“Lilo & Stitch” and “Mission: Impossible – Final Calculation” continue to lead the box office collection, following a record-breaking anniversary weekend. In the US and Canada, several new titles premiered this weekend, including Sony’s family-oriented film “Karate Kid: Legend” and A24’s horror offering “I’ll Bring Her Back.” Studio estimates from Sunday indicate a strong $149 million weekend, over 120% higher than the same period last year.
Disney’s live-action adaptation “Lilo & Stitch” took the top spot, making $63 million from 4,410 theaters across North America. This performance helped it surpass “Sinner,” which has generated $280.1 million in domestic ticket sales, marking it as the second-highest grossing film of the year. Its global earnings now stand at a formidable $610 million. Concurrently, “Sinner” experienced a strong seventh weekend with an additional $5.2 million, bringing its domestic total to $267.1 million and worldwide earnings to $350 million.
This image is a still from the film “Lilo & Stitch,” showing Maia Kiroha and Sydney Agdon on the left. (Walt Disney Studio Motion Pictures via AP)
The eighth “Mission: Impossible” film also secured second place with $27.3 million from 3,861 locations. Similar to “Lilo & Stitch,” it saw a 57% drop from its debut. Domestically, it has brought in $122.6 million, aligning with the previous two films. However, it is encountering challenges with profitability, given its reported production budget of $400 million. Internationally, it amassed $706.1 million, including $25.2 million from its recent China opening, resulting in a global total of $353.8 million.
According to Paul Del Galabedian, a senior media analyst at ComScore, “This year is all about long-term playability. Word of mouth and strong holds are vital, more than initial weekend box office figures.”
New release Sony’s “Karate Kid: Legend” debuted with an estimated $21 million from 3,809 locations. The film features Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio, training a new protagonist, Kung Fu expert Li Fong (Ben Wang). Chan was part of the 2010 reboot, while Macchio regained popularity with the “Cobra Kai” series.
The image, released by Sony Pictures, shows Ben Wang in a scene from “Karate Kid: Legends.” (Jonathan Wenk/Sony Pictures via AP)
Initial reviews may have varied, but the film’s opening weekend audiences awarded it a solid acinema score and 4.5 stars on post-track. With a reported production budget of only $45 million, it stands to benefit from having no major family films released soon. “Karate Kid: Legends” previously debuted internationally, earning a total of $47 million worldwide.
Fourth place went to “Final Destination: Bloodlines,” which earned $10.8 million over three weekends, making it the best-selling franchise when not adjusting for inflation with total earnings reaching $229.3 million globally.
Another newcomer, “Bring Her Back,” secured the fifth position with $7.1 million from 2,449 screens. Featuring Sally Hawkins as a foster parent engaged in unsettling schemes, the film was crafted by twin filmmakers Danny and Michael Filippow, who previously created the 2023 horror hit “Talk to Me.” It received a rare B+ Cinemascore for a horror film and remains the only fresh horror feature until “28 Years After” debuts on June 20th.
This image, released by A24, shows Sally Hawkins, left, Jonah Wren Phillips in a scene from “Bring Her Back.” (ingvar kenne/a24 via ap)
Wes Anderson’s new film “Phoenician Plans” also made its debut this weekend in New York and Los Angeles, generating $270,000. It is set to expand nationally next weekend.
This image, released by Focus Feature, shows scenes featuring Benicio Del Toro, Michael Cera, and Mia Threapleton in “Phoenician Scheme.” (TPS production/focus feature via AP)
Summer box office predictions remain optimistic, but there’s much ground to cover to reach a $4 billion target (pre-pandemic benchmarks that only the “Barbenheimer” summer surpassed). Based on ComScore data, expectations indicate the total will end at $973 million by May.
Top 10 Films by Domestic Box Office Revenue
According to ComScore, this list represents estimated ticket sales from Friday to Sunday in US and Canadian theaters, with final domestic numbers released on Monday.
1. “Lilo & Stitch” – $63 million.
2. “Mission: Impossible – Final Calculation” – $27.3 million.
3. “Karate Kid: Legend” – $21 million.
4. “Final Destination: Bloodlines” – $10.8 million.
5. “Bring Her Back” – $7.1 million.
6. “Sinner” – $5.2 million.
7. “Thunderbolts” – $4.8 million.
8. “Friendship” – $2.6 million.
9. “The Last Rodeo” – $2.1 million.
10. “J-Hope Tour ‘Hope on the Stage’ in Live Viewing” – $939,173.
Source: apnews.com