The heroes of Mortal Kombat II met their most formidable foe this weekend — Meryl Streep. Despite many box office pundits (including myself) believing Mortal Kombat II had the edge over The Devil Wears Prada 2, strong Mother’s Day business and a better-than-expected hold (the sequel only fell 44%) meant it was able to eke out a flawless victory over the highly anticipated video game adaptation. Indeed, it made $43 million this weekend, with a $144 million domestic total, with it likely heading to a $200 million-plus finish in North America. Expect another sequel sooner than the twenty years it took to get the gang back together this time.
While not taking the top spot might be a little disappointing, don’t go thinking Streep whipped out a devastation fatality on Johnny Cage and company. The $40 million opening is a significant increase from the $23 million the first film opened with — although, to be sure, the 2021 movie had the misfortune of opening during the pandemic (when many theaters were closed), as well as being released day-and-date on HBO Max. Given the reportedly thrifty $80 million budget, and the fact that it opened to strong business overseas (where it made another $23 million), there’s no way this sequel doesn’t turn a huge profit. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to see Mortal Kombat III before long, although perhaps this time they would be wise to open it outside the hugely competitive summer movie corridor (it was originally slated for October 2025).
The other big news this weekend was the insane hold in week three for Michael. With MJ fans returning to theaters to see it two or three times, it fell only 33% in week three with $36.5 million, bringing its total to $240 million domestic (it’s closing in on $600 million worldwide, with a billion-dollar finish not out of the question).
Amazon/MGM’s The Sheep Detectives, which scored a solid A-minus CinemaScore, managed a better-than-expected $15.9 million weekend. Whether or not it winds up being a profitable family film for the streamer depends on word-of-mouth, but it should be a much bigger hit when it hits streaming on Prime in a few months.
Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft proved to be a disappointment, opening at $7.5 million — despite being in 3D and directed by James Cameron. It won’t be nearly as big as concert films released by Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus, or Justin Bieber.
As expected, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie was in sixth place with a $6.6 million weekend and a $412 million total. Project Hail Mary was hot on its tail with $6 million and a $327 million total.
Neon’s Hokum has proven to be a solid performer for them — for an indie — with it falling 49% in week two with a $3.3 million weekend and a $12 million domestic gross.
Renny Harlin’s shark flick, Deep Water, fell a steep 63% in week two with $780k and a $3.6 million domestic total. However, the real disaster this week was Angel’s Animal Farm, which fell a gargantuan 80% in week two to $663k and a $5 million total — a rare flop for the studio.
Next weekend sees some smaller-scale releases such as Guy Ritchie’s In the Grey, before The Mandalorian and Groguhits on Memorial Day. Do you think The Devil Wears Prada 2 will stay on top another weekend? Let us know in the comments.
| # | MOVIE TITLE | WKND $ | TOTAL $ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Devil Wears Prada 2 | $43 M | $144.8 M |
| 2 | Mortal Kombat II | $40 M | $40 M |
| 3 | Michael | $36.5 M | $240.5 M |
| 4 | The Sheep Detectives | $15.9 M | $15.9 M |
| 5 | Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft | $7.5 M | $7.5 M |
| 6 | The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | $6.6 M | $412.1 M |
| 7 | Project Hail Mary | $6 M | $327 M |
| 8 | Hokum | $3.3 M | $12.4 M |
| 9 | Deep Water | $780 k | $3.6 M |
| 10 | Animal Farm | $663 k | $5 M |