The North American box office may be heading for a rare upset. A week ago, Warner Bros. and DC’s R-rated “Clayface” looked like the default No. 1. Now A24’s Elizabeth Holmes documentary “You Can See Everything” is expanding fast enough to make first place a genuine contest.
The documentary’s rare second-weekend surge
Variety reports that Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s “You Can See Everything” is projected to collect $20 million to $25 million as it moves into 2,600 venues in its second weekend. That would be an increase over its debut, a pattern most films never manage.
The documentary opened with $15.6 million from just 855 theaters—the biggest start for a nonmusical documentary in 20 years—and has reached $20.8 million domestically to date. If the projection holds, one wide weekend could nearly double its domestic total.
Clayface still has the scale
“Clayface” is tracking for a $25 million to $35 million debut from 3,400 North American locations, with rivals suggesting a softer $22 million to $28 million range. Warner Bros. is also looking at $20 million to $25 million from 76 overseas markets, putting a global opening between $45 million and $55 million.
The R-rated Batman villain movie cost $44 million to produce, far less than “Superman” or this summer’s “Supergirl.” That lower budget matters because DC’s recent record is uneven: “Superman” reset the franchise, while “Supergirl” stalled at $126 million worldwide against a $170 million budget.
The rest of the weekend
- Wildwood: Laika’s stop-motion feature is projected at $6 million to $8 million from 2,000-plus theaters. It carries a $100 million budget, so a theatrical profit looks unlikely despite strong reviews.
- Klara and the Sun: Sony’s Jenna Ortega adaptation is estimated at $2 million from roughly 850 cinemas after harsh critical notices; its $20 million budget limits the downside.
- Ali G: Who Iz I?: Sacha Baron Cohen’s mockumentary is playing only 125 theaters for two days before moving to Prime Video.
Those three titles highlight different distribution strategies: playing for theatrical credibility, containing risk with a moderate release, or using a very short theatrical window before streaming.
What to watch
For media planners and exhibition teams, a documentary that grows its gross in weekend two is a word-of-mouth signal that paid media alone cannot manufacture. It provides a comp for non-fiction titles in wide release, especially when the subject is already dominating the cultural conversation.
Clayface still has structural advantages: more screens, a known IP, and a global footprint. The race will hinge on whether the documentary can maintain its per-theater strength as it moves from art-house venues into broader multiplexes.
Source: Variety
