Original stories finding their way to the big screen are thriving at the early 2026 box office.
Defying all the odds, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling, blasted off to a galaxy far, far away with a domestic launch of $80.6 million — the best of the year so far — and $60.4 million overseas for a worldwide galactic start of $141 million in a notable win for Amazon MGM Studios‘ as it goes about becoming a full-fledged major Hollywood studio at a time when it couldn’t be needed more as Paramount prepares to swallow up Warner Bros.
Sandra Hüller also stars in Lord and Miller’s sci-fi epic based on the Andy Weir novel about a science teacher who finds an unusual ally in a mission to save two worlds
Heading into the weekend, Project Hail Mary was looking at a debut of $50 million-plus, but quickly went into hyperdrive when both critics and audiences embraced the warm-hearted, adventure-action movie with rave reviews and out-of-this-world audience scores. And it certainly doesn’t hurt to have screenwriter Drew Goddard back in the fold after successfully adapting another Weir novel, The Martian, for the big screen.
Project Hail Mary is in rarefied air, becoming only one of three non-sequel or franchise installments in the past decade to open to $60 million or more domestically. Not only that, it nearly matched the No. 1 movie on the list; Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer ($82 million), not adjusted for inflation. The third is Us ($71 million). To boot, only two other non-sequel, non-franchise titles have opened above $50 million in the post-pandemic era after Oppenheimer: Apple’s F1: The Movie and It Ends With Us. In terms of the sci-fi space genre, Project Hail Mary is in the same solar system as Interstellar’s opening in 2014.
“You could feel how big this film was going to be with the rave reviews from the early screenings and massive presales. But to see it happen this weekend is amaze, amaze, amaze! Congrats to everyone to who was involved in making this film,” said Amazon MGM domestic distribution chief Kevin Wilson. “Openings like this is what makes this business special.”
Or, as summed up by THR‘s review, “Ryan Gosling proves he can have chemistry with a rock in thrilling space odyssey warmed by humanity and hope.”
The movie is also opening in 82 markets around the globe, timed to its U.S. launch, including the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, Korea, Japan and China.
Originality is becoming a major talking point of the early 2026 box office. Pixar and Disney‘s Hoppers is now the second-biggest film of the year to date after earning another $18 million in its third outing to finish Sunday with a domestic tally of $120.4 million and $242.6 million globally.
That’s not to say franchisees were AWOL entirely.
Another strong new player of the weekend is Dhurandhar: The Revenge, the latest installment in the Indian action-thriller starring Ranveer Singh. The pic overperformed to come in in third with north of $10 million.
And Searchlight Pictures’ horror-comedy Ready or Not 2: Here I Come placed fourth in its North American launch with an estimated $9.1 million for an early global start of $11.9 million. The film, directed by filmmaking duo Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett), stars Samara Weaving, reprising her role as the fan-favorite Grace.
Ready or Not 2, receiving solid reviews and a B+ CinemaScore, also launched in its first handful of major markets overseas, including the U.K., Australia and Brazil. It will be playing almost everywhere by mid-April.
More to come.
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