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Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel has made $164.3 million at the North American box office. It has outperformed every other domestic release this year, showing that original films can still hold their own against big franchises.
"Project Hail Mary" has become the top-grossing domestic release of 2026, reaching $164.3 million at the North American box office in just nine days. This milestone puts the original sci-fi film on a path that few non-franchise movies have reached in recent years.
Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the film is an adaptation of Andy Weir's bestselling novel of the same name. It crossed the threshold on Saturday after surpassing "Hoppers" on the domestic chart.
The film earned $54.5 million in its second weekend, a 32% drop from its opening frame, a strong hold that signals sustained audience enthusiasm.
For context, the second weekend gross dwarfed "Dune: Part Two's" $46.2 million comparable outing. "Project Hail Mary" is now running more than $7 million ahead of that sci-fi adaptation's pace at the same point in its release.
With this lead, the film could reach $300 million at the domestic box office.
Internationally, the film has collected $136 million, bringing its worldwide gross to about $300.3 million. Analysts are now eyeing a $500 million global haul, though competition is approaching.
"The Super Mario Galaxy Movie" is expected to challenge the film for the top spot next weekend, but reaching $225 million internationally, a threshold only 12 of the 160 films to surpass $250 million domestically have failed to clear since 2009, appears well within the film's grasp.
Interestingly, Lord and Miller’s own "The Lego Movie" is one of those rare exceptions, along with last year’s "Sinners."
The film's performance arrives as Hollywood has grown increasingly reliant on sequel franchises and intellectual property brands to fill seats. "Project Hail Mary," with no number or pre-existing cinematic universe behind it, stands as a rare counterexample and a commercially meaningful one.
It’s not yet clear whether the film can keep up with the Mario juggernaut, but its strong start has already made history.
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