Horror films usually burn bright for a week before fading, but Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is rewriting the rules.
In its second weekend, the film earned $45 million in U.S. and Canadian theatres, dropping a mere 6% from its Easter debut — the best second-week hold for any genre film since Avatar (2009). Globally, Sinners has raked in an impressive $161.6 million.
Sinners has clearly expanded beyond horror fans, drawing in mainstream audiences curious about the buzz. While opening weekend viewers were 56% male, this weekend saw an even 50/50 gender split. Premium formats like IMAX helped boost numbers too, with large-format screens making up 21% of global ticket sales — a 9% increase from the opening weekend.
Starring Michael B. Jordan as twins, Sinners blends horror with drama, action, and musical elements in a southern gothic setting. Critics have praised the film, and its genre-bending approach seems to be fueling its staying power.
“This is one of the strongest second-week holds for a wide release ever,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “It’s an absolute phenomenon. You can buy a great opening weekend with marketing, but you can’t fake a strong second weekend.”
Produced by Coogler’s Proximity Media and released by Warner Bros., Sinners marks the studio’s second big win this month following the success of A Minecraft Movie.
Meanwhile, Sinners easily outpaced new competition. The Accountant 2, starring Ben Affleck, opened with $24.5 million, taking third place. Surprisingly, second place went to the re-release of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, which earned $25.2 million in North America and $42.2 million worldwide.
The Minecraft Movie finished fourth with $22.7 million, pushing its domestic total to about $380 million. Until Dawn, Sony’s adaptation of the popular video game, opened to $8 million and rounded out the top five.
With Sinners and Minecraft driving ticket sales, April’s box office revenue has soared — up 102% from April 2024 and pushing the annual total 10% higher than last year. The industry now heads into the summer movie season with strong momentum, starting May 2 with Disney’s highly anticipated Thunderbolts.
“There couldn’t have been a better setup for summer,” Dergarabedian added.
