A Three-Hour Elizabeth Holmes Documentary Could Dethrone ‘Clayface’ at the Box Office: The Weekend Nobody Saw Coming
Halloween weekend is usually a safe bet for horror, and DC Studios was counting on exactly that. ‘Clayface‘, the studio’s R-rated body horror movie from director James Watkins, looked set to claim the top spot with little competition in sight.
The film is the third entry in James Gunn’s DC Universe, and it arrives with extra pressure. ‘Supergirl’ opened to $38 million this summer and finished with just $126 million worldwide, so DC Studios needs a solid showing to restore momentum. ‘Clayface’ carries a reported $40 million budget, which makes it a relatively modest bet.
But the weekend has taken a surprising turn. According to Variety, A24’s ‘You Can See Everything‘ could collect $20 million to $25 million as it expands to 2,600 venues in its second weekend, which would put it in direct competition with ‘Clayface’, projected at $25 million to $35 million from 3,400 North American theaters.
‘You Can See Everything’ is directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim, and it follows disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes in the final stretch before she began serving her prison sentence. The film launched as a surprise screening at the Telluride Film Festival on September 6, with the filmmakers moving in to document her final 34 days of freedom. It runs a hefty 174 minutes.
Its opening was historic. The film earned $15.6 million from just 855 theaters, the biggest debut for a nonmusical documentary in 20 years, and it has a domestic total of $20.8 million so far. Boxoffice Pro reported more than 2,000 sellouts nationwide, with younger audiences especially drawn to Fielder’s unusual access to Holmes.
If Variety’s projection holds, the documentary would be one of the rare films to sell more tickets in its second weekend than in its first. Other forecasts are more cautious. Boxoffice Pro has it at $15 million to $20 million, still enough for second place, while others expect a second weekend of at least $18 million.
TheWrap notes that strong midweek grosses make a bigger second weekend almost assured, and that the film could swipe the No. 1 spot if ‘Clayface’ falters. Boxoffice Pro also warns that the documentary’s surge could siphon off the adult audience that ‘Clayface’ is targeting, even though the two films are wildly different.
The teaser trailer ‘YOU CAN SEE EVERYTHING,’ a documentary by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim. Thirty-four days before she’s sent to prison, Elizabeth Holmes invites a skeptical film crew to document her every move. In theaters this October. https://t.co/LHRvYLXULH
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) September 7, 2026
Just a week ago, ‘Clayface’ was expected to win easily. Variety’s own projection sits at $25 million to $35 million, while rivals suggest a softer debut around $22 million to $28 million, and Boxoffice Pro forecasts $25 million to $30 million.
Those numbers would still be a solid start for a $40 million film, though it reportedly needs around $80 million to $100 million in total box office to break even under typical industry math. Early reaction has been strong, with first reactions calling it brutal, gory body horror. That could matter in a month when horror has been thriving.
There are good reasons to think ‘Clayface’ can still hang on. The documentary is a deliberately discomfiting film, and plenty of moviegoers would rather spend the weekend before Halloween with a good scary movie. Competition is also heating up elsewhere, with ‘Wildwood’ opening on the same day with a projected $10 million to $15 million, and ‘Street Fighter’ in its second weekend.
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
Even so, the fact that a documentary is in the conversation at all says plenty about the moment. Audiences have shown they will turn out for something different, and the result may offer a lesson about what theatergoers want right now.
Which movie do you think will finish at No. 1 this weekend?
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