Super Mario Galaxy and Hail Mary boost biggest box office gains since COVID

Super Mario Galaxy and Project Hail Mary have turned a slow spring into the box office’s strongest January-April stretch since the COVID era, but the numbers also show how concentrated the recovery remains. The two films are carrying most of the revenue lift, while smaller titles are still fighting for traction.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie crossed $300 million domestically and $600 million globally in just its second weekend. ABC News and AP reported that the Universal and Illumination sequel added $69 million from 4,284 theaters in the United States and Canada, lifting its domestic total to $308.1 million and its worldwide haul to $629 million, even after a 48% second-weekend drop. Variety said that total made it the year’s highest-grossing film to date.

That run is giving exhibitors a jolt ahead of the summer movie season, which begins in May, but the shape of the rebound is telling. The film opened to $131.7 million and reached $207.6 million over the Easter holiday corridor, a strong showing that Boxoffice Pro said pointed to unusually sturdy early legs. Deadline said the sequel was on track for roughly $700 million worldwide, a level that would put it among the year’s dominant global releases.

Project Hail Mary is reinforcing the same pattern. Variety and Deadline said the film passed $500 million worldwide, while The Numbers listed it at $256.658 million domestic after 24 days on April 12. Together, the Mario sequel and Hail Mary have done far more to move the market than the rest of the release slate, even as The Drama builds some momentum and You, Me & Tuscany opens into the corridor.

The broader lesson is less about a sudden industry transformation than about the power of event films, family franchises and pent-up demand. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is a sequel to 2023’s Super Mario Bros. Movie, which Boxoffice Pro noted opened to $146.36 million in its first three days. That comparison helps explain why studios and theater owners are treating the new film as a major tentpole, not a sign that every part of the business has healed.

Comscore, which describes itself as the global industry standard for box-office reporting, is tracking these results closely as CinemaCon unfolds in Las Vegas. For theaters, the surge is real. The question is whether it reflects durable health, or just another hit-driven bounce masking how dependent the market still is on a handful of giant films.