After three weeks of indie horror dominating the box office, the spoof Scary Movie surpassed $55 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, easily besting Masters of the Universe.A new order has recently arrived in movie theaters, seeing Gen Z ticket buyers flocking to horror films “Obsession” and “Backrooms,” both produced by YouTubers-turned-filmmakers. These films outperformed “Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu.”
‘Horror movie 6 tops the box office
This weekend, comedy was the underdog hero. Although the genre was left for dead in theaters, the sixth film in the series grossed US$105.5 million during its global release.
The Wayans brothers’ comedy even outdid its primary satirical target, the “Scream” series. Earlier this year, “Scream 7” debuted to $97 million worldwide.Both franchises are distributed by Paramount Pictures, although Miramax produced the new “Scary Movie.” Co-written by Marlon, Sean, Keenan and Craig Wayans, the sequel marks the return of the Wayans family to the franchise after their departure due to creative differences following 2001’s Scary Movie 2.
Ratings weren’t good (26% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and audience scores (“B” CinemaScore) were very average. But that didn’t stop the $30 million “scary thriller” from dominating its much larger budget competition.
“Masters of the Universe” earns $54 million
“Masters of the Universe.” The sword-and-sorcery action adventure based on the 1980s animated series and Mattel toys failed to revive the dormant franchise. The Amazon MGM release, the second Masters of the Universe film after the 1987 film of the same title, opened with $29.3 million domestically.The film, starring Nicholas Galitzine as He-Man, added $25 million overseas. But for a film that cost nearly US$200 million to produce, a much higher release was needed to make profitability bearable.It’s Mattel Studios’ first release since 2023’s Barbie. But after the phenomenal $1.45 billion success of that film, “Masters of the Universe” will be a near miss for the toy company.
The total ‘backroom’ amounts to Rs 212 million
A24’s “Backrooms,” the top release from last weekend, fell sharply in its second weekend, falling 68% to $25.9 million.
But the “back rooms.” The $10 million-grossing film based on Ken Parson’s 20-year-old YouTube series remains a record-breaking phenomenon. It is now A24’s highest-grossing film of all time with $212 million worldwide, besting “Marty Supreme.”
“Mania” exceeds 150 million US dollars
In a close tie for third place, Focus Features’ “Obsession” grossed $25.6 million in its fourth weekend. That represents a slight 7% decline from the previous weekend for 26-year-old horror sensation Cary Parker.
Regardless of inflation, no horror film has ever had a better fourth weekend.“Obsession,” about a man who hopes his crush will return his affections, was made for less than $1 million. It has now grossed US$152.1 million domestically and US$224.8 million worldwide – a record for Focus.In its third weekend, “The Mandalorian and Grogu” fell to sixth place with revenues of $10 million. It was also bested by Fathom Entertainment’s The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act, a mash-up of the final two episodes of the animated series.
It raised 12.7 million US dollars.
Some other films have achieved significant milestones
Lionsgate’s Michael Jackson biopic “Michael” has become the studio’s highest-grossing film of all time with $898 million worldwide. That puts it ahead, regardless of inflation, of both the studio’s top-grossing “Twilight” and “Hunger Games” franchises.In 2026, he received the first billion-dollar film. “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” has surpassed $1 billion worldwide for Universal.Overall weekends were up 63% compared to the same weekend last year, according to Comscore. Ticket sales this year are up more than 13%. Next weekend, Steven Spielberg’s “Disclosure Day” opens.
Top 10 films at the domestic box office
With final domestic numbers released Monday, this list takes into account estimated Friday-Sunday ticket sales at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:1. Scary movie, $55 million.2- “Masters of the Universe,” $29.3 million.3. “Back Rooms,” $25.9 million.4- “Obsession” $25.6 million.5. “The Spectacular Digital Circus: The Final Act,” $12.7 million.6. “Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu,” $10 million.7. “Michael” $7.7 million.8. “The Breadwinner” $3.4 million.9. “Pressure” $3 million.10. “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” $2.8 million.
