Despite a crowded theatrical landscape, “Project Hail Mary” continues to dominate the box office, holding firm in its second weekend and reinforcing its status as the year’s biggest hit so far.
The sci-fi adventure, directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller and starring Ryan Gosling, brought in $54.5 million over the weekend, according to studio estimates released Sunday. The 32% drop from its opening weekend ranks among the best second-weekend performances in recent years for a film of its size, outperforming titles like “Oppenheimer” and “Dune: Part Two” in terms of retention.
Based on the novel by Andy Weir, the story follows a high school science teacher who awakens alone aboard a spacecraft with no memory of his mission. As he pieces things together, he discovers he’s been sent to save the sun from dimming—a crisis that threatens Earth with an ice age. Along the way, he encounters an alien life form nicknamed “Rocky,” and the two form an unlikely partnership to solve the problem.
With its breakout success, conversations about a sequel are already circulating. While Weir has expressed interest in continuing the story, there have been no formal discussions with Amazon MGM yet. Still, industry insiders suggest a follow-up remains a strong possibility.
Project Hail Mary has already earned $300.8 million worldwide in just two weeks, putting it on a trajectory that industry analysts are watching closely. Initially exceeding expectations with a $80.6 million domestic debut, the movie posted the second-largest opening in a decade for a non-franchise title, just behind Oppenheimer. It also represents the biggest domestic opening of Gosling’s career as a leading man and a new high for directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.
The film has now become the highest-grossing Hollywood release of 2026 to date, as well as Amazon MGM Studios’ biggest title ever (unadjusted for inflation).
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Overseas performance has been equally impressive. The film opened last weekend with $60.4 million across 80 markets and has since added another $54.1 million from 86 territories—a remarkably small 5 percent decline. This is especially notable given that sci-fi titles often struggle in certain international markets.
Much of the film’s success is attributed to strong word of mouth, driven by its mix of humor, emotional depth, and broad audience appeal.
Produced on a budget nearing $200 million, “Project Hail Mary” has benefited from minimal competition and near-exclusive access to premium large-format screens. While one of the weekend’s most anticipated titles, the K-pop documentary “BTS: The Return,” drew attention, its Netflix release meant it posed little threat to theatrical ticket sales.
Meanwhile, the box office tells a different story for horror movies, a genre that may be reaching its breaking point.
The weekend’s top new theatrical release, “They Will Kill You,” opened to just $5 million for Warner Bros. The R-rated film, starring Zazie Beetz, follows a woman who takes a job as a maid at an apartment complex, only to discover she’s being groomed as a sacrificial offering.
Though its $20 million budget cushions the disappointment somewhat, the film’s muted debut underscores a larger trend. According to David A. Gross, who runs the consulting firm FranchiseRe, theaters have seen a new horror release every weekend for the past 14 weeks.
“That included last week’s ‘Ready or Not 2: Here I Come’ ($16.3 million domestically so far) and a second horror-comedy that also debuted this weekend.”
One such release, IFC’s “Forbidden Fruits,” about a coven of witches working at a Texas mall, managed just $1.2 million in ticket sales.
Even so, Gross believes the genre remains financially significant, forecasting that horror films will bring in roughly $2.1 billion in North American ticket sales in 2026. That figure, however, would represent a drop from last year’s $2.75 billion, suggesting that audience appetite may be cooling after a period of oversupply.
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While horror shows signs of fatigue, family films continue to perform steadily.
The Pixar original “Hoppers” held onto second place, earning $12.2 million in its fourth weekend. Distributed by The Walt Disney Company, the film has now reached $297.6 million globally.
That momentum may soon face a major test. Next weekend, Universal Pictures is set to release “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” which is widely expected to deliver the biggest opening weekend of the year.
The top 10 films at the domestic box office this weekend were led by “Project Hail Mary,” which brought in $54.5 million, followed by “Hoppers” with $12.2 million. The weekend’s highest debut, “They Will Kill You,” opened in third place with $5 million, just ahead of “Dhurandhar The Revenge,” which earned $4.8 million, and “Reminders of Him,” close behind at $4.7 million. “Ready or Not 2: Here I Come” added another $4 million, while “Scream 7” took in $2.6 million. Rounding out the list, “GOAT” earned $2.2 million, “Undertone” followed with $1.7 million, and “Forbidden Fruits” closed out the top 10 with $1.2 million.
Project Hail Mary’s performance arrives at a pivotal moment for Hollywood. Amazon MGM is expanding its international distribution capabilities, positioning itself as a major studio once again, decades after MGM lost that status. At the same time, David Ellison’s Skydance Media is in the process of acquiring Paramount Global and potentially adding Warner Bros. Discovery to its portfolio.
Ellison has indicated the studios would remain separate, though the structure of such a large-scale merger remains uncertain and would likely face scrutiny from regulators. The deal has drawn attention in Washington, particularly given Ellison’s connections and broader industry implications.
Moumita Basuroychowdhury is a Contributing Reporter at The National Digest. After earning an economics degree at Cornell University, she moved to NYC to pursue her MFA in creative writing. She enjoys reporting on science, business and culture news. You can reach her at moumita.b@thenationaldigest.com.
