The Devil Wears Prada 2 has officially emerged as Hollywood’s latest box office phenomenon after defeating Mortal Kombat II during one of the year’s most closely watched weekend battles. Despite entering its second weekend, Disney and 20th Century Studios’ fashion sequel retained the No. 1 spot at the North American box office with an impressive $43 million domestic haul, continuing a remarkable theatrical run that has rapidly exceeded industry expectations.
The film added another $75.8 million internationally, taking its second weekend worldwide total to $118.8 million and pushing its global cumulative earnings to a massive $433.2 million after just two weekends of release. In an especially significant milestone, the sequel has already surpassed the entire lifetime worldwide gross of the original 2006 The Devil Wears Prada, which finished with $326 million globally, not adjusted for inflation.
The second-week hold is being viewed as one of the strongest performances for an adult-skewing studio sequel in recent years. Domestically, the film declined only around 43% to 44% from its opening weekend, while overseas markets dipped roughly 46%, demonstrating unusually strong audience retention for a dialogue-driven dramedy sequel nearly two decades after the original film’s release.
Much of the momentum came from Mother’s Day moviegoing, which industry analysts predicted would become the deciding factor in the weekend’s box office race. Disney reportedly intensified marketing efforts throughout the week targeting mothers and daughters, helping the sequel transform into a cross-generational event driven heavily by female audiences.
The continued popularity of the returning cast — including Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci — has also helped fuel the film’s massive repeat business and word-of-mouth appeal. Industry observers are already describing the sequel as the biggest female-driven theatrical success since Barbie in 2023.
The success of The Devil Wears Prada 2 also pushed Disney past another major industry milestone. With the sequel’s continued momentum, the studio officially became the first Hollywood company to cross $2 billion in worldwide box office revenue during 2026. Other major contributors to Disney’s strong year include Hoppers alongside the carryover success of Avatar: Fire and Ash and Zootopia 2.
Meanwhile, Warner Bros. and New Line’s Mortal Kombat II delivered a solid but slightly softer-than-expected opening with $40 million domestically and $63 million globally. The R-rated video-game adaptation launched with approximately $23 million overseas from 78 international territories. Although industry tracking services had projected a stronger $45 million-plus domestic debut heading into the weekend, Warner Bros. had internally forecast a more conservative $35 million to $40 million opening range.
Directed again by Simon McQuoid, the sequel expands the franchise with the addition of fan-favorite Johnny Cage, played by Karl Urban. The film still significantly outperformed the original 2021 Mortal Kombat, which opened to $23 million during Warner Bros.’ controversial pandemic-era simultaneous HBO Max release strategy and eventually finished with $84.4 million globally. The sequel is now expected to surpass that worldwide total relatively quickly.
Even though Mortal Kombat II did not fully meet some aggressive tracking projections, analysts continue viewing video-game adaptations as one of Hollywood’s most commercially reliable modern genres. Recent successes including The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, A Minecraft Movie and the Sonic the Hedgehog films have reinforced the growing dominance of gaming-based properties in the theatrical marketplace.
Elsewhere, Michael continued its historic run with another excellent weekend performance. The Michael Jackson biopic earned $36.5 million domestically in its third frame and reached a worldwide total of approximately $577 million. The film has now officially surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody to become the highest-grossing music biopic in North America, not adjusted for inflation. Internationally, the film continues showing exceptional strength across major territories including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia and Brazil.
Amazon MGM’s family comedy The Sheep Detectives also opened above expectations with $15.9 million domestically and $28 million globally. The Hugh Jackman-led hybrid live-action and CGI comedy earned strong reviews along with an “A” CinemaScore, giving the film promising long-term prospects among family audiences.
Paramount’s Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) rounded out the top five with a $20.1 million global launch, including $7.5 million domestically and $12.6 million overseas. Co-directed by James Cameron and Billie Eilish herself, the concert experience performed especially well in premium 3D formats, which accounted for the vast majority of ticket sales globally.
Meanwhile, holdover performers continued adding significant value to the overall marketplace. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie pushed its worldwide total to roughly $941 million, while Project Hail Mary climbed to nearly $656 million globally after another excellent hold in its eighth weekend. Analysts specifically pointed toward the continued strength of those titles as evidence of healthy audience retention across genres.
Perhaps the biggest story beyond individual numbers is what this weekend says about the current theatrical environment overall. Domestic box office revenue for the frame surged nearly 88% compared to the same period last year, driven not by a single dominant blockbuster but by multiple genres successfully attracting different audience groups simultaneously.
Female-led dramas, gaming adaptations, music biopics, science-fiction epics, family animation and concert films are all currently succeeding together at the box office. That diversity of audience engagement increasingly suggests that Hollywood’s theatrical ecosystem may finally be stabilizing into a healthier and broader post-pandemic marketplace — one where multiple genres can thrive at the same time rather than depending entirely on one franchise phenomenon to drive momentum.
Note: Box office figures are based on current studio estimates and industry reports. Final numbers are subject to change as updated weekend data arrives.
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