiving mostly mixed-to-negative reviews, audiences have not been deterred and have instead made opening day a smashing hit for The Devil.