Ryan Gosling Leads ‘Project Hail Mary’ to Record-Breaking Biggest Domestic Opening Day Ever
Project Hail Mary has opened to a major box office milestone, setting new records for both its studio and for non-franchise films. The movie delivered a strong debut across theaters, marking the biggest opening day and biggest theatrical start ever for a non-franchise title. It is also now the largest domestic opening ever for that category.
The film earned around $33 million on its first day in North America, playing in more than 4,000 locations. Early tracking suggests the full opening weekend could reach about $77 million. These figures are based on industry estimates reported across box office tracking sources.
This performance also breaks a record for Amazon MGM Studios. The previous high was set by Creed III, which opened with $58.3 million domestically in 2023. The new result shows a clear jump in the studio’s theatrical performance.
Knock, knock, knock. The first #ProjectHailMary clip just dropped — only in theaters & IMAX March 20. Get tickets at link in bio. pic.twitter.com/zoxXRBP7pm
— Project Hail Mary (@projecthailmary) March 6, 2026
When compared to other original films, the numbers stand out even more. In the last ten years, only Oppenheimer managed a higher opening weekend for a non-franchise release, with around $82 million in its debut.
Audience response has been very strong. The film received an A grade from CinemaScore. It also holds high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, with 95% from critics and 97% from audiences. Viewers have pointed to its mix of space adventure, humor, and emotional story. The performance by Ryan Gosling has also been a major part of the positive reaction.
The film will face competition soon from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which is expected to draw large audiences as well. Still, early momentum suggests strong staying power for the sci-fi release.
Other films in the box office chart include Hoppers, which earned about $20 million in its third weekend and now sits at roughly $122 million domestically. It continues to perform steadily for Pixar.
The Hindi action film Dhurandhar: The Revenge also performed strongly in the U.S., earning about $10.9 million from under 1,000 theaters. Directed by Aditya Dhar, it has seen strong turnout from South Asian audiences.
In fourth place, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come is tracking around a $9 million opening weekend. Early reactions are solid, with a B+ CinemaScore and good audience scores.
Closing out the top five is Reminders of Him, which made about $8.7 million and now stands at roughly $33.8 million after ten days. It has seen a typical drop after its opening week.
Overall, this weekend shows strong variety at the box office, with original films, sequels, animation, and international titles all performing at different levels. The standout story is clearly the record-breaking launch of Project Hail Mary, which has set a new benchmark for non-franchise openings.
This result shows that original movies can still compete at a very high level when they connect with audiences. Strong reviews and word of mouth clearly helped here. It also suggests studios may take more risks on standalone stories if this trend continues. What do you think about this record-breaking opening and the future of original films in theaters? Share your thoughts in the comments.