By: Entertainment DeskKochi | October 12, 2025 09:45 PM IST 4 min readTovino Thomas' first release of 2025 had bombed. (Credit: Facebook/@ActorTovinoThomas)There’s no doubt that show business is highly unpredictable, with the ascent to the penthouse or the fall to the pavement sometimes happening in a matter of moments. Surviving in the film industry, hence, requires mastering the art of fearlessly riding a never-ending rollercoaster. While there are many examples of the business’ unpredictability, Malayalam actor Tovino Thomas understood its true depth earlier this year, as his career witnessed a massive flop immediately after delivering the biggest solo hit. Not only did the movie, his first release of 2025, bomb, but it also managed to gross only a little more than 50 per cent of its hefty budget from theatres, despite one of the biggest female stars in South India playing a key role in the film alongside him.Tovino Thomas is one of the few actors whose name appears in the cast lists of several major blockbusters in Malayalam cinema. Interestingly, three of the five top-grossing Malayalam films of all time — Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, L2: Empuraan and 2018: Everyone is a Hero — featured him at least in cameo roles, thus making him a lucky mascot for filmmakers. While his role in Lokah was a cameo, he played a supporting character in the Mohanlal-led Empuraan, and in the multi-starrer 2018, he was one of the many actors in key roles.ICYMI | ‘Helpless’ Mohanlal: How the Dadasaheb Phalke awardee’s portrayals of despair always hit the audience square in the chestHis biggest solo hit so far, hence, is Ajayante Randam Moshanam (ARM, 2024), directed by Jithin Laal. Not only did the movie open to rave reviews, but it grossed over Rs 100 crore worldwide, propelling Tovino to great heights. Less than four months after ARM’s release, Tovino returned with another movie, Identity. What made the action thriller highly anticipated was that it marked his reunion with the director duo Akhil Paul and Anas Khan, who crafted his 2020 hit Forensic. What added to the hype was the return of South star Trisha Krishnan to Malayalam cinema after almost seven years since her last outing, Hey Jude (2018), wherein she shared the screen with Nivin Pauly.Despite having only Unni Mukundan’s Marco, which had released two weeks prior, as competition at the box office — particularly since Mohanlal’s Barroz had tanked by then — the Tovino Thomas and Trisha-starrer couldn’t capitalise on the favourable circumstances, mainly due to Identity’s poor creative aspects. Although the movie received praise for its technical aspects, Identity, the first Malayalam release of 2025, ultimately failed to impress audiences overall. With the arrival of Jofin T Chacko’s Asif Ali and Anaswara Rajan-starrer Rekhachithram next week, and the widespread positive reviews it generated almost immediately, Identity was forgotten soon enough.In February, when the Kerala Film Producers’ Association revealed the budget of Malayalam movies released in January and the share of revenue each of them generated from theatres in the state, it was disclosed that Identity was mounted on a whopping Rs 30 crore. In contrast, its theatre share from Kerala stood at a dismal Rs 3.5 crore. According to industry tracker Sacnilk, the Tovino and Trisha-starrer managed to record a worldwide collection of just Rs 16.51 crore during its theatrical run. Also starring Vinay Rai, Aju Varghese, and Shammi Thilakan, it was bankrolled jointly by Confident Group and Ragam Movies.Although his solo movie bombed big time, the limelight never left Tovino Thomas as he subsequently appeared in Empuraan, which became the highest-grossing Malayalam movie of all time before being surpassed by Lokah, which also featured his presence. 2025 also saw him producing the Basil Joseph-starrer Maranamass and headlining the action drama Narivetta, which received much praise.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd