Sam Raimi, Melania Trump and a YouTube phenomenon share the US box office

If Send Help took control of the US box office this weekend, it is Markiplier’s first film and the controversial documentary devoted to the First Lady which are causing a sensation this week on the other side of the Atlantic.

Three very different new releases took the lead at the US box office this weekend.

Sam Raimi makes a remarkable return with an original story. At the top of the ranking, Send Help marks the director’s comeback to genre cinema, with a pure survival film with horrific tendencies. Carried by Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, the feature film — produced by 20th Century Studios — plays the card of survival without concession and it works: 20 million dollars to start, it’s a solid opening for a budget of 40 million. The film will be released on February 11 in France.

Just behind, a superstar YouTuber is transforming a video game adaptation into a mini-phenomenon! The surprise of the moment is called Iron Lungfirst film by Mark Fischbach, aka Markiplier, one of the most popular YouTubers on the planet. A feature film adapted from the eponymous video game (released in 2022), with a rikiki budget of less than $3 million… But already more than $18 million in revenue at the US box office and an unexpected second place in the rankings for this nightmare film where Fischbach stars alongside Caroline Rose Kaplan and Troy Baker. Iron Lung does not yet have a French date announced.

A buzz driven by American youth (more than 60% of the public who went to see Iron Lung is under 25) while at the other end of the spectrum, another America massively went to see Melaniathe documentary directed by Brett Ratner (Amazon MGM Studios). Again, no French date at this stage, but in the United States the film got off to an excellent start with $7 million over the weekend and a third place finish. It’s quite simply the best start for a documentary in ten years. The film follows Melania Trump during the twenty days leading up to Donald Trump’s second presidential inauguration. And its box office trajectory resembles that of a community film, driven by a very identifiable mobilization: strong performances in Florida and Texas, with an audience that is predominantly female (72%) and largely senior (72% are over 55). A film with obvious political significance, which further underlines the divide in current America: the press also notes with amazement that the film is 89% recommended by the public and a public score on Rotten Tomatoes of 99% (absolutely rare) while the critics’ rating does not exceed… 6%.

Meanwhile, the big machines continue their marathon. Zootopia 2 ends its 10th weekend with an additional 6 million for $410 million in revenue at the US box office. Avatar 3 takes 5 million more and climbs to 385 million across the Atlantic.

On the other hand, the weekend was tougher for Jason Statham: his new action film Shelter barely exists: around 5 million for its opening weekend, that’s not much. For comparison, A Working Manhis previous fighting film, opened to 15 million and finished at 37 million dollars in North America and almost 100 million worldwide. Shelter won’t do that. The film does not yet have a date in France and could arrive here directly in streaming.