“Lilo & Stitch” and “Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning” once again spearheaded the box office rankings following a record-setting Memorial Day weekend. Cinemas across the U.S. and Canada also debuted new features such as Sony’s family-oriented “Karate Kid: Legends” and the A24 horror film “Bring Her Back.” According to studio projections on Sunday, the weekend’s haul amounted to a substantial $145 million, marking a more than 115% increase compared to the equivalent period last year.
Disney’s live-action blend, “Lilo & Stitch,” retained its top position, garnering $63 million from 4,410 venues across North America. This success allowed it to surpass “Sinners” to become the second-highest-grossing film of the year with $280.1 million in domestic box office earnings. Its global earnings have reached $610.8 million. Meanwhile, “Sinners” continues to perform well, securing another $5.2 million in its seventh week and reaching $267.1 million domestically and $350.1 million worldwide.
The eighth installment of “Mission: Impossible” also maintained its spot in second place, collecting $27.3 million from 3,861 sites. Like “Lilo & Stitch,” it experienced a 57% drop from its debut. With $122.6 million in domestic box office receipts, it aligns with the performance of the two previous sequels. However, with a production cost reportedly at $400 million, reaching profitability remains challenging. Internationally, it amassed an additional $76.1 million, including $25.2 million from China, where it recently premiered, elevating its worldwide total to $353.8 million.
Leading the newcomers was Sony’s “Karate Kid: Legends,” with an estimated $21 million from 3,809 locations. The movie brings Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio together to train a new kid, the kung fu prodigy Li Fong ( Ben Wang ). Chan starred in a 2010 reboot of the 1984 original, while Macchio has found a new generation of fans in the series “Cobra Kai,” which just concluded a six-season run.
Reviews might have been mixed, but opening weekend audiences gave the PG-13 rated film a strong A- CinemaScore and 4.5 stars on PostTrak. It also only cost a reported $45 million to produce and has several weeks until a new family-friendly film arrives.
Fourth place went “Final Destination: Bloodlines,” which earned $10.8 million in its third weekend. The movie is the highest-grossing in the franchise, not accounting for inflation, with $229.3 million globally.
The weekend’s other big newcomer, “Bring Her Back” rounded out the top five with $7.1 million from 2,449 screens. Starring Sally Hawkins as a foster mother with some disturbing plans, the film is the sophomore feature of twin filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou, who made the 2023 horror breakout “Talk to Me.” It earned a rare-for-horror B+ CinemaScore and is essentially the only new film in the genre until “28 Years Later” opens on June 20.
A new Wes Anderson movie, “The Phoenician Scheme,” also debuted in New York and Los Angeles this weekend, where it made $270,000. It expands nationwide next weekend.
The summer box office forecast remains promising, though there’s a long way to go to get to the $4 billion target (a pre-pandemic norm that only the “Barbenheimer” summer has surpassed). The month of May is expected to close out with $973 million – up 75% from May 2024, according to data from Comscore.
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
