‘Sinners’ Remains No. 1 at Weekend Box Office, Bringing in $45 Million

Ryan Coogler’s latest, Sinners, is a bona fide hit, surpassing the expectations of some.

The Michael B. Jordan-backed film made an impressive $45 million in its second weekend at the box office, according to the Associated Press, only down a few million from its $48 million opening, one of the smallest drops a movie has ever seen after its debut. This brings its total earnings so far to nearly $162 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo.

If it feels like there’s been extra attention on the film’s box office numbers, you’re not imagining it. Variety spark a wave of debate on social media around the publication’s perceived biased coverage of the film’s opening weekend earnings. It brought in $60 million worldwide that weekend, yet Variety questioned whether Sinners would be able to turn a profit to make back its $90 million budget. 

“It’s a great result for an original, R-rated horror film that takes place in the 1930s," reporter Rebecca Rubin wrote in the piece, ”yet the Warner Bros. release has an eye-popping $90 million price tag before global marketing expenses, so profitability remains a ways away. The New York Times published a similar article casting doubt of the film’s financial future. 

Critics of the Variety piece include Ben Stiller, who wrote on X, “In what universe does a $60 million opening for an original studio movie warrant this headline?”