SEND HELP Does Help, With Additional Support from IRON LUNG and MELANIA
Thaddeus oversees the editorial direction of the site’s coverage of the film industry. His contributions focus on box office performance and key trends shaping the movie business.
SEND HELP, the psychological thriller from Disney’s 20th Century Studios, opened with $20.0M to lead the box office in another slow winter weekend at theatres. The indie sci-fi horror movie IRON LUNG from Markiplier Studios contributed $17.9M in its debut, and the overall box office for all films came in at $82.2M. This was an improvement over last weekend’s disappointing $54.5M box office take, which was held down by severe winter storms across the country.
Last year on this same weekend, all films earned $86.2M, with a surprising lift coming from Universal’s animated DOG MAN, which took in $36.0M in its first three days. Therefore, the fifth weekend of last year was 5% higher than this year’s.
Super Bowl XL will be played next Sunday, also impacting foot traffic at theatres. The next bright spot on the release calendar is one week after that, when five new wide releases will open for Valentine’s Day and Presidents’ Day weekend. While 2026 is still running 14% ahead of last year at this time, we still feel that the industry is missing an opportunity, given the fact that last year’s January was historically slow. If 2026 is to outperform 2025, on the way to a year-end total of $9B of more, it’s essential for most weeks this year to show an increase over last year’s results.
On the bright side, momentum is building for Warner Bros.’ upcoming release of WUTHERING HEIGHTS on 2/13, as stars Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are making the rounds in their promotional tour. We also received good news when the horror film SCREAM 7 scored a 15 on this week’s pre-release tracking reports, which indicates excellent awareness for the upcoming 2/27 release. A tracking score of 10 or more coming out five weeks in advance of a release is usually reserved for only the biggest franchise films. We suspect that one or more of the upcoming February releases will break out with audiences, although it’s still unclear to us which ones it could be.
FIRST PLACE
SEND HELP, the survival movie from Disney’s 20th Century Studios, earned top spot by grossing $20.0M domestic and $28.1M worldwide over its opening weekend. This was within the range of expected earnings, and positions the film as the highest-grossing new release of 2026 thus far. This film has a lot going for it, beginning with director Sam Raimi. Raimi emerged in the early 1980s as one of cinema’s most inventive new filmmakers, blending slapstick comedy, visceral horror, and dynamic camera work into a unique and personal style. He was first noticed for his work on the 1981 movie EVIL DEAD, a shoestring affair that became a cult hit and redefined low-budget horror. Continuing with EVIL DEAD II and ARMY OF DARKNESS, Raimi’s directorial style, blending gore, humor, and bravura, influenced a generation of directors working in the horror genre.
In the 1990s, Raimi showed his versatility with studio projects like DARKMAN and A SIMPLE PLAN, the latter earning critical acclaim for its moral seriousness and restraint. His mainstream breakthrough came with Sony’s original SPIDER-MAN trilogy from 2002 to 2007, helping establish superhero films as a major box office draw. After stepping back from directing to focus on producing (THE GRUDGE, DON’T BREATHE), Raimi returned to hands-on horror with DRAG ME TO HELL (2009).
In the 2020s, Raimi took on a blockbuster with DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS, and now, a more intimate thriller again with SEND HELP. These projects further establish his reputation as a director who is equally comfortable with spectacle and stripped-down tension. The 13 movies he has directed since 1981 have grossed $4.5B worldwide, making him one of the most successful directors in Hollywood history.
SEND HELP tells the story of two coworkers who survive a plane crash and wind up on the shore of a remote island. With no rescue in sight and limited resources, the pair can only survive if they can put aside their personal resentments, clashing worldviews, and growing mistrust. What begins as a practical survival challenge slowly transforms into a psychological battle as desperation, power, and morality collide. Rachel McAdams (DOCTOR STRANGE AND THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS from 2022) and Dylan O’Brien (SATURDAY NIGHT from 2024) star as the two survivors, giving the film its character-driven core focus.
Critics have come out strongly in favor of the film, giving it a 93% grade on Rotten Tomatoes. Here is what some of them are saying. The Boston Globe comments, “You can probably figure out where the movie is headed, but that doesn’t make the journey any less fun. The bloody battle between Linda and a wild boar provides the first big thrills of 2026.” The Hollywood Reporter explains, “Sam Raimi’s darkly comic horror-thriller starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien boasts an audacious concept that is superbly realized by Raimi’s filmmaking.
Variety’s take is, “What’s so much fun about ‘Send Help,’ beyond its twisted B-movie premise and refreshing disinterest in anything more highfalutin than handing Linda a chance to turn the tables.” Finally, The Guardian has a less positive view by saying, “Starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, this gets off to a promising start, but the plot twists are derivative, and the tacked-on violence descends into exasperating silliness.”
The film cost $60M to make and will need to gross $150M worldwide to be profitable. Based upon its domestic opening of $20.0M, it will need to bring in sizeable audiences for weeks ahead, and from international territories where American horror films sometimes flounder. However, its positive response from both critics and audiences could go a long way towards supporting it. We chose MISERY from 1990 as a comparison picture, with both films using isolation to spark psycho-drama. Each movie traps two characters in a confined setting where escape is impossible, and survival depends on wit, endurance, and shifting power dynamics.
SEND HELP vs. MISERY
SECOND PLACE
Markiplier’s sci-fi horror film IRON LUNG opened with a better-than-expected second-place finish of $17.9M. The film is already turning heads in the distribution and marketing worlds, having been financed, filmed, marketed, and distributed by its creator. IRON LUNG played in 3,015 theatres across the U.S. and Canada, which is quite an accomplishment for a purely independent effort. It was written, directed, edited, and produced by Mark Edward Fischbach, who also stars in the movie. Fischbach is known online as “Markiplier,” and this movie is his debut as a feature filmmaker.
Fishbach has a well-established following on YouTube, where he posts videos under the online persona Markiplier. His “Let’s Play” videos stand out for their energetic personality, improvisational humor, and emotional openness. His YouTube channel has more than 38 million followers, and his videos have literally billions of views. We have heard a lot about the creativity of filmmakers on YouTube, and Fishbach has made the most of it, with a net worth estimated to be $45M. His online followers shell out an average of $6.50 per month to watch his videos.
He self-financed the production of IRON LUNG and is absorbing all costs related to its marketing and distribution. While this is almost unheard of in 2026, the film’s marketing is getting the most attention. Rather than relying on expensive ad buys on television and online, the buzz around this film has come from Markiplier’s legions of YouTube followers, who have been active with their likes, shares, and reposts of trailers. The two trailers for the film were released on Markiplier’s own YouTube channel, building buzz and generating millions of views. Beyond YouTube, content from and about the film has been shared widely on other social media platforms, including X, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, and creator communities.
Interest was especially intense after trailers and behind-the-scenes content dropped. This multiplies reach among younger audiences and horror enthusiasts. The ability to reach a target audience without having to spend millions on traditional broadcast marketing is an advantage that most filmmakers and studios can only dream about. We can well imagine that a young Steven Spielberg or George Lucas would have used these methods had the Internet and social media existed when they were just getting started.
Now, what about the film itself? It is a screen adaptation of the 2022 indie horror game Iron Lung by David Szymanski. The plot of IRON LUNG follows a condemned prisoner who is offered a chance at freedom by accepting a suicidal mission: pilot a rickety, one-man submersible known as the “Iron Lung” in an uncharted ocean on a distant, lifeless moon. Humanity has been devastated by a mysterious catastrophe, and the blood-red sea beneath the moon’s icy crust may hold clues to human survival – or extinction!
Trapped inside the coffin-like vessel with failing instruments, no windows, and only sonar to guide him, the pilot descends into crushing darkness. As mechanical failures mount and unseen forces stalk the sub from below, the mission becomes a psychological nightmare. Isolation, guilt, and terror blur reality as the pilot realizes he may not be alone in the depths. The deeper he goes, the more the ocean reveals a horrifying truth that challenges humanity’s place in the universe.
Markiplier has said the movie uses more fake blood than any horror film before, surpassing the EVIL DEAD franchise’s record during production. Principal photography took place in Austin, Texas, and wrapped in the spring of 2023. Even though it was an independent film, IRON LUNG was affected by the SAG-AFTRA strike of 2023. The film was deep in its pre-production when the strike hit. Markiplier was able to get a waiver from the unions to continue work on the film by pledging not to seek distribution from any major studio such as Netflix, Universal, or Paramount.
At that time, Markiplier was unsure whether he might want to work with those studios to buy or distribute his film. Markiplier hunkered down and took the time to chart out his own plans for the movie end-to-end. Two and a half years after principal photography finished, he launched his film into an amazing 3,015 theatres.
Because the film was made for only $3M, it will need only $7.5M in worldwide sales to reach profitability. It crossed that mark in its opening weekend. A box office hit from a YouTuber is an intriguing success, and exhibitors are hopeful that there may be more where that came from. For a comparison film, we have landed on DAS BOOT from 1981. Like IRON LUNG, DAS BOOT traps its characters inside a sealed metal vessel deep underwater, where survival depends on instruments, discipline, and mental endurance.
The enemy is often unseen, tensions are prolonged, and the environment itself becomes the antagonist. The German war film gives audiences a taste of what it feels like to be trapped in a hunted submarine cruising below the North Atlantic during World War II. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the film grossed only $11.4M in theatres, but was widely praised and went on to be nominated for six Academy Awards, though it did not win in any of these categories. We realize that this is Markiplier’s first feature film, but if he wants to play in the big leagues, why not compare his efforts to a cinema classic?
IRON LUNG vs. DAS BOOT
THIRD PLACE
Amazon MGM’s Brett Ratner-directed documentary MELANIA came in third place this weekend by grossing $7.0M, somewhat better than most analysts had expected. While the genre is not known for its box office draw, MELANIA’s opening weekend makes it the highest-grossing documentary in the last decade, passing Angel Studios’ AFTER DEATH in 2023, which began with $5.0M and finished with $11.5M domestically.
Angel’s AFTER DEATH explored the afterlife through recounting near-death experiences of its subjects, guided by bestselling authors, medical experts, scientists, and survivors. The all-time highest-grossing documentary is Michael Moore’s FAHRENHEIT 9/11, released by Lionsgate in 2004, which opened with $23.9M and earned a total of $119.2M domestically and $222.4M globally. This movie showed Moore’s view of happenings in the United States after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, alleging that the Bush Administration used the tragic attack to justify its plans for wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
MELANIA follows Melania Trump through the 20 days leading up to President Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025. It is an intimate look at the life of the First Lady, exploring her relationship with the President.
The film was directed by Brett Ratner, who rose to prominence beginning in the late 1990s with commercially successful films like RUSH HOUR (1998) and its sequels, RED DRAGON (2002), X-MEN: THE LAST STAND (2006), TOWER HEIST (2011), and HERCULES (2014). Through his work as a director and as co-founder of RatPac Entertainment, Ratner has contributed to a slate of films that produced billions of dollars at the box office
In 2017, Ratner’s career hit a major speed hurdle when numerous women came forward with allegations of Ratner’s sexual misconduct and harassment. Though he denied wrongdoing and was never charged criminally, the fallout led studios like Warner Bros. to sever ties with him, halting his projects and marginalizing him within the industry. MELANIA marks his return to the director’s chair. Development began shortly after the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Melania Trump signed on as an executive producer for a documentary about her return to the White House.
Major studios and streamers expressed interest in acquiring rights to the project. Amazon, MGM, Disney, Netflix, and Paramount all submitted offers for the distribution and streaming rights. Amazon MGM’s bid stood out, offering $40M to license the film and committing to its theatrical release and a follow-on docuseries. Amazon MGM’s $40M is the most ever paid to acquire a documentary. By contrast, Disney is said to have offered Team Melania $14M.
Melania Trump was not only the subject of the film but also retained broad control amounting to the equivalent of an executive producer. She determined what topics could be filmed, how family members were portrayed, and which political moments were contextualized versus deeply examined. This resulted in a tightly curated, first-person documentary rather than an investigative examination.
The American public has had a long fascination with the lives of First Ladies. Melania Trump has been in the spotlight with Donald Trump since 2015, when she accompanied her husband down the golden escalator at Trump Tower to announce his run for the Presidency. However, she has remained a mysteriously private person over most of that time. This documentary is her way of granting people access, albeit through a tightly controlled script. The mystery that surrounds her life may be one reason why Amazon MGM bid so much for the rights to the film.
Critics have savaged the film, giving it only an 11% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Not surprisingly, the people who bought tickets to see the film saw it in a different light, with an impressive 99% audience score. This must be the largest score gap between critics and audiences in the history of Rotten Tomatoes. One cannot help but feel that virtually all viewers were influenced by their pre-existing impression of President Trump.
Here are some examples of the critics’ impressions about the film. Variety said, “a documentary that never comes to life. It’s a ‘portrait’ of the First Lady of the United States, but it’s so orchestrated and airbrushed and stage-managed that it barely rises to the level of a shameless infomercial.” The Atlantic offered up, “Ratner seems desperate to find action, but there is none. The pace is stultifying,” The Guardian said, “the fun’s not infectious, and the guests are a nightmare, and two hours of Melania feels like pure, endless hell.” We looked far and wide to find a positive review and had to go all the way to England to find one. The London Evening Standard weighed in with “If you take this film for what it is, Melania’s own, curated take on herself, then there’s one thing she wants to get across, it’s that there’s human warmth there under the cheekbones and the slanting feline eyes.”
Having paid $40M to acquire the film and an additional $35M on its marketing, Amazon MGM sunk $75M into the documentary before a single ticket was sold. Most studios are somewhat secretive about the money they spend to market a film, but Amazon MGM touted its full support of the film’s release, so that any failure could not be pinned on the studio. It will have to make $150M in worldwide ticket sales to break even from its theatrical run, and that seems unlikely after its $7.0M opening weekend. They’ll have to make up the difference on Amazon Prime subscriptions.
For a comparison film, we are going to use Fox Searchlight’s 2016 biographical drama JACKIE, which focused on Jackie Kennedy’s life after the assassination of her husband, John F. Kennedy. The film starred Natalie Portman, who received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her portrayal of perhaps the most popular First Lady of all time. The comparison between two films about First Ladies was too good to pass up.
MELANIA vs. JACKIE
FOURTH PLACE
Disney’s animation hit ZOOTOPIA 2 keeps hanging on, finishing this weekend in fourth place with $5.8M. In fact, one could say that it is defying gravity, with this weekend’s number 9% higher than last weekend. After ten weeks, it has grossed $409M domestically and $1.8B worldwide, making it the studio’s highest-grossing animated film of all time. It is second only to China’s NE ZHA 2, also released in 2025, which has grossed just over $2.3B globally. In fact, ZOOTOPIA 2’s worldwide numbers make it the ninth highest-grossing movie of all time across all genres.
Its ratio of worldwide gross to production cost is now more than 15 to 1, which is amazing and very profitable. It will go down as one of Disney’s most important films ever, with its IP ripe to be used in sequels, Disney+ series spinoffs, theme park rides, and merchandise sales. Disney is the master of maximizing the profit potential of any of its movies, and with this being only the second ZOOTOPIA movie, there is still a long road ahead to monetize the characters and storyline.
ZOOTOPIA Movies after 68 Days
FIFTH PLACE
SHELTER, the action thriller from Black Bear Pictures, finished in fifth place, bringing in $5.5M in its opening weekend. The movie is directed by Ric Roman Waugh, known for his work on ANGEL HAS FALLEN and GREENLAND projects. Jason Statham stars as Michael Mason, a former government assassin living in isolation. The plot centers on a reclusive man living on a remote Scottish island who rescues a young girl named Jessie from a storm at sea, setting off a dangerous sequence of events.
The film focuses on themes of redemption, survival, and confronting one’s past. Jason Statham has made quite a successful career out of playing similar characters and has a global audience that looks for those performances. SHELTER is Statham’s 46th theatrical movie, with a total box office amounting to $6.4B worldwide. Statham seems to know what his fans want from him and is not tempted to let his ego stray too far from the formula. He has built a net worth of $100M and can now pick and choose the roles he wants to be involved with.
Critics often dismiss his films as highly predictable and formulaic. SHELTER is no different, with the critics giving it a 63% score on Rotten Tomatoes while the audience grades it at 89%. Here is a sample of how critics are seeing the film. The Washington Post says, “it resembles his other genre movies in the basic form and idea, but it’s a much more high-end and satisfying version.” Variety offered up, “Shelter has energy, good pacing, and solid production values…even if neither style nor content achieves the distinguishing personality that might make you remember this generically-titled entertainment.” The Hollywood Reporter opines, “Shelter reliably provides plenty of the action that Statham fans crave, not to mention his trademark charisma and low-key underplaying that makes Charles Bronson look overly demonstrative.”
On the negative side of the ledger, Empire Magazine said, “It’s another spin on the usual Statham actioner, solidly performed but with a ridiculous plot and – even by the standards of the genre – a predictable outcome. Less gimme shelter, more gimme a break.” The movie’s production budget was $50M, meaning that it needs to earn $125M in global sales to break even. This is usually not a problem for a Stratham film, but after opening with only $5.5M domestic, this might wind up being the one that got away. He still has his international fans to fall back on, and this could help nurse the box office along. For a comparison film, we are using Stratham’s recent feature A WORKING MAN.
SHELTER vs. A WORKING MAN
Where Are We as of 1/29/2026
After the first four weeks of 2026, the current year’s domestic box office stands at 114% compared with 2025, 123% compared with 2024, and 105% compared with 2023.
