The Devil walked all the way to #1, as the highly-anticipated The Devil Wears Prada 2 posted a great start. But the real story was overseas, where the film posted an incredible debut across the world. But its presence didn't seem to impact Michael at all; not only did the film held well on its second frame, but also became the second highest grossing music biopic after just a few days. Among newcomers, Neon's Hokum posted a pretty good start, while Angel Studios' Animal Farm unsurprisingly flopped.

The Top 10 earned a combined $167.7 million this weekend. That's up 19% from last year, when Thunderbolts opened atop.

Opening at #1, 20th Century Studios' The Devil Wears Prada 2 opened with a wondrous $76.7 million in 4,150 theaters. That's over twice as high as the original Prada ($27.5 million) and it marked Meryl Streep's biggest ever debut. As a reference, it opened higher than last year's summer kick-off, Thunderbolts ($74.3 million), and it did it without IMAX screens.

The original Prada was a big hit back in 2006, earning $124.7 million domestically and $326 million worldwide. That popularity hasn't waned off, as the film has found an even bigger life through ancilliaries, with great DVD sales and strong streaming numbers. The film became a big part of pop culture, with Miranda Priestly becoming one of the most popular female characters of the century. Not to mention a few quotes ("gird your loins", "Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking", pretty much everything Miranda and Emily say, etc.) and story arcs (how much Nate sucks) becoming popular and points of discussion.

But still, a comedy-drama opening this high is astounding. Disney and 20th Century Studios knew they had a hit in their hands, and tried to make it a true cinematic event. They brought every important person back (director David Frankel, writer Aline Brosh McKenna, and stars Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci), and offered things people loved about the original (fashion, comedy and drama) while still shaking things up to not feel like a repeat. Instead of recycling the plot, the film addresses the changes of the fashion industry, along with the current trends that can affect it.

The star power has also grown for the cast in the 20 years since the original. Streep was already a big name back then, but Hathaway and Blunt just became bigger names thanks to their roles in many blockbusters (and in Hathaway's case, an Oscar win), while Tucci has also attained stability thanks to a lot of supporting roles in many films (along with an Oscar nomination). Disney then mounted an extensive marketing campaign, which greatly paid off. And the reviews confirmed it was worth the wait, as it's sitting at 78% on RT. Notably, that's higher than the original's 75%.

According to 20th Century Studios, 75% of the audience was female. This was exclusively an attraction for adults, as a massive 85% of the audience was 25 and over. It also skewed old; 36% was 45 and over, and 22% was 55 and over. They gave it a pretty good "A–" on CinemaScore, which is above the original's "B" grade (back then, films based on books were graded harder by female audiences given their adaptation). Films like these often hold very well, and Mother's Day falling on its second weekend could boost it. Right now, there's no chance The Devil Wears Prada 2 misses $200 million domestically. A great result… but the overseas story is very different.

In second place, Lionsgate's Michael added a great $54.4 million in its second weekend. That's down just 44%. Not quite as fantastic as Bohemian Rhapsody (39%), but better than Straight Outta Compton (56%). This is a sign that word of mouth is in its favor.

Through 10 days, Michael has grossed a dazzling $184.2 million. By next week, it will dethrone Bohemian Rhapsody ($216.6 million) to become the highest grossing music biopic domestically. Given its holds and word of mouth, it looks like the film could wind up with over $300 million domestically by the end of its run.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie dropped 41%, adding $12.1 million. That's its best hold yet, but it further shows that it's unable to drop less than 40%. The film has amassed $402.6 million domestically, which is $115.3 million below the original through the same point. It should end its run with around $430 million domestically.

Project Hail Mary eased just 34%, earning $8.5 million this weekend. The film's domestic total stands at $318.3 million, and it doesn't look like it's stopping any time soon. In fact, it outgrossed Mario on Monday and Wednesday, and that might become more common from now on.

In fifth place, Neon's Hokum debuted with a pretty good $6.4 million in 1,885 theaters. That's not close to Longlegs territory, but it wasn't expected to play like that. It's quite better than Immaculate ($5.3 million).

Given its low $5 million budget, Hokum won't have problem in recouping the investment. While Damian McCarthy is not a mainstream director, the film's premise (an author travelling to a hotel in Ireland that could be haunted) was intriguing enough, and the lack of horror competition also helped. Adam Scott may not be headlining blockbusters, but his presence was enough to attract some horror fans. And good reviews (89% on RT) surely helped.

According to Neon, 52% of the audience was male, and 67% was in the 18-34 demographic. They gave it a solid "B" on CinemaScore, which is quite good for a horror title. It will face some horror competition in two weeks with Obsession, but Hokum should still make its way to $15 million domestically.

Debuting in sixth place, Angel Studios' Animal Farm flopped with just $3.3 million in 2,600 theaters. That's one of the worst wide debuts for an animated film, and it's nowhere close to rank among the studio's top debuts.

This is a failure that wouldn't surprise anyone. Animal Farm flopped for one reason, and one reason only: it looks so fucking bad. Despite a lot of recognizable voices in the cast, the film just felt like a misguided and tonally confused mess. The film was originally set up at Netflix, before going the independent route. It made its debut in Annecy last year, where it failed to attract distributors, until Angel Studios stepped in.

The thing about Animal Farm is that it seems like it didn't know what audience it was catering to. Fans of George Orwell don't want a kiddie animated version with lame jokes (that on top of that, rewrites the third act's point), and families don't want an Orwellian adaptation to take their kids. Not to mention that the audience of Angel Studios doesn't tune in for something like this. And regardless of what you wanted, it looks like the film failed in every single aspect, as it was slaughtered with a brutal 24% on RT.

According to Angel Studios, 53% of the audience was male. Very little interest in the 18-34 demographic (35%). In fact, it skewed old: 40% of the audience was 45 and over (and 25% was 55 and over). They gave it a horrible "C–" on CinemaScore, which is the worst grade ever given to an animated film (Happily N'Ever After kept that record with a "C" for 20 years). Given its horrible start and poor word of mouth, Animal Farm will drop like a rock very quickly. If it makes it past $7 million, color us surprised. Anyways, director Andy Serkis surely will fare well with The Hunt for Gollum next year, right?

Lee Cronin's The Mummy continues its freefall. It collapsed 60%, earning just $2.2 million this weekend. The film has earned a meager $27.4 million, and could finish with less than $30 million.

In eighth place, Magenta Light released Renny Harlin's survival thriller Deep Water in 1,675 theaters. Unsurprisingly, it flopped with just $2.1 million, nowhere close to its $40 million budget. Even with solid reviews (72% on RT) and word of mouth ("B" on CinemaScore), it's got a long way to go before turning a profit.

Sony/Crunchyroll's That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime the Movie – Tears of the Azure Sea posted $947,325 in 837 theaters.

Rounding out the Top 10 was A24's The Drama, nearing the end of its run. It collapsed 65%, earning $908,303 this weekend. That takes its domestic total to $46.9 million.

OVERSEAS

Yeah, Prada 2 had a great start domestically. But the hype was bigger outside America.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 earned an incredible $156.9 million overseas, for a marvelous $233.7 million worldwide launch. Yes, it managed to open bigger than Michael last week. The best debuts were in Italy ($16.6M), Brazil ($12.6M), the UK ($12M), Mexico ($11.7M), Australia ($9.4M), China ($8.5M), Germany ($8.3M), France ($8M), Japan ($6.1M), Spain ($5.2M), South Korea ($4.8M) and Argentina ($3.4M).

In most of these markets, the film has already eclipsed the original's lifetime gross in just one weekend. Given that the overseas markets often carry great legs, Prada 2 is easily for over $650 million worldwide. And that's just a lowball. Given its $100 million budget, this is just a few days away from already breaking even.

Despite the arrival of Prada, Michael held its own very well on its second frame. It added $80.8 million overseas, for a $430.2 million worldwide run, overtaking Elvis to become the second highest grossing music biopic worldwide. The best markets are the UK ($30M), France ($21.2M), Mexico ($17.8M), Italy ($15.7M), Brazil ($15M), Spain ($13.8M), Germany ($13.7M), and Australia ($13.4M). It indicates it's easily heading for over $700 million worldwide, and even $800 million can't be ignored. It has yet to open in its last big market, Japan, which it won't hit till mid June. This Is It earned $57 million alone in the market, and it'd be surprising if Michael made less than that.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie added $32.2 million overseas, for a $897 million worldwide run. It opened in South Korea with a pretty good $4.5 million, although it was overshadowed by Prada. It's still on track to hit the $1 billion milestone.

Project Hail Mary added $7.4 million overseas, for a $638.7 million worldwide total, officially overtaking The Martian ($630 million).

Lee Cronin's The Mummy may be fizzling out domestically, but overseas is here to save it. It added $6.6 million overseas, for a $80.2 million worldwide run. The best markets are Mexico ($5.3M), India ($3.4M), Spain ($3.2M), the UK ($2.9M), France ($2.7M), Malaysia ($2.5M), Germany ($2.4M), Indonesia ($2.3M), Brazil ($2.1M), Italy ($2M), Australia ($1.6M), and Colombia ($1.4M).

FILMS THAT ENDED THEIR RUN THIS WEEK

– The goat's got game. Sony's GOAT has closed with $103 million domestically and $193 million worldwide. Not exactly the runaway hit given its $80 million budget and extensive marketing campaign, but it was close enough. But the fact that an original animation hit $100 million is something admirable. Perhaps it'll perform well when it debuts in Netflix.

– Paramount's Scream 7 has closed with a chilling $121 million domestically and $213 million worldwide. It easily became the highest-grossing film of the franchise, and the return of so many characters surely had a lot to do with it. We'd like to say that it accomplished everything it set out to do… but it failed with the quality. The film had the worst reviews of the franchise (31% on RT) and word of mouth ("B–" on CinemaScore), and while it had a monster debut, the film had shitty legs. It became the first film in the franchise to miss the 2x multiplier, achieving just a 1.92x multiplier. Even by horror standards, those are poor legs and it indicates audiences weren't content with the film. But hey, the money is all everyone will focus on. Paramount is already working on en eighth installment as of now, so you can expect Scream to go on for a long, long time.

– This is going straight to titles that spoiled a film's outcome. WB's They Will Kill You has closed with a poor $10.8 million domestically and $18.9 million worldwide. This is not a surprise, given the low buzz and incredibly muted marketing. Releasing it the week after Ready or Not 2, a title with a similar tone and premise, didn't do it any favors.

THIS WEEKEND

Two wide releases, but only one will try to claim the top spot, even if it will be a challenge.

That's Mortal Kombat II, the sequel to the 2021 reboot. The film brings back most of the cast, and further adds Karl Urban, Adeline Rudolph, and Tati Gabrielle as Johnny Cage, Kitana, and Jade, respectively. The original film was released during COVID-19, so the box office tickets are tricky, but it reportedly had strong viewership in HBO Max. The expectation is that they can build an audience for the sequel, especially with the big selling point: Karl Urban as Johnny Cage, whose character has been the main focus of the marketing. Is this gonna be a fatality or a flawless victory?

Amazon MGM is releasing the family comedy The Sheep Detectives, which stars an ensemble cast led by Hugh Jackman, and follows a flock of sheep who set off to solve the mystery of who murdered their beloved shepherd. Trailers have built some buzz, mainly for its crazy premise, and with Mario winding down, families might want to check something new. Especially with great reviews (95% on RT) on its side. Could it break out?

STREAMING DATA

Figures for the week of April 20 to April 26 on Netflix:

The survival thriller Apex, starring Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton, easily topped the Netflix charts with 38.2 million views on its first weekend. That's slightly better than Thrash (37.7 million) and a bit below War Machine (39.3 million). This is poised for a very healthy run ahead.

180 and Roommates saw increases in their second frames, but 180 was the most impressive, as it doubled last week's take, taking its total to 27 million views. Roommates, meanwhile, has posted 20.9 million.

After topping the charts for two weeks, Thrash dropped a sharp amount this week to just 9.6 million views. The film has amassed 81.8 million views in three weeks.

War Machine continues posting some pretty strong holds, as it spends an eighth week in the Top 10. The film has accumulated 128.4 million views. In fact, it's 9.6 million views away from cracking the Netflix's All-Time Top 10 chart. It has less than a month to get to that figure in order to get in.

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