In September 1994, "Shawshank's Redemption" premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and Mansfield's Renaissance Theatre (Renaissance Theatre), and then began limited screenings in North America from the 23rd. The first weekend was 33. Movie theaters received US$727,000, an average of US$22,040 per house. On October 14, the film began its full release and was shown in 944 theaters. However, the first weekend only earned US$2.4 million, an average of US$2,545 per house. As of the end of the screening in late November 1994, the total box office of the film was approximately US$16 million, which was a box office bomb and failed to recover the US$25 million budget, not to mention the publicity costs and theater business share.
In early 1995, after "Shawshank's Redemption" was nominated for seven Academy Awards, the film was re-released from February to March, and another $12 million was earned. The total box office in North America increased to $28.3 million, plus other overseas markets. 30 million U.S. dollars, the global box office of the film reached 58.3 million U.S. dollars. The film ranked 51st in the 1994 box office chart of domestic American movies and 21st among all R-rated movies.
