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It was a record breaking Memorial Day weekend.

Disney's live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch opened with the best Memorial Day debut, as well as the third biggest debut for any live-action remake. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning also reached franchise highs this weekend, although its numbers are overshadowed by its colossal budget.

The Top 10 earned a combined $260.8 million this weekend. That's not just a colossal 166.8% up from last year, but it was the biggest Memorial Day weekend in history.

Easily earning the #1 spot, Lilo & Stitch debuted with a gigantic $145.5 million this weekend ($183 million four-day). That's the biggest Memorial Day debut, passing Top Gun: Maverick ($126 million, $160 million four-day). It's also the third biggest debut for a Disney live-action remake, just behind 2019's The Lion King ($191 million) and 2017's Beauty and the Beast ($174 million).

That's absolutely impressive, considering the original film made $145.7 million domestically back in 2002 (yes, the remake has already outgrossed it in just four days). So how did it open that high, especially considering other animated films had higher box office?

Simply put, Stitch has been a merchandising monster for the past decades. It's been a main point of attention in Disney Parks, as well as in other venues. There's a lot of toys, shirts, caps, bedsheets, etc., with the character attached. The film has also grown massively through home media, cable reruns and streaming, particularly with Millennials and Gen Z. Contrary to the belief, Gen Z still likes going to theaters, and their familiarity with Stitch helped.

The original animated film had a crazy marketing campaign, where Stitch crashed other Disney animated films, which helped raise awareness. Disney used a similar tactic with the remake; some posters have Stitch messing with other remakes like Aladdin, Cinderella, Snow White, and Beauty and the Beast. Not to mention a spot in Super Bowl LIX, where Stitch "interrupted" the kickoff. It's simply a case of a pretty great marketing campaign.

It's crazy to think that this was going to be straight to Disney+. Whoever decided to shift that just earned a raise. And while Disney is often known for their large amount of money spent on productions, Lilo & Stitch came in far lower. It cost just $100 million, which is quite cheap. And if you watched the final version of the film, it clearly shows.

According to Disney, 64% of the audience was female. As previously said, Millennials and Gen Z loved the franchise and the data supports it: a massive 79% of the audience was under 35. Reviews were middling (68% on RT), but the audience was much more forgiving: they gave it a great "A" on CinemaScore. Even with some family competition on its way, Lilo & Stitch should easily get to $500 million domestically.

This franchise will self destruct in 8 films.

In second place, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning debuted with $64 million ($77.5 million four-day) in 3,857 theaters. That's the franchise's biggest debut, although it comes with an asterisk in terms of attendance. Adjusted for inflation, it's the third lowest debut, just behind Ghost Protocol and Dead Reckoning.

On its own, when a franchise hits a high at the box office for its final outing, it should feel celebratory. So why is this not considered a great start? Perhaps for the fact that the film cost a staggering $400 million to produce (although some have it lower at $300 million), making it one of the most expensive films ever made. Why did it cost that much?

While films film around a few months, some blockbusters can last longer. But in the case of The Final Reckoning, it was even bigger. Filming started in March 2022 with certain sections of the film, followed by a break. Then in 2023, production was halted after the WGA-SAG strike. Once they were allowed to film, they still needed to pay for actors' availability and rewrites, complicating matters. As such, the film didn’t wrap until November 2024. It wasn't a continuous shoot, and the film paid the crew despite months of not working on the film. No one involved in the film went into this expecting it to cost that much.

With all that said, it still raises the question: the film couldn't open at least higher than this? Sure, it's a franchise best, but considering it's barely above Fallout ($61 million) and it's sold as the absolute final film, it feels like it could've been higher. But it looks like the franchise simply has a ceilling at the box office. One of its biggest challenges was adding fans with time, but here's the thing: this franchise is 29 years old. Fans of the franchise will watch it, but it's unlikely it can add new fans. After all, the attendance peaked with the second film ($401 million adjusted).

So the film was sold simply as a send-off for Tom Cruise. To the point that the trailers emphasized the "I need you to trust me one last time" line. For the past years, Cruise and McQuarrie have said that this wouldn't be the end and that Cruise was looking forward to play the character for years. But that was put to rest a few days ago, when Cruise finally confirmed that the title of the film pretty much says it all: it's not called The Final Reckoning for nothing. The franchise has been a critical darling for the past few entries, and while reviews were positive (80% on RT), it wasn't as acclaimed as the previous films.

According to Paramount, 63% of the audience was male. The film had no appeal for young audiences: 62% of the audience was 35 and over, with its biggest demo being 55 and over (29%). That shouldn't be a surprise. They gave it a solid "A–" on CinemaScore, although it's below both Fallout and Dead Reckoning. The film will enjoy a 3-week exclusive run in IMAX, as part of a deal secured back in 2023. But with competition on its way, it's very unlikely The Final Reckoning could hit $200 million domestically.

Last week's champ Final Destination: Bloodlines added $19.3 million ($23.9 million four-day). That represents a steep 62% drop from last week, which is worse than both The Final Destination (54.9%) and Final Destination 5 (57.3%). Looks like the film will be playing like a standard horror film, but considering it's already the highest grossing film in the franchise, it's not like it matters much. Through 11 days, the film has earned $94.1 million, and it should close with around $130 million domestically.

In fourth place, Thunderbolts dropped 45%, adding $9.1 million this weekend ($11.8 million four-day). The film hasn't fully collapsed, but it hasn't held very well neither, thanks to a large slate of competition. Through Monday, the film has earned $174 million and it's gonna be struggling to hit $200 million at this rate.

Sinners earned $8.6 million this weekend ($11 million), which represents a 43% drop, its biggest so far. Which just speaks volumes of what an insane run it has had so far. The film has earned $258.8 million, and it should get close to $290 million by the end of its run.

In sixth place, Angel Studios' The Last Rodeo debuted with $5.2 million ($6.2 million four-day) in 2,205 theaters. The film got an "A" on CinemaScore, and it should earn over $15 million domestically.

Even more good news this weekend. A24 expanded Friendship into wide release, and the film earned a very solid $4.5 million ($5.5 million four-day) in 1,055 theaters. That's pretty good, especially considering the selling point is pretty much just Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd. The film has amassed $7.6 million so far, and it should continue adding screenings.

In eighth place, A Minecraft Movie was clearly hit by the newcomers. It collapsed 63%, its biggest drop so far, earning $2.2 million this weekend ($2.8 million four-day). The film has earned $421 million so far, and it will finish with around $430 million domestically.

The Accountant 2 dropped 59% and added $1.9 million ($2.5 million) this weekend. That takes its domestic total to $63.3 million, and it's gonna close with less than $70 million lifetime.

Rounding up the Top 10 was Hurry Up Tomorrow, which managed to lose over 500 theaters on its second weekend. The film collapsed a brutal 78%, making just $715,000 this weekend ($860,000 four-day). That's simply horrible, but not surprising considering the film's terrible word of mouth. The film has earned $4.9 million, and it won't make it pass $6 million domestically.

OVERSEAS

Lilo & Stitch was also incredibly strong overseas. The film debuted with a colossal $158.7 million overseas, for a gigantic $341 million worldwide debut. Basically, in one single weekend, it already outgrossed the worldwide lifetime of the original. The best debuts were in Mexico ($23.7M), UK ($12.9M), Brazil ($11.1M), France ($10.7M) and Italy ($9.2M). This is an easy billion.

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning debuted with $127 million overseas, which was a $204 million worldwide debut, another franchise record. Its best debuts were in South Korea ($12.7M), Japan ($11M), the UK ($10.7M), India ($9M), France ($7.8M), Australia ($7.7M), Taiwan ($6.3M), Germany ($6M), Mexico ($3.9M), UAE ($3.6M) and Hong Kong ($3.3M).

There's been talks over how the film is going to recoup its $400 million budget. Deadline reported something and here's the thing: it won't. The film by itself is going to lose a lot of money in theaters. But it also notes that Paramount is playing the long game: the value of franchise properties increases with each subsequent installment and across multiple revenue streams. So Paramount can be able to profit with multiple "The Complete Franchise" deals in home media and streaming. It's gonna take a long time for that, but it's gonna be a big asset. And even if it doesn't, what's gonna happen? Cancel the franchise? It's already over.

Final Destination: Bloodlines added $23 million overseas, taking its worldwide total to $186.7 million. It has already passed The Final Destination to become the highest grossing film in the franchise, achieving it in just 2 weekends. The best markets are the UK ($9.2M), Mexico ($9.2M), Philippines ($6M), India ($6M) and France ($5M). It will cross $200 million in the next few days, and it will finish with around $270 million worldwide. Truly impressive.

If you thought Thunderbolts was struggling domestically, it pretty much died this weekend in the rest of the world. The film collapsed a horrible 64% and added just $5.6 million, taking its worldwide total to $355 million. Clearly the arrival of Stitch and Tom Cruise took a toll on its overseas prospects. Well, we gave it the benefit of the doubt, but now it's guaranteed to finish below $400 million. As such, we finally a consensus: this is a box office flop.

FILMS THAT ENDED THEIR RUN THIS WEEK

• You should've done better, Marvel. Captain America: Brave New World has ended its run with just $200 million domestically and $415 million worldwide. Given that its budget was $180 million, we can safely call this a box office failure. It didn't fully collapse from its weak reception, given that it had very small competition for a lot of weeks. Nevertheless, its 2.26x multiplier is quite bad. It's not a surprise, considering the film itself is a Frankenstein's Monster that fails to properly delve into any of its themes or ideas. What's Marvel gonna do now? Especially considering the better received Thunderbolts is set to finish below this?

THIS WEEKEND

With such a huge debut, Lilo & Stitch ain't losing the top spot this weekend.

Sony is releasing Karate Kid: Legends, the sixth film in franchise, starring Jackie Chan, Ben Wang, and Ralph Macchio. The franchise has been massively popular, and the success of Cobra Kai on Netflix has helped it add new fans over the years. But the decision to sandwich the film between two anticipated family films (Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon) is concerning. Will the audience pay a ticket or just wait for streaming?

A24 is also releasing the horror film Bring Her Back, which is directed by Danny and Michael Philippou (Talk to Me). That film was a sleeper hit back in 2023, earning $90 million worldwide. Will they strike gold again?

And on limited release, there's Wes Anderson's The Phoenician Scheme, starring Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Mathieu Amalric, Richard Ayoade, Jeffrey Wright, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Rupert Friend, and Hope Davis. The film has already premiered in Cannes, where it earned a very solid response. Anderson's films often deliver high numbers on limited release, so look for this film to deliver the year's best per-theater average.

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