Paramount’s Street Fighter punched its way to the top of the weekend box office, debuting with $31 million domestically and $51.1 million worldwide.
The bigger win may belong to theaters.
Overall domestic box office reached $103.9 million, up 53 percent from the same weekend last year, when all films combined for $67.9 million. It marks the fifth consecutive weekend that 2026 has beaten the comparable frame from 2025 — and the tenth time in the last 12 weeks.
That momentum matters because this weekend wasn’t driven by one enormous blockbuster. Four new films landed in the Top 5, giving audiences a mix of fighting-game spectacle, prestige documentary, survival thriller, and Jane Austen.
At No. 1, Street Fighter gives the Capcom franchise another shot at theatrical life after two previous live-action attempts failed to establish a lasting movie series.
Directed by Kitao Sakurai, the new film stars Noah Centineo as Ken, Andrew Koji as Ryu, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Jason Momoa as Blanka and David Dastmalchian as M. Bison. 50 Cent plays Balrog, while WWE stars Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes play Akuma and Guile.
Set in 1993, the story reunites estranged fighters Ryu and Ken as Chun-Li pulls them into the World Warrior Tournament, where the competition quickly becomes part of something considerably more dangerous.
Audiences appear more enthusiastic than critics. The film currently sits at 40 percent with critics and 80 percent with audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, suggesting fans are responding to the exaggerated action and game-faithful spectacle even if reviewers are less convinced by the plotting. Pasted text(2)
With a reported production budget of $82 million, however, the fight is hardly over. Using the traditional 2.5-times-budget benchmark, the film would need roughly $205 million worldwide to reach theatrical profitability.
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Elizabeth Holmes draws a crowd
The weekend’s biggest surprise came from A24.
You Can See Everything, the three-hour documentary from Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim about disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, opened in second place with an impressive $15 million from just 855 theaters.
That works out to a muscular $17,544 per-theater average.
The film begins 34 days before Holmes reported to federal prison and follows her life with partner Billy Evans, eventually expanding into an examination of performance, truth and whether viewers can trust what they are watching.
Amanda Seyfried, who previously won an Emmy playing Holmes in The Dropout, appears in reenactments, while Christopher Abbott portrays Evans in reconstructed conversations.
Critics and audiences are apparently buying what Fielder and Oppenheim are selling. The documentary currently holds a remarkable 99 percent critics score and 98 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. With a reported production cost of around $7 million, the $15 million opening puts it on a remarkably fast road toward profitability.
Other Mommy takes a steep fall
Last weekend’s champ, Universal and Blumhouse’s Other Mommy, dropped to third with $8.4 million, down a hefty 70 percent in its second frame.
Its 10-day domestic total now stands at $44.9 million, with $78.8 million worldwide.
That drop would alarm most films, but Blumhouse’s famously disciplined economics provide some protection. With a reported budget of just $19 million, the horror film has already crossed the approximate global threshold needed for profitability.
Whalefall surfaces in fourth
20th Century Studios’ Whalefall opened with $8 million domestically and $17.5 million worldwide, landing in fourth.
Directed by Brian Duffield and adapted from Daniel Kraus’ novel, the survival thriller stars Austin Abrams as a grieving young man who is swallowed by a sperm whale while searching for his late father’s remains.
Yes. That is the movie.
Josh Brolin plays his father, with Elisabeth Shue, Jane Levy, John Ortiz and Emily Rudd rounding out the cast.
The reviews have been generally favorable, with 71 percent from critics and 81 percent from audiences, but the bigger challenge will be economics. With a reported $60 million budget, Whalefall likely needs roughly $150 million worldwide to reach theatrical profitability.
Austen returns to theaters
Rounding out the Top 5 is Focus Features’ new Sense and Sensibility, which opened with $7.3 million domestically and $18.5 million worldwide.
Directed by Georgia Oakley, the latest adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel stars Daisy Edgar-Jones as Elinor Dashwood and Esmé Creed-Miles as Marianne, with Caitríona Balfe, George MacKay, Frank Dillane, Herbert Nordrum and Fiona Shaw in supporting roles.
With four fresh titles occupying the Top 5, none besides Street Fighter qualifies as a traditional blockbuster.
But that may actually be the healthiest part of this weekend.
Theaters did not need one movie to carry everything.
Audiences showed up for fighters, fraudsters, whales, and Jane Austen.
Sometimes variety really is the special effect.
