Amazon MGM’s sci-fi thriller Mercy led U.S. box office Friday with a $5.0 million opening day from 3,468 locations, marking the weekend’s only major new wide release. The film is on track for a $12.6 million domestic weekend projection, setting up the first credible challenge to Avatar: Fire and Ash’s five-week run at the top. Avatar added $1.7 million on its sixth Friday and is estimated to finish the weekend with $7.1 million, bringing its North American total to $378 million. Other notable holders include Lionsgate’s The Housemaid, Disney’s Zootopia 2 and Sony’s 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.
Key Takeaways
- Mercy opened to $5.0 million Friday at 3,468 locations and is projected to gross $12.6 million over the opening weekend.
- Avatar: Fire and Ash added $1.7 million on its sixth Friday and is estimated for a $7.1 million weekend, reaching $378 million domestically.
- The Housemaid earned $1.48 million Friday and is expected to hit a $115 million domestic total by weekend’s end, well above its $35 million production cost.
- Zootopia 2 took in $1.4 million on its ninth Friday and projects $5.9 million for the weekend, pushing its domestic cumulative to $401 million.
- 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple posted $1.2 million Friday; after a $13 million opening vs. $20–22 million projections, it looks to add $4.2 million this weekend for a $21 million domestic total.
- Mercy’s arrival interrupts a five-week streak for Avatar, which previously matched first and sequel runs that stayed No. 1 for seven weeks and each grossed over $2 billion worldwide.
Background
Mercy arrives as a high-profile Amazon MGM release directed by Timur Bekmambetov and scripted by Marco van Belle. The film stars Chris Pratt as Chris Raven, a near-future detective on trial for his wife’s murder; Rebecca Ferguson portrays an AI judge who gives him 90 minutes to prove his innocence, and Annabelle Wallis plays the alleged victim. Bekmambetov’s involvement ties Mercy to his earlier screenlife and high-concept thrillers, positioning the movie to attract both mainstream audiences and genre fans.
Avatar: Fire and Ash has dominated North American screens for five consecutive weekends, a run that, while impressive, falls short of the seven-week streak achieved by the original Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water — each of which exceeded $2 billion globally. That comparison frames Mercy’s opening as notable: a fresh wide release that can unseat a long-running holdover. The marketplace is also shaped by counterprogramming from midbudget releases like The Housemaid and established family fare such as Zootopia 2.
Main Event
Friday box office receipts show Mercy leading among new entries with $5.0 million from 3,468 locations. Weekend tracking places the title at roughly $12.6 million through Sunday, a figure that would represent a solid start for a midrange sci-fi thriller distributed by Amazon MGM. Early-day turnout suggests direct interest in the film’s concept and Pratt’s star pull, though weekend holds and audience word-of-mouth will determine sustainability.
Avatar: Fire and Ash earned $1.7 million on its sixth Friday and projects $7.1 million for the full weekend, bringing its North American total to $378 million. Unless weekend momentum changes markedly, Avatar is likely to surrender the No. 1 spot before completing a sixth full weekend, a shorter run than the first two franchise entries managed.
Lionsgate’s The Housemaid continued steady performance with $1.48 million Friday and an expected domestic total of $115 million by weekend’s close. The film, adapted from Freida McFadden’s novel, exceeded expectations across the holiday season and has already justified a planned sequel with returning star Sydney Sweeney and director Paul Feig. Family animation Zootopia 2 added $1.4 million Friday and is projected to reach $5.9 million this weekend, lifting its domestic haul to $401 million.
Sony’s horror entry 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple sits at $1.2 million for its second Friday. The film opened last weekend to $13 million domestically, underperforming against box office projections of $20–22 million for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day frame; it is forecast to add $4.2 million this weekend, a 68% weekend drop that would take its domestic total to about $21 million against a $63 million production budget.
Analysis & Implications
Mercy’s niche—an AI-driven, time-pressured courtroom thriller in a sci-fi wrapper—garners attention because it pairs high-concept stakes with a bankable lead in Chris Pratt. The $5.0 million Friday indicates interest from adult and genre audiences, but converting that into a long-running box office hold will rely on critical reception and social-media buzz across Saturday and Sunday. For Amazon MGM, a $12.6 million opening weekend would be a respectable start that could build via streaming-window strategy and international rollout.
For Avatar: Fire and Ash, dropping to second place in its sixth weekend would not be unprecedented for tentpole sequels, yet the transition underscores shifting audience appetites and the potency of fresh content even against heavyweight franchises. The first Avatar films’ seven-week reigns and multi-billion-dollar grosses set a high historical bar; this cycle’s shorter hold highlights the accelerating turnover in modern theatrical windows and competition from diverse releases.
The Housemaid’s trajectory illustrates how lower-budget genre pictures can deliver outsized returns: a $35 million production pushing toward $115 million domestic demonstrates strong profitability and franchise potential, hence the forthcoming sequel. Conversely, The Bone Temple’s softer-than-expected start points to uneven horror market performance and the risk studios face when booking mid-January tentpoles against holiday holdovers.
Comparison & Data
| Film | Fri | Weekend Projection | Domestic Total (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercy (Amazon MGM) | $5.0M | $12.6M | — |
| Avatar: Fire and Ash | $1.7M | $7.1M | $378M |
| The Housemaid (Lionsgate) | $1.48M | — | $115M |
| Zootopia 2 (Disney) | $1.4M | $5.9M | $401M |
| 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (Sony) | $1.2M | $4.2M | $21M |
The table summarizes Friday grosses, weekend projections and cumulative domestic totals where available. Context: projections are weekend estimates reported on Friday and may shift as Saturday and Sunday tallies arrive; cumulative totals for some titles reflect estimated weekend-end sums.
Reactions & Quotes
We’re pleased with Mercy’s opening-day turnout and excited to see audience response over the weekend.
Amazon MGM (studio representative)
The studio framed the start as encouraging, noting the film’s midweek marketing push and Pratt’s international profile. The statement emphasized focus on sustained run and downstream streaming windows rather than a single-day spike.
Mercy’s concept and Pratt’s presence gave it enough pull to top Friday, but its weekend trajectory will reveal whether it has legs against entrenched holdovers.
Box office analyst (industry observer)
Analysts described Friday’s numbers as a plausible opening for a midbudget genre film, stressing that word-of-mouth and critical reception over the next 48 hours will determine if Mercy can maintain momentum into subsequent weeks.
Unconfirmed
- International opening figures for Mercy are not yet available and could materially change the film’s global outlook.
- Reported weekend projections are preliminary and may be revised as Saturday and Sunday grosses are reported.
- Studio comments about sequel development for Mercy or distribution windows have not been confirmed with specific timelines.
Bottom Line
Mercy’s $5.0 million Friday places it as the weekend’s standout new wide release and signals a healthy appetite for midbudget sci‑fi led by a familiar star. A $12.6 million weekend would be a solid platform for Amazon MGM to build an audience through the coming weeks and international markets.
Avatar: Fire and Ash’s hold remains strong by historical standards, but the franchise’s previous seven-week No. 1 stretches set a benchmark this release may not match. The industry will be watching Mercy’s Saturday and Sunday performance to see whether it can translate opening-day curiosity into sustained box office success.