NEW YORK (AP) — Last weekend, Hollywood took a backseat to football as audiences flocked to the Super Bowl. During this slow box office period, the survival thriller “Send Help” continued to lead ticket sales, while the documentary “Melania” fell sharply in its second weekend.
Traditionally, Super Bowl weekend sees lower movie attendance. In fact, it was the second slowest weekend last year, and in 2024, it was the least attended. Studios often focus on promoting their films during the big game, trying to catch the attention of millions of viewers.
“Send Help,” a Disney-20th Century Studios release directed by Sam Raimi, topped the charts again, earning $10 million in its second weekend. With total global earnings at $53.7 million, this R-rated thriller has proven to be a solid success. Meanwhile, Disney’s “Zootopia 2” continues to thrive, surpassing $1.8 billion worldwide after eleven weeks.
On the other hand, “Melania,” produced by Amazon MGM, experienced a significant drop in ticket sales to $2.4 million—down 67% from its initial weekend. Despite expanding to 300 theaters, the film is on track for potential failure, considering Amazon MGM’s substantial investment of $40 million for the film rights and over $35 million for marketing.
Kevin Wilson, head of domestic distribution for Amazon MGM, framed the film’s box office results as a valuable moment that supports their broader distribution strategy. This approach aims to raise awareness and engagement ahead of the movie’s eventual debut on Prime Video.
The discussion around “Melania” has been lively, with late-night hosts poking fun at its performance. Kimmel even referred to its sales as a “rigged outcome.”
Elsewhere, the romantic comedy “Solo Mio,” set in Italy, opened strongly with $7.2 million. This marks a significant achievement for Angel Studios, known for its faith-based films. The K-pop concert film “Stray Kids: The Dominate Experience” also performed well, making $5.6 million and securing an extra $13.2 million overseas.
Among the more interesting releases was “Iron Lung,” a low-budget indie film based on a popular video game. Directed by YouTube star Markiplier, this film made $6.2 million in its second weekend, bringing its total to $31.2 million against a production cost of just $3 million.
Looking at the top-performing films by domestic box office sales:
1. “Send Help” – $10 million
2. “Solo Mio” – $7.2 million
3. “Iron Lung” – $6 million
4. “Stray Kids: The Dominate Experience” – $5.6 million
5. “Dracula” – $4.5 million
6. “Zootopia 2” – $4 million
7. “Avatar: Fire and Ash” – $3.5 million
8. “The Strangers: Chapter 3” – $3.5 million
9. “Shelter” – $2.4 million
10. “Melania” – $2.4 million
This past weekend in theaters shows how diverse the landscape of film can be, from big-budget blockbusters to independent successes finding their audience.
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