Box Office: ‘Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ Ignites to Blockbuster $190 Million, ‘The Drama’ Impresses With $14 Million Debut

Wahoo! Universal and Illumination’s animated sequel “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” has activated the domestic box office with $130 million in its opening weekend and powered to $190 million from 4,252 theaters in its first five days of release.

These blockbuster figures rank as the year’s largest domestic debut, ahead of March’s “Project Hail Mary” with $80.5 million. However they ever-so-slightly trail its franchise predecessor, 2023’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which ignited to $146 million over the traditional weekend and $204 million in its first five days. Thanks to the enduring appeal of family films and a multi-generational love for the Nintendo video game, “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” became a four-quadrant smash in 2023 with $1.3 billion globally.

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At the international box office, “Super Mario Galaxy Movie” collected $182.4 million from 78 markets for a dazzling global start of $372.5 million. By comparison, the first “Mario” earned $171 million overseas and stellar $375 million worldwide in the same timeframe.

“These are outstanding numbers,” says David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe. “So far, the movie is holding most of the first film’s audience.”

This also marks the second-biggest domestic launch of all time for Illumination, the animation empire founded by Chris Meledandri. The prolific producer, whose company has an exclusive partnership with Universal, has fielded such kid-friendly hits as the “Despicable Me” and “Minions” franchise, “Sing” and “The Secret Life of Pets.”

“‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ is thrilling audiences worldwide,” says Universal’s domestic distribution chief Jim Orr. “Incredible to note that this is Chris Meledandri’s 16th movie in 16 years, an amazing run that continues again this summer with another event title.” This July’s “Minions & Monsters” is poised to be another huge hit for the studio.

Against a $110 million production budget, “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” will be massively profitable. Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic returned to direct the sequel, which follows the Brooklyn-based plumbers known as Mario and Luigi as they venture into outer space. Audiences loved the film, though the “A-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls is slightly worse than the original’s “A” rating. Critics were less… enthusiastic, with Variety’s Owen Gleiberman calling the film “frenetic and disappointing.”

“Kids love the movie,” notes Gross, who adds that “family moviegoing is leading the industry now.”

“The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” towered over box office charts, but it wasn’t this weekend’s only new release. A24’s dark comedy “The Drama,” starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, started strong in third place with $14.4 million from 3,087 screens. That’s above A24’s breakout hit, 2025’s “Materialists” ($11.3 million), and similar to Zendaya’s last film, 2024’s “Challengers” ($15 million), which appealed to similar demographics as “The Drama.”

“The Drama” also debuted overseas with $13.6 million for a global tally of $28 million. That’s an encouraging worldwide opening for an original adult-oriented film, especially against its budget of around $28 million. It’s a testament to the star power of Zendaya and Pattinson, who will share the screen twice more in 2026 with “The Odyssey” and “Dune: Part Three.” Directed by Kristoffer Borgli, the R-rated “The Drama” follows a happily engaged couple whose wedding week goes off the rails after an unexpected revelation.

Enthusiasm for “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” helped to power the biggest collective weekend of the year. Already, the box office is showing improvement from last year, with ticket sales up 25% from the same point in 2025, according to Comscore. Exhibitors are encouraged because “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” isn’t the only movie that’s bringing audiences to the big screen. That’s a change from post-pandemic habits, when too often, one blockbuster would suck up all the oxygen at multiplexes and leave the rest of the new releases to settle for scraps.

“[‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’] is exactly the kind of broad, crowd-pleasing release that brings people into theatres,” says AMC’s CEO Adam Aron. “Just as importantly, this success is happening alongside other films that also have been bringing in moviegoers, including ‘Project Hail Mary,’ ‘The Drama,’ ‘Scream 7’ and ‘Hoppers’ among many others. The combination of a major tentpole like ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ supported by a diverse slate helps drive consistent, sustained moviegoing.”

Second place on domestic charts went to “Project Hail Mary,” which had another stellar showing with $30 million in its third outing, a 43% decline. So far, the space adventure starring Ryan Gosling has earned an impressive $217 million in North America and $420.7 million globally. It’s the first commercial hit for Amazon MGM, which has spent lavishly in its quest to become a major player in the movie business. It’s a pivotal year for the studio, which will deliver a full theatrical slate for the first time since the e-commerce giant acquired MGM for $8 billion in 2022. 

Disney’s animated Pixar comedy “Hoppers” landed at No. 4 with $5.8 million in its fifth weekend of release, an unsurprising 52% hit as family crowds overwhelmingly opted to watch the cinematic adventures of Mario and friends. “Hoppers” has generated $149.6 million domestically and $332 million worldwide, a decent showing that’s not quite near the box office heights of Pixar’s greats.

“Reminders of Him” rounded out the top five with $2.3 million in its fourth frame. Universal’s romantic drama, based on Colleen Hoover’s novel of the same name, has grossed $45 million in North America and $79 million globally against a $25 million budget.

Elsewhere, the Warner Bros. horror film “They Will Kill You” cratered at No. 7 with $1.9 million in its second weekend of release. That’s a 61% drop from its terrible $4.9 million debut. The movie, which cost $20 million, has grossed $8.8 million domestically and $15.2 million worldwide.

“They Will Kill You” landed behind the historical drama “A Great Awakening,” which took sixth place with $2.1 million from 1,289 screens. Roadside Attractions is releasing the film, which follows the unlikely friendship between Ben Franklin and the preacher George Whitefield.

“We are very excited about the top 10 box office opening,” said Roadside’s co-president Howard Cohen. “Our exit polls [show] it brought in both faith-based viewers and history buffs. The film received an ‘A+’ CinemaScore, boding well for play in the weeks to come.”