Ryan Coogler’s cinematic phenomenon Sinners has been out for two weekends so far, but interest apparently hasn’t diminished in the slightest based on its box office returns. The genre-bending horror movie starring Michael B. Jordan in dual roles captivated the domestic audience with its unique blend of history, horror, music, and drama, resulting in one of the most talked-about movies in recent memory. Aside from making a huge impact on social media and at the water cooler, the movie also generated record-breaking review scores from both critics and audiences.

While there was always going to be a built-in audience based on the popularity and track record of both Coogler and Jordan (particularly when they collaborate), box office projections were understandably on the low side due to the movie’s R-rating, along with the fact that it’s a horror movie. However, neither those elements nor anything else prevented the movie from beating projections in its opening weekend. Even more impressively, Sinners is now on pace to register one of the smallest week-over-week decreases at the box office ever thanks to a perfect storm of positive factors.

Sinners Only Had A 6% Second Weekend Drop At The Box Office

It Produced Almost As Much As Its Opening Weekend

Sinners roared to an impressive domestic opening weekend that exceeded most projections, riding high on immediate word-of-mouth, its star power at all levels of the production, and near-universal acclaim on popular movie review aggregators like Rotten Tomatoes. Sinners opened with just over $48 million across more than 3,300 theaters, which is among the most successful true horror openings ever. However, it earned another $45 million domestically in its second three-day weekend, a drop of just 6%, which is essentially unheard of; a typical box office second weekend drop is between 40-50%.

Part of the movie’s box office success can be attributed to its dominance of premium format theaters. In fact, $12.3 million of the global $58.5 million it earned in its opening weekend came from IMAX ticket sales. The movie, which was sH๏τ with IMAX cameras, generated sellouts across the country in its first weekend, along with sellouts at smaller theaters that are playing the 70mm film reel version of the movie. That success continued in its second weekend, with word-of-mouth helping push moviegoers who might not typically pay up for premium formats towards the more engrossing theatrical experiences.

Why Sinners Had Such A Great Hold At The Box Office

Excellent Word-Of-Mouth And Pop Culture Relevance Contributed

There’s no question that the primary reason Sinners experienced almost no drop at the box office is the unbelievable word-of-mouth from the opening weekend. While plenty of movies draw rave reviews from critics, as Sinners did, very few are so engrossing that the audience is compelled to recommend, post online, and talk about it as much as Coogler’s period vampire movie. It instantly spawned a network of easily-repeated memes and quotes that encouraged people to see it so that they could be clued in on the conversation.

On top of that, the movie is so thematically dense that it invites repeat viewings. While many critics made special note of Coogler’s ambition in cramming so many different themes and symbols into one electrifying horror narrative, very few saw it as a negative. There is so much to unpack that it’s difficult to absorb it all while also marveling at the powerful performances, intoxicating music, and incredible production design. While there are no official numbers, it seems as though many viewers who saw the movie on opening weekend saw it a second time in support and to experience it again.

How Sinners’ Second Weekend Drop Compares To Other Movies

It’s One Of The Best Results For A Horror Movie Ever

Part of the appeal of Sinners is how extraordinary it is in the modern movie space. Truly original movies are harder and harder to come by, as adaptations of existing IP almost always register as the safest bets for studios, but high-quality original movies that float between genres like Sinners does are even more difficult to find. In comparing the movie’s unprecedented week-over-week drop to other movies, it’s important to remember that it only had the built-in horror audience, because it makes the figures that much more impressive.

According to Box Office Mojo, Sinners‘ 6% second weekend drop represents the 31st-smallest drop in history. Its 6% drop represents the smallest drop for any movie that eanred over $40 million since 2009’s unprecedented box office juggernaut Avatar. Drilling down further into the genre specifics, Sinners boasted the second-lowest week 2 drop for an R-rated movie in history, trailing only the recent slasher Heart Eyes. No matter how you break it down, Sinners has yielded a historic run at the box office through two weeks, and it’s certainly not showing any signs of stopping just yet.

What Sinners’ Low Second Weekend Drop Means For Its Box Office Future

It Should Blow Away Its Production Budget

While it would be all but impossible for Sinners to maintain the level of box office success it’s had so far, it clearly has a long way to go before its box office run comes to a close. In its third week, many major theaters are offering 4+ screenings per day, and given its unprecedented success they’ll likely continue to do so for at least another weekend. It will unfortunately lose its hold on IMAX theaters, however, as the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe entry Thunderbolts* is set to take over those screens beginning on May 1st.

The fact that Sinners saw such a small drop in its second weekend likely points to it having legs for longer than the average movie. As a result, its box office production likely won’t be as front-loaded as the average movie. It has already grossed over $122 million at the domestic box office, with a global total of over $161 million. Factoring in the inevitable significant drops as it moves farther away from its release date, Sinners should have no trouble breaking the $200 million mark overall by the end of its run.

It’s entirely possible that it hits that number domestically, and pushes for a global total of over $250 million. Audiences are still eating up the stylish, Sєxy supernatural horror movie on social media, and support from stars like Tom Cruise certainly will help keep the overall excitement about the film up in its third weekend. Despite its $90 million production budget, Sinners will certainly be looked at as a box office success by the end of its theatrical run, and hopefully pave the way for studios to continue to put their faith in original movies moving forward.

Source: Box Office Mojo