‘Clayface’ Beats Expectations on Opening Day and Heads for the Top Spot, Even With a Documentary Hot on Its Heels
Opening-day box office numbers can change a film’s story in a few hours. A modest estimate turns into a solid one, a nervous forecast starts to look conservative and the narrative around a movie shifts. That’s exactly what has happened with DC’s new horror film.
Heading into the weekend, few people were sure how ‘Clayface’ would perform. Tracking ranged widely, presales had been uneven and the film arrived after a summer that left DC’s box office confidence shaken. The first results suggest the movie has found its audience.
‘Clayface‘ grossed $10.4 million on Friday from 3,458 North American theaters, including $3.5 million from Thursday previews, landing at No. 1 for the day. That’s better than the $9.5 million estimate that circulated Friday night, and it adds $4.3 million internationally for the day. The film is now projected to open to about $24 million to $25 million domestically, with one bullish forecast reaching $24 million to $28 million.
Received with strong WOM, #DCStudios’s R-rated #Clayface, is ready to top industry’s projections and debut as #1 at US #BoxOffice, as #DCU’s first body horror film, starring #TomRhysHarries, grossed solid 10.4M on FRI Opening Day, including 3.5M THU Previews (vs #KravenTheHunter’s 4.8M ,#Smile 8.2M, #IronLung’s 9M, #LongLegs 10M, #BlackPhone2’s 11M, #TheExorcistBeliever 11.8M, #TheSuicideSquad’s 12.1M, #OtherMommy’s 12.6M. #BirdsOfPrey’s 13M, #Scream5’s 13.4M) Eyeing a 24M-28M 3-day opening weekend in the US alone, a solid start for the CBM Horror carrying a 44M production price-tag not including marketing.
— Luiz Fernando (@Luiz_Fernando_J) October 24, 2026
The Friday figure compares well with other genre openers. It topped the opening days of ‘Kraven the Hunter’ at $4.8 million, ‘Smile’ at $8.2 million and ‘Iron Lung’ at $9 million, and it edged past ‘Longlegs’ at $10 million. It sits just below ‘Black Phone 2’ at $11 million, ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ at $11.8 million and ‘The Suicide Squad’ at $12.1 million.
It falls short of ‘Other Mommy’ at $12.6 million, ‘Birds of Prey’ at $13 million and ‘Scream 5’ at $13.4 million. That puts ‘Clayface’ in the upper-middle part of the pack for horror and comic book openings. For a film with a reported budget of $44 million, that’s a solid starting point.
There’s a caveat. About a third of the opening day came from Thursday previews, which means the true Friday was closer to $6.9 million. Horror films are often front-loaded, and fans who wanted to see the film early are already in the books.
Still, the film’s audience reception could help. ‘Clayface’ earned an A- CinemaScore, a 93% to 94% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and a critics’ score in the mid-70s. Trackers have said Saturday matinees looked strong, which suggests word of mouth is working.
The studio projected an opening between $25 million and $30 million, so the current estimate is just below that range. Deadline’s preview-night forecast was $20 million to $25 million, and early tracking ranged as low as $15 million. That puts the film comfortably in the middle of a wide field.
The result compares favorably with DC’s most recent release. ‘Supergirl’ opened to $37.1 million in June on a reported $170 million budget and lost money, while ‘Clayface’ cost a fraction of that. A mid-$20 million opening would be roughly 65% of the ‘Supergirl’ debut for about a quarter of the spend.
The stakes extend beyond DC. The film is the first Warner Bros. release under Skydance ownership, and the studio has had an extremely difficult 2026 with box office disappointments like ‘Digger,’ ‘Supergirl’ and ‘Practical Magic 2.’ A modest mid-budget success would offer some relief.
It also gives DC a different kind of hit. The studio’s first body horror film is much smaller in scale than ‘Superman,’ and it’s the sort of mid-budget genre title that can turn a profit without needing a huge opening. That makes the hold in the coming weekends especially important.
‘Clayface’ isn’t running away with the weekend. A24’s ‘You Can See Everything’ earned $6.14 million on Friday after expanding to 2,655 theaters, and it’s projected to reach about $20 million for the weekend, up significantly from its opening. That keeps the pressure on the DC film.
Even so, ‘Clayface’ remains the favorite for first place, which would be a second straight No. 1 opening for the combined Paramount and Warner Bros. after ‘Street Fighter.’ Final numbers arrive on Sunday, with Monday actuals correcting the estimates.
Watch the first trailer for #Clayface. The new DC horror film is in theaters October 23. https://t.co/gqrrtJSou5
— Rotten Tomatoes 🍅 (@RottenTomatoes) April 22, 2026
The film opens in front of Halloween, which could help it hold better than a typical horror release. If the strong audience scores translate into walk-up business, it could stay in the conversation for several weekends. A solid second frame would help confirm that the buzz is real.
For now, the numbers suggest a successful start for a risky bet. Whether it grows into a bigger story depends on how audiences respond over the next few days.
Can 'Clayface' maintain its box office momentum through Halloween and beyond?
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