There’s more good news as the theatrical industry continues to escape from the throes of the Coronavirus pandemic. Not only has Spiral: From the Book of Saw repeated at the top of the domestic box office, but now that the ninth installment in the long-running series has hauled in over $22 million globally, Saw itself is a billion-dollar franchise.
The combined budgets for all nine entries to date come to less than $100 million, so Saw is also one of the most profitable brands around. Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson’s fresh spin on the material retained first place with a haul of just over $4.5 million, which isn’t great even by the standards of the COVID-19 era, but two weeks in first is still a solid return.
Jason Statham’s Wrath of Man is holding firm in second place, meanwhile, while Angelina Jolie’s thriller Those Who Wish Me Dead remains in third after it became the first of Warner Bros.’ hybrid releases dating back to December’s Wonder Woman 1984 that didn’t manage to debut in either first or second. Elsewhere, Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon is in fifth, which is an incredible achievement given that it arrived simultaneously on Disney Plus Premier Access twelve whole weeks ago, with Godzilla vs. Kong another long-term holdover.
Demon Slayer: Mugen Train has also now passed Pokemon: The Movie 2000 to become the second highest-grossing Japanese film ever in the United States and Canada, and it’s one place ahead of Mortal Kombat on the chart, as it’s been ever since their respective second weekends. The rest of the Top 10, meanwhile, is rounded out by the animated Scoob!, race horse drama Dream Horse and romance Finding You, but all the headlines will deservedly be going to Spiral.