Thunderbolts* Beats Box Office Slump, Sinners Surges Past $200M, Minecraft Nears $1 Billion

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This weekend seemed destined to feature a tight competition between just two films. Typically, big production houses avoid releasing major projects following a Marvel movie release. Consequently, Eli Craig’s “Clown In A Cornfield”, Joe Carnahan’s “Shadow Force”, and James Madigan’s “Fight Or Flight” were the main new releases on Friday, setting up an intense box office battle between Jake Schreier’s “Thunderbolts*” and Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners”. In the end, “Thunderbolts*” emerged victorious in the race for first place, but both films can rightfully claim victory.

Here’s a fresh take on your text:

This weekend’s Top 10 box office list has kept Marvel Studios’ newest release at the top spot, yet it’s not just its success that’s grabbing attention. For a detailed look, see the chart below and let’s delve into the analysis together afterward.

Thunderbolts* Has A Relatively Soft Weekend-To-Weekend Drop As It Holds On To First Place

Previously mentioned in this movie column, Marvel Studios has faced an ongoing challenge with maintaining audience interest after the opening weekend for their comic book movies over the past decade and more. Despite consistently topping box office charts, several titles have witnessed substantial drops in earnings during their second weekends. The latest instance of this trend occurred just a few months back when Julius Onah’s “Captain America: Brave New World” experienced a steep 68% decline in domestic ticket sales.

Despite concerns about continuing a negative trend with Marvel titles, there’s optimism surrounding “Thunderbolts” due to its potential for generating buzz. The latest MCU film has garnered positive feedback from both critics and viewers, and the title’s secret reveal adds intrigue (though I’m uncertain if it should be referred to as “New Avengers”, but that’s a minor detail).

In other words, as shown in the chart, Thunderbolts earned approximately $33.1 million from Friday through Sunday last week, representing a 55% decrease compared to its previous weekend. While this isn’t as impressive as the minor dip we observed with Sinners a couple of weeks ago (which is still puzzling me), it’s certainly a promising sign within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Starting with the beginning of what is known as The Multiverse Saga, which commenced with Cate Shortland’s film “Black Widow” in 2021, only Destin Daniel Cretton’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”, James Gunn’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”, and Shawn Levy’s upcoming movie “Deadpool & Wolverine” had smaller decreases in ticket sales during their second week than what “Thunderbolts*” has shown so far. That’s quite an achievement for the film.

The dropoff figures are robust, which bodes well for the blockbuster’s future prospects. However, it’s crucial to recall that Thunderbolts, despite having one of the weakest opening weekends among MCU films (180 million dollars production budget not including advertising and promotion expenses), has only outperformed Nia Da Costa’s The Marvels domestically ($128.5 million versus $84.5 million). Despite climbing up the rankings, it’s worth noting that this weekend’s competition was relatively light compared to what lies ahead.

Excluding the U.S. and Canada, the movie has generated a total of $143.7 million from international markets, raising its global box office earnings to approximately $272.2 million so far. As we move forward in time, it’s an exciting title to anticipate as it competes against other influential IP titles on the global arena and comic book enthusiasts gear up for the upcoming superhero spectacles in July, including James Gunn’s Superman and Matt Shakman’s Fantastic Four: First Steps.

Sinners Continues To Be A Powerhouse As It Crosses $200 Million Domestically

In the usual pattern for a Marvel film, it was expected that “Thunderbolts” would dominate the box office during the first fortnight of May. However, what has been truly noteworthy is how “Sinners” has managed to maintain its audience and keep posting impressive earnings at the box office.

The sales of tickets for the Michael B. Jordan-starring vampire film are declining at a sluggish pace, with this week’s earnings amounting to $21.1 million, representing only a 36% decrease from the $33.1 million reported a week ago. This figure also signifies that it has surpassed an important benchmark, as the original crime/horror movie has now earned over $200 million in domestic box office revenue.

In 2025, only Jared Hess’ “A Minecraft Movie” has earned more at the box office in the U.S. and Canada than “Sinners.” This is because “Sinners” has now surpassed the earnings of “Captain America: Brave New World.” This success can be attributed to strong word-of-mouth, the charismatic stardom of Michael B. Jordan, and the proven skills of Ryan Coogler. It’s truly inspiring to witness such achievements in today’s Hollywood.

The movie hasn’t been a blockbuster hit outside its home country, earning just $58.9 million so far, but it’s still managed an impressive total of $283.3 million globally. This makes it the fifth highest-grossing film of the year, outperforming Marc Webb’s Snow White, which has only brought in $202.8 million worldwide to date.

A Minecraft Movie Crosses $900 Million Worldwide… But Will It Get To A Billion?

Besides the leading films in the Top 10 this week, I’d like to bring attention to another significant achievement: “A Minecraft Movie” has surpassed $900 million globally, reaching exactly $909.6 million so far. Unlike the other two movies mentioned earlier, this video game adaptation featuring Jack Black and Jason Momoa seems impervious to criticism, as its audience – mainly young people – are enjoying it immensely. The film gave a substantial push to the domestic box office when it premiered in April, and it’s still doing quite well.

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2025-05-11 23:27