Box Office: ‘Disclosure Day’ Makes First Contact With $19 Million
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- Disclosure Day opened to $19 million on Friday from 3,824 North American theaters and is projected to gross $44 million domestically by Sunday, against Universal's $115 million production budget.
- Emily Blunt stars in 'Disclosure Day' as meteorologist Margaret Fairchild, who becomes entangled in a government alien cover-up plot, alongside Josh O'Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson, Colman Domingo and Wyatt Russell.
- Obsession added $6.2 million on its fifth Friday in theaters, with a projected $21 million weekend pushing its domestic total to $190 million — a staggering return on its roughly $1 million production budget for 26-year-old director Curry Barker.
- Scary Movie earned $4.8 million domestically in its second weekend, a 73% drop from its debut, bringing its domestic total to $84.69 million against Miramax's $30 million spend; the Wayans Brothers return to the franchise for the first time since 2001's 'Scary Movie 2.'
- Backrooms landed in fourth with $3.6 million on its third Friday, tracking toward roughly $160 million domestic on a $10 million budget for 20-year-old director Kane Parsons, who first developed the liminal horror concept on YouTube.
- Masters of the Universe collapsed to $2.4 million on its second Friday, a 69% drop, and is projected to reach only $47 million total by Sunday — a steep underperformance for Amazon MGM's roughly $200 million sci-fi actioner.
- Steven Spielberg's track record offers hope for legs: 'War of the Worlds' opened to $64 million domestic on a $132 million budget and reached $603 million worldwide, while 'Ready Player One' grew from a $41 million domestic opening to $607 million worldwide.
Why it matters: Universal needs 'Disclosure Day' to hold for weeks to recoup its $115 million budget, and Spielberg's history of legging out blockbusters is its best argument. Meanwhile, micro-budget horror hits 'Obsession' ($1M) and 'Backrooms' ($10M) are running circles around Amazon MGM's $200M 'Masters of the Universe,' which is heading toward a steep theatrical loss after a 69% second-weekend drop.
