‘Project Hail Mary’ resists gravity, hits $301m at global box office; ‘Scream 7’ is first in long-running franchise to pass $200m

Credit: Comscore. All figures are estimates.

Project Hail Mary drops just 5% in international markets

Amazon MGM Studios’ Project Hail Mary has enjoyed a strong second session in North America, dropping a mild 32% from the opening number, but it is across international markets that the sci-fi adventure has performed most impressively.

Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s film fell just 5% in holdover markets (if previews are excluded from opening numbers), grossing an estimated $54.1m for international.

International total after two weekends of play is $136.5m, and including North America, the worldwide tally is $300.8m – already a record haul for Amazon MGM Studios (beating Creed III’s $276.1m), and with plenty of life ahead of it.

Project Hail Mary is the highest-grossing film so far this year from a US studio, and is beaten only by Chinese title Pegasus 3 ($609.1m).

The top international market for the film is UK/Ireland with $20.1m so far, and posting a 3% rise for the weekend (excluding previews from the opening). China is right behind with a $19.0m total, and rising 8% for the weekend.

Australia saw a slim 11% drop and is now at $10.2m. South Korea likewise fell 11%, and is at $8.7m so far, neck and neck with Germany, which rose 4% from the opening weekend. Mexico enjoyed a 1% rise at the weekend, and has reached $6.6m to date. France dropped 16%, and is at $5.6m.

Project Hail Mary debuted in Spain, India and Malaysia, opening respectively with an estimated $2.3m, $1.8m and $825,000. The film topped the box office at the weekend in more than 60 of its 86 international markets, and is the top non-local title in plenty of others.

Imax screens contributed an estimated $20.3m for Project Hail Mary at the weekend – 19% of the weekend total. Imax takings on the film so far are $59.6m, equating to 20% of the worldwide total.

Project Hail Mary is adapted from Andy Weir’s 2021 science-fiction novel. Previously, Weir adaptation The Martian reached a powerful $630.6m in 2015, powered by strong word-of-mouth and a sustained run. (This comparison is not adjusted for inflation.)

Although not directly competitive in terms of audience profile, Project Hail Mary will face competition for the biggest and best screens from this Wednesday (April 1) with the arrival of Universal/Illumination’s The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, landing just in time for the Easter holiday. Given that scenario, expect Project Hail Mary to experience a somewhat bigger drop with its third weekend of play. 

Hoppers closes in on $300m

Although the weekend saw Hoppers overtaken by Project Hail Mary in cumulative box office, Disney/Pixar will be plenty happy to see the animated feature closing in on $300m worldwide to date.

Hoppers added an estimated $37.0m for the weekend session, dropping a mild 31% in North America and 33% across international markets.

Totals to date are $138.6m in North America, $159.0m for international and thus $297.6m worldwide.

China, with $16.8m after two weekends, has overtaken UK/Ireland ($14.4m after four weekends) to become the top international market. Next in the ranking come Mexico ($13.0m), Germany ($11.7m) and France ($9.5m).

Hoppers has already almost doubled the $154.3m lifetime total of Pixar’s last film Elio. It is chasing the $496.4m achieved by Pixar’s 2023 original hit Elemental – a film that opened relatively softly and then enjoyed a strong sustain, performing especially powerfully in South Korea. The coming Easter holiday should give a boost to Hoppers.

Hoppers faced competition for the family audience from Elysian’s The Magic Faraway Tree in a few first-wave markets, notably UK/Ireland (via Entertainment Film) and Australia (via VVS Films). Estimated weekend takings are $4.6m across five markets.

They Will Kill You stumbles with $9m opening

Warner Bros’ strong box office streak over the past 12 months has suffered a dip with the launch of horror They Will Kill You, opening below expectations with an estimated $5.0m in North America and $4.0m across 65 international markets.

Kirill Sokolov’s film – which stars Zazie Beetz as an ex-convict tangling with a wealthy satanic cult at a New York City apartment building – has a production budget reported at a fairly modest $20m. Still, factoring in marketing costs, the film appears to have a long way to go to achieve profitability, and may find its true calling when it transfers to HBO Max.

Among international markets, France leads with an estimated $498,000, ahead of UK/Ireland ($418,000) and Germany ($270,000).

Scream 7 passes $200m milestone

The Scream franchise has achieved its first $200m global hit. The weekend saw Scream 7 add an estimated $6.3m to its global tally, taking its total after five weekends to $204.1m.

Scream 7 had already established itself as the franchise’s biggest hit, overtaking 1996’s Scream ($173.0m) and 1997 sequel Scream 2 ($172.4m). (These comparisons are not adjusted for inflation.)

Scream 7 is the first in the series to be directed by original creator Kevin Williamson. Total box office for the seven films is $1.12bn worldwide.

Dhurandhar: The Revenge hits $147m total

Indian spy action thriller Dhurandhar: The Revenge remains in the top three at the worldwide box office thanks to estimated second-weekend takings of $32.0m – breaking down into $27.2m for international (including India) and $4.8m in North America.

The $147.m worldwide total includes $22.9m in North America, setting a record there for an Indian film.

Dhurandhar: The Revenge dropped 42% across international markets at the weekend, showing relatively strong traction for a Bollywood film.

Aditya Dhar’s film is one of only two Asian titles in the worldwide top 10 weekend chart. The other is the South Korean hit The King’s Warden, from Jang Hang-jun. Total across South Korea, North America ($3.2m) and three other markets is a powerful $106.9m.

• Dhurandhar: The Revenge is biggest Indian film ever at North America box office; Project Hail Mary retains crown