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New York — DC Studios scored a modest R-rated hit with “Clayface,” coming in with a $24 million opening weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. But the biggest success story in theaters was the A24 Elizabeth Holmes documentary “You Can See Everything,” which pulled in $19.5 million in its first weekend of wide release.
The “You Can See Everything” under the direction of Nathan Fielder, Lance Oppenheim increased from 855 places to 2,655. In extension, he continued to blow away expectations. With $45.1 million in two weeks, it’s already among the highest-grossing documentaries of all time.
“You Can See Everything” has turned into something of a sensation by attracting waves of Gen Z moviegoers. Its awards season prospects are also growing. If “You Can See Everything” is nominated for best picture at the Oscars, it will be the first documentary to be nominated for Hollywood’s top prize.
“A24 invested a reported $7 million in an interesting but complex idea without a beginning, middle or end, which has turned into a zeitgeist film about money, dreams, truth and reality,” said David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe.
In 3,458 theaters, Warner Bros.’ “Clayface” edged out the A24 release for first place. That’s a great start to the Gotham City villain story and the third theatrical release for DC under the stewardship of James Gunn and Peter Safran. Attempting to fuse body horror with a comic book movie, it stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, a rising movie star who undergoes experimental facial surgery after being killed by a mob boss.
While such an opening would have been a flop for most superhero movies, “Clayface” was only budgeted at $44 million – a fraction of the cost of most comic book movies. It grossed $19 million internationally.
That was enough to offer DC Studios some stability, and guaranteed profitability, after the “Supergirl” disappointment. Earlier this year, that film grossed just $126 million worldwide on a $170 million production budget.
Audiences gave “Clayface” a CinemaScore of “A-“, a high grade for a horror release. Reviews were also mostly good. The competition for horror audiences may be stiff in October, but “Clayface” may be the genre’s top draw of the month.
“Clayface is a great example of studios taking chances, with DC going into R-rated horror and body horror, which is definitely not your average comic book movie,” said Paul Dergarabedian, head of market trends for Rentrak.
Last weekend’s top movie, the video game adaptation of “Street Fighter,” sank like a stone, dropping 72% with $8.6 million in its second weekend. The Paramount Pictures release, made for around $80 million, has collected $46.9 million domestically in two weeks.
“Wildwood,” the latest stop-motion animated film from Laika studio in Portland, Oregon, came in third with $11.8 million in 2,779 locations. The film, directed by Laika head Travis Knight, rode excellent reviews and strong audience scores (CineamaScore “A”) to a significant improvement over the studio’s previous release: 2019’s “The Missing Link” ($5.9 million opening).
But “Wildwood” is still unlikely to turn a profit, given that it will cost $100 million to make. The PG-13 fantasy follows a teenage girl who enters an enchanted forest to find her kidnapped younger brother.
“Wicker,” a comedic fable starring Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård, opened with a whopping $5.8 million in 1,471 theaters. Acquired for $2.5 million out of Sundance by Black Bear Pictures, the well-researched “Wicker” is a dramatic love story about a fisherman (Colman) whose local basket maker weaves her husband (Skarsgård).
Other new releases over the weekend were either hard to find or very little seen.
Taika Waititi’s critical panel “Klara and the Sun,” adapted from Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel, made just $725,000 at 880 theaters for Sony Pictures.
Amazon MGM chose not to even report groceries for the Sacha Baron Cohen joke that he only got “Ali G: Who Iz I?”
Although Cohen took the rare step of doing several interviews as himself, and not in character, “Ali G: Who Iz I?” it was almost non-existent on its opening weekend. The film’s theatrical footprint was significantly reduced as Cohen faced backlash in the UK over cultural appropriation and racial imagery.
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list shows estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak:
1. “Clayface,” $24 million.
2. “You See Everything,” $19.5 million.
3. “Wildwood,” $11.8 million.
4. “Street Fighter,” $8.6 million.
5. “Wicker,” $5.8 million.
6. “Other Mom,” $3.9 million.
7. “Awareness and Awareness,” $3.4 million.
8. “Whale,” $3.2 million.
9. “Proof,” $3.1 million.
10. “Ole Residence,” $3 million.
