NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� stayed aloft in its second weekend, holding strongly with $54.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday, and adding to the long-term prospects of the year鈥檚 biggest hit thus far.
The Phil Lord and Chris Miller sci-fi adventure, starring Ryan Gosling, dipped only 32% after notching since 2023鈥檚 鈥淥ppenheimer.鈥� Amazon MGM鈥檚 yet, 鈥淧roject Hail Mary鈥� has grossed $300.8 million worldwide in two weeks.
鈥淧roject Hail Mary,鈥� which cost nearly $200 million to produce, didn鈥檛 face any significant new competition and kept premium format screens largely to itself. Potentially the weekend’s most watched movie, the KPop documentary went straight to streaming on Netflix.
But 鈥淧roject Hail Mary鈥� is on an enviable trajectory. Its second weekend hold was even better than that of 鈥淥ppenheimer,鈥� which collected $46.7 million in its follow-up frame.
Meanwhile, the weekend鈥檚 top new release, debuted with a disappointing $5 million for Warner Bros. The gory R-rated horror film stars Zazie Beetz as a woman who applies to be a maid at an apartment complex where she鈥檚 to become a sacrificial offering.
While the result was far from catastrophic for a movie with a modest $20 million budget, it did suggest that theaters may have become oversaturated in horror. David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm FranchiseRe, noted that there has been a new horror film released every weekend for the last 14 weekends.
That included last week鈥檚 鈥淩eady or Not 2: Here I Come鈥� ($16.3 million domestically so far) and a second horror-comedy that also debuted this weekend. IFC鈥檚 鈥淔orbidden Fruits,鈥� about a coven of witches who work at a Texas mall, debuted with $1.2 million in sales.
Despite the glut, Gross is forecasting horror films will account for about $2.1 billion in North American ticket revenue in 2026, down from $2.75 million last year. While horror remains popular with audiences and relatively cheap to produce, the genre may be approaching overkill.
Meanwhile, family movies continue to thrive. The Pixar original remained in second place with $12.2 million in its fourth weekend. The Walt Disney Co. release has accumulated $297.6 million globally.
Next weekend, though, it will face stiff competition in Universal Pictures鈥� 鈥淭he Super Mario Galaxy Movie.鈥� It鈥檚 expected to have the biggest opening of 2026.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. 鈥淧roject Hail Mary,鈥� $54.5 million.
2. 鈥淗oppers,鈥� $12.2 million.
3. 鈥淭hey Will Kill You,鈥� $5 million.
4. 鈥淒hurandhar The Revenge,鈥� $4.8 million.
5. 鈥淩eminders of Him,鈥� $4.7 million.
6. 鈥淩eady or Not 2: Here I Come,鈥� $4 million.
7. 鈥淪cream 7,鈥� $2.6 million.
8. 鈥淕OAT,鈥� $2.2 million.
9. 鈥淯ndertone,鈥� $1.7 million.
10. 鈥淔orbidden Fruits,鈥� $1.2 million.
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