The first full Super Bowl weekend of 2026 delivered exactly what the industry anticipated — a muted box office frame shaped more by calendar reality than audience rejection. Historically one of the weakest moviegoing weekends of the year, the Super Bowl period once again diverted attention toward television screens, watch parties, and advertising spectacle, leaving theaters to operate in a deliberately low-ceiling marketplace. With studios avoiding high-stakes launches, the February 6–8 weekend unfolded as a holding-pattern frame dominated by modest holdovers, niche debuts, and long-leg performers.
Leading the chart was Send Help, which retained the No. 1 position with $10 million in its second weekend. While the film posted a steep 47.7% decline, such drops are common during Super Bowl frames when Sunday business is disproportionately affected. After two weekends, the Disney release stands at $35.8 million domestically, positioning it as a serviceable performer rather than a breakout. Its chart-topping status reflects timing and lack of competition more than strong momentum, underscoring how Super Bowl weekends often crown “default” leaders.
Debuting in second place was Solo Mio, which opened to $7.2 million across 3,052 theaters. For Angel Studios, this result aligns with the company’s targeted distribution model, which prioritizes community-driven turnout over mainstream urgency. While not a conventional hit by studio standards, the opening suggests controlled expectations and potential sustainability within its core audience base, continuing Angel’s pattern of operating successfully within a self-contained ecosystem.
Horror entry Iron Lung slid to third place with $6 million, registering a sharp 66.3% drop in its second weekend. The film’s domestic total has now reached $30.8 million, a respectable figure for a genre release but one that reinforces a recurring trend — horror titles often open strong on curiosity and concept, then cool rapidly unless supported by exceptional word of mouth. Iron Lung’s trajectory fits that familiar front-loaded pattern.
One of the more efficient performers of the weekend came from event cinema. Stray Kids: The dominATE Experience debuted with $5.56 million from just 1,724 theaters, delivering one of the strongest per-theater averages of the frame. As with recent concert films, success was driven by a pre-sold, highly engaged fanbase rather than casual walk-ins. In a weekend defined by low urgency, event cinema once again proved its reliability when audience commitment is locked in advance.
New genre entries filled out the middle of the chart with mixed impact. Dracula opened to $4.5 million, a typical result for a Vertical Entertainment release that favors visibility over scale. Meanwhile, The Strangers: Chapter 3 launched with $3.49 million, signaling continued franchise fatigue. Without reinvention or escalation, mid-tier horror sequels are finding it increasingly difficult to command strong opening demand.
While new releases struggled for urgency, long-leg performers continued to underline the value of durability. Disney’s Zootopia 2 added $4 million in its remarkable 11th weekend, bringing its domestic total to $414.5 million. With a modest 32.5% decline, the animated sequel remains one of the most resilient theatrical performers of the past decade, functioning as a consistent anchor for family audiences well beyond its opening window.
Similarly, Avatar: Fire and Ash continued its gradual descent with $3.5 million in its eighth weekend, pushing its North American total to $391.5 million. Though long past its peak, the film’s continued presence in the Top 10 highlights how legacy event titles exit theaters slowly, even when momentum cools.
Lower down the chart, several films illustrated the limits of expansion without traction. Shelter dropped sharply, while Melania declined by nearly 67% despite adding theaters — a reminder that footprint growth cannot substitute for audience demand. Mercy continued to slide in its third weekend, further emphasizing the difficulty mid-budget adult thrillers face without sustained word of mouth.
In sum, this Super Bowl weekend offered little in the way of surprises. The absence of breakout titles, the dominance of holdovers, and the success of event-driven releases all align with long-standing industry patterns. Rather than signaling audience disengagement, the weekend reflects a known seasonal trough — one studios intentionally program around. The real test for the domestic box office will arrive once football fades and Valentine’s releases begin restoring urgency to the theatrical calendar.
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