Box Office: 'Resident Evil' tops box office with franchise best debut of $60 million

Zach Cregger’s “Resident Evil” gave the North American box office a shot in the arm in its first weekend in theaters. The Sony Pictures release earned $60 million in ticket sales from 3,684 locations in the U.S. and Canada, according to studio estimates Sunday.

That’s a best for the video game inspired franchise, of which there have been seven prior movies dating back to 2002, and for the filmmaker behind “Weapons” and “Barbarian.” It’s also more than most of the previous films made in their entire domestic runs. The only exception is “Resident Evil: Afterlife,” which was released in 2010 and netted out with $60.1 million, not accounting for inflation.

Cregger’s “Resident Evil” stars Austin Abrams (who also played a pivotal role in “Weapons”) as a medical courier whose last job of the night finds him battling infected creatures in Raccoon City. Reviews were overwhelmingly positive; it currently boasts a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The audience was primarily male (66%) and under 35 (75%), according to PostTrak exit polls, and gave it a B+ CinemaScore. Cregger’s previous films have defied a lot of box office logic when it comes to horror movies, whose earnings tend to be front-loaded and drop sharply after the first weekend. “Barbarian” grossed over $46 million on a budget under $5 million. “Weapons” made $270 million on a $38 million budget.

“Zach Cregger is a household name in the world of horror,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the head of marketplace trends for Rentrak. “There are certain directors who become the star of the movie.”

“Resident Evil” cost a reported $75 million to produce, which does not include marketing and promotion expenses. Internationally, it earned $48.3 million, bringing its global launch to $108.3 million.

“Zach Cregger plus big franchise equals big bucks,” Dergarabedian said. “And he made it feel fresh and new.”

According to Rentrak, horror movies this year, including hits like “Obsession” and “Backrooms,” have generated over $1.1 billion at the domestic box office.

Second place went to “Practical Magic 2,” which fell about 59% from its lackluster opening weekend with $12.2 million from 4,163 theaters in North America. An additional $7 million from international showings brings its running global total to $76.8 million.

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” landed in third place with $6.5 million in its eighth weekend, pushing its domestic total to $944.5 million. “The Odyssey,” in its 10th weekend in theaters, added another $4.9 million to take fourth place. “Coyote vs. Acme” rounded out the top five with $4.5 million.

One notable limited release was “The History of Concrete,” a documentary from comedian John Wilson, which earned $90,000 from one screen (the IFC Center in New York). The only film to make more in a single weekend at that venue was “Parasite,” which made $119,407.

With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak:

1. “Resident Evil,” $60 million.

2. “Practical Magic 2,” $12.2 million.

3. “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” $6.5 million.

4. “The Odyssey,” $4.9 million.

5. “Coyote vs. Acme,” $4.5 million.

6. “Runner,” $3.2 million.

7. “Daniel and the Fiery Furnace,” $3.1 million.

8. “Transformers: The Movie” (40th anniversary re-release), $3.1 million.

9. “The Weight,” $2.3 million.

10. “Buddy,” $1.9 million.

Zach Cregger, co-writer/director of "Resident Evil," arrives at the premiere of the film on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Austin Abrams, a cast member in "Resident Evil," arrives at the premiere of the film on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

BERLIN (AP) — Exit polls showed Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s party suffering heavy losses in two German state elections on Sunday, increasing pressure on a leader who has struggled to deliver on promises to revive Europe’s biggest economy and curb the ascent of the far-right AfD party.

Merz’s center-right Christian Democratic Union is projected to fall to 5.5% in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a largely rural state in Germany’s formerly communist east. That would be its worst result there since World War II.

In Berlin, the CDU is projected to come in second with 20%, behind the Left party at 24.5%, according to the exit poll by public broadcaster ARD.

The anti-migration, Russia-friendly Alternative for Germany party made significant gains in both elections Sunday. The vote came two weeks after AfD finished just short of a majority in the small eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, and has its best chance yet of forming the country’s first far-right regional government since World War II.

Merz’s authority was severely damaged by his party’s stinging defeat in the Sept. 6 election by AfD — a result that shocked many Germans who had believed their country had developed an immunity to nationalism and assertions of racial superiority after confronting the horrors of its Nazi past through education and laws to outlaw persecution.

Merz, 70, became Germany’s leader 16 months ago with promises to turn around an economy that has barely grown in years, but has failed to lift a sullen national mood and has himself become deeply unpopular.

The strong showing of AfD in the Saxony-Anhalt election has further weakened the chancellor's standing on the national level as well, and in the past two weeks there have been calls even from within his own party to replace him as chancellor. No top-level allies have called publicly for his departure, and many have warned against “personnel debates.”

Apparently anticipating a tough postelection period, Merz abandoned a planned trip to New York next week to attend the U.N. General Assembly. Despite the strong headwinds, he has repeatedly said that he’s determined to stay on and finish his term as chancellor.

Voters sit at a voting booth in Schwerin, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, as the vote for the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state election, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (Philip Dulian/dpa via AP)

A man casts his vote at a polling station during the Berlin state election in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Social Democratic Party Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the party's top candidate for the upcoming state election Manuela Schwesig poses in front of an election campaign poster reading "The Woman Against Blue", in Schwerin, Germany, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. ( Jens Buettner/dpa via AP)

Leif-Erik Holm, the AfD's candidate for state premier in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, speaks at the campaign's closing rally in Neubrandenburg, Germany, on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (Philip Dulian/dpa via AP)

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrives for the Cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)