Send Help Kicks Off Strong with $20 Million at the Box Office
Box Office Report: ‘Send Help’ Claims Top Spot Amid Diverse Competition
In a competitive weekend at the box office, director Sam Raimi’s thriller "Send Help" opened to $20 million, leading all films in North America. The film edged out "Iron Lung," a debut feature from YouTube star Mark Fischbach, which garnered $17.8 million, according to industry estimates released today.
"Send Help," featuring performances by Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, stands as a traditional, star-driven thriller. In contrast, "Iron Lung," inspired by a 2022 video game, marks Fischbach’s first venture into feature film directing.
The weekend also saw "Melania," a documentary directed by Brett Ratner, debut in third place with a noteworthy $7 million. This opening represents the most successful weekend for a documentary in years and exceeded expectations for the Amazon MGM release. Despite facing significant criticism from media outlets critical of former President Donald Trump and the context of Ratner’s 2017 sexual assault allegations, which he denies, the film managed to capture audience interest.
In the family-friendly realm, "Zootopia 2" maintained its strong performance, earning $5.8 million in its 10th weekend, bringing its domestic total to $408 million. Jason Statham’s action thriller "Shelter" followed closely, opening in fifth place with $5.505 million.
"Avatar: Fire and Ash" secured the sixth position, adding $5.5 million in its seventh week, while "Mercy," "The Housemaid," "Marty Supreme," and "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple" rounded out the top ten releases with $4.7 million, $3.5 million, $2.9 million, and $1.6 million, respectively.
The overall box office for the weekend reached an estimated $82.2 million, with the year-to-date total now standing at $660.6 million—12% higher than the same period last year, as reported by Comscore.
