1 in North America ahead of Disney’s tentpole Tron: Ares after being credited by critics for expanding the Black Phone universe and scoring strong audience exits, including a B CinemaScore (that’s a great grade for the horror genre).
Also notable: Latinos, the most frequent moviegoers in the U.S., made up the largest segment of the audience at roughly 39 percent.
Internationally, Mexico led all markets with $4.3 million, a huge number for a horror title.
Popular on THR The sequel returns Ethan Hawke as the serial killer known as Grabber, and Mason Thames as Finn.
In North America, it grossed an estimated $4 million from 2,532 theaters for a fourth-place finish and domestic tally of $61.9 million.
Blumhouse has resumed its operations.
Jason Blum, the master of horror, won a huge victory with Scott Derrickson’s Black Phone 2, which opened to a better-than-expected $26.5 million from 3,411 theaters in the US and $15.5 million from 72 markets abroad, for a total start of $42 million worldwide against a relatively modest $30 million production budget. The film’s release comes after a run of failures for the Universal-based banner, which last year included the costly failure of M3GAN 2.0.
Easily, the sequel was a no-go. Critics praised the film for broadening the Black Phone universe and achieving high audience exits, including a B CinemaScore (a fantastic rating for the horror genre), which helped it rank first in North America ahead of Disney’s tentpole Tron: Ares. The most common moviegoers in the United States, Latinos, are also noteworthy. S. comprised approximately 39% of the audience, making them the largest segment. Mexico topped all international markets with $4.03 million, which is a significant sum for a horror film.
THR is popular.
Mason Thames plays Finn in the follow-up, and Ethan Hawke reprises his role as Grabber, the serial killer. In the sequel, Finn’s younger sister, Gwen (played by Madeleine McGraw), is threatened by the evil killer, who is seeking revenge on him from beyond the grave.
Universal projected the film’s opening weekend receipts at $18 million, but prerelease tracking proved accurate in spotting that the R-rated follow-up would do better than the original.
Black Phone, which debuted in 2021 when theaters were still getting over the COVID-19 pandemic, made $23 and a half million in North America before becoming a sleeper hit and grossing over $161 million worldwide (before horror fatigue hit the box office).
Tron: After dropping more than 65 percent in its second showing to an estimated $11.1 million from 4,000 theaters for a 10-day domestic total of $54.6 million, Ares finished second in North America. The threequel made an additional $14.11 million abroad, which included a pitiful $2.08 million from its Chinese premiere, for a total foreign cume of $49.4 million and $103 million worldwide (the issue? Ares cost a net $180 million to produce).
Good Fortune, a comedy directed by Aziz Ansari and starring Seth Rogen, Ansari, Keke Palmer, Sandra Oh, and Keanu Reeves, debuted nationwide this weekend but didn’t find much gold despite positive reviews. The $30 million, which tells the story of a shabby guardian angel sent to save someone’s soul, earned an estimated $6.02 million from 2,990 domestic locations, placing it in third place.
The Warner Bros. In its fourth weekend, One Battle After Another eclipsed the $100 million milestone globally, reaching a total of $162.05 million worldwide. With an estimated $4 million from 2,532 theaters, it finished fourth in North America with a domestic total of $61 and a half million. The award-winning candidate, who was directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, made an additional $11 million from 71 markets overseas, for a total of $100 million.
With $3.77 million from 3,379 theaters, Miramax’s crime comedy Roofman, which starred Channing Tatum and Kirstin Dunst, completed the top five in its second weekend. With a $19 million budget, the domestic total was $15.05 million, and the worldwide total was $16.04 million. Paramount is in charge of distribution in the United States. A. the United States. K. . Canada as well.
Based on a true story, Truth and Treason, a Nazi holocaust drama from Angel Studios, debuted in sixth place with $2.07 million from 2,106 locations. The only recently released film in the country to receive an A CinemaScore was this one.
Luca Guadagnino’s psychological thriller After the Hunt had a rough second weekend at the specialty box office, growing from six to 1,238 theaters and earning $1.06 million, which put it in ninth place. Guadagnino’s most recent film was anticipated to be a strong candidate for awards in several major categories before the Venice Film Festival. Though Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, and Ayo Edebiri have been praised for their performances, indifferent reviews that implied it was a rare miss for the celebrated director altered the story in terms of best picture and best direction. Similar reactions are being seen by audiences; this weekend, After the Hunt received a C- CinemaScore.
Tom Quinn’s team at the Oscar-winning indie company has struck again: It Was Just an Accident, the critically acclaimed and award-winning film by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, opened in three theaters in New York and Los Angeles on Wednesday and is bringing in an estimated $38,333 per location over five days. With a per-location average of $22,674, it had the highest of all the films for the weekend. Additionally, the three-day total nearly matched the $22,741 opening location average from five theaters of Sony Picture Classics’ January release I’m Still Here, which achieved the best opening location average of the year thus far for a foreign language film. (The latter began during the four days of Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, but the number that endures forever is $22,742 for three days. When the final weekend totals are calculated, Accident might end up coming in higher and surpassing I’m Still Here.
This is the first film Panahi has made in 20 years since Iranian authorities freed him from prison and eventually lifted a travel ban.
Accident, the film’s world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, won the coveted Palme d’Or. This was Neon’s sixth consecutive Palme d’Or victory; the last was Anora, which won all the Oscars this year, including best picture. At the 98th Academy Awards in 2026, Panahi’s latest film has also been chosen as France’s official submission for best international film. However, it also intends to run for best picture, best director, best original screenplay, and best editing. Additionally, as the awards season gets underway, tributes to the filmmaker are being planned or have already taken place all over the world. For example, Panahi had to deal with visa delays due to the U.S. S. . Due to the federal government shutdown, the festival was delayed.
The Mastermind, Mubi’s top award contender, did not let fans down at its U.S. premiere. S and opened in five theaters in New York and L, earning the strongest opening weekend average of director-writer Kelly Reichart’s career and the second-best per-location average of the weekend, or an estimated $20.84. A. According to Mubi, many screenings were sold out, and awards voters were the target of Q&A sessions that followed several screenings. The critically acclaimed movie, which was loosely based on a well-known art heist in the 1970s, stars Josh O’Connor as a struggling architect who chooses to steal four paintings by Richard Drove. The other actors in the movie are Hope Davis, John Magaro, and Alma Haim. When it spreads widely the following weekend, it will be a crucial test.
