After 44 Years, ‘Obsession’ Has Finally Toppled E.T.’s Long-Standing Record

The film Obsession has continued its surprising run at the domestic box office with strong weekly growth that is rarely seen in modern wide releases.

In its third weekend, Obsession earned $26.4 million in North America. This number is not just strong on its own, it also shows growth compared to previous weekends. The film went up around 10% from its second weekend, which was already higher than expected.

What makes this run unusual is the pattern of steady increases. The film opened with about $17 million in its first weekend. Instead of dropping like most movies do after release, it grew in its second weekend by 39 percent. Then it grew again in its third weekend. This makes it one of the rare wide releases in modern box office history to rise in both its second and third weekends.

Focus Features stated that this kind of performance has not happened since 1982, when E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was in theaters. That means it has been 44 years since a film managed to increase ticket sales this far into its theatrical run outside of holiday release patterns.

The third weekend result pushed Obsession to a major milestone. The film has now earned about $106 million domestically and roughly $148 million worldwide against a production budget of only $1 million. That gap between cost and earnings makes it one of the most profitable films of the year.

Focus Features also confirmed that Obsession has now become their highest-grossing domestic release ever. It has passed the 2019 film Downton Abbey, which previously held the studio record with about $96.8 million in North America.

The early tracking in the United States and Canada showed that expectations for the film were modest at first. It was projected to open between $8 million and $10 million. After a strong first day of $7 million, projections increased. The film eventually opened with $17.2 million and placed third at the box office during its debut weekend.

It continued to build momentum over the following weeks. During the Memorial Day period, the film reached a strong four-day total of $32 million. It also showed strong performance among younger audiences, especially viewers between 18 and 34 years old, who made up the majority of the audience according to Focus Features.

Industry reports described its continued growth as “unprecedented” for a wide release already playing in more than 2,500 theaters. The horror genre is usually known for strong opening weekends followed by quick drops, but Obsession went in the opposite direction.

With its steady growth, strong word of mouth, and record-breaking performance, Obsession has become one of the most talked-about box office stories of the year.

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