“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey” delivered the biggest weekend at the box office. The Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbuster became the second-highest-grossing weekend debut of all time, collecting $927 million. Combined with Christopher Nolan’s historical drama, the numbers reached $430 million at the North American box office.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” had already exceeded expectations with domestic first-day collections totalling $168 million. However, worldwide results were even stronger. The film collected $572 million across markets, as the domestic tally reached $355 million over the weekend. It narrowly fell short of the all-time U.S. box office record, too. That feat still belongs to “Avengers: Endgame,” which debuted to $357.1 million back in 2019.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” And “The Odyssey’s” Combined Effect
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey” continued the rebound that has been consistent in 2026’s box office. The latter is inching toward the $1 billion figure, with its current gross at $911 million. The North American box office totaled around $430 million overall in the weekend. The only previous $400-million-plus weekend was driven by “Avengers: Endgame’s” run, which reached a $402 million peak. “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey’s” combined effect has now broken the record for a single weekend’s domestic box office.
“We have conquered a box-office milestone that seemed forever out of reach,” says Paul Dergarabedian, Rentrak’s head of marketplace trends. “This is now only the second $400 million-plus weekend in box office history.”
Marvel is preparing another major release by the end of the year with “Avengers: Doomsday.” It’s a welcome turnaround for a studio that has seen its latest entries lagging. In 2025, “Captain America: Brave New World” brought in $415.1 million, “Thunderbolts*” $382.4 million, and “The Fantastic Four: The First Steps” $521.8 million. All of these were widely viewed as disappointing box office performers relative to the MCU’s past streak of successes and their budgets. The current week has helped reverse that trend.
“This is a truly phenomenal opening, and we are grateful to audiences everywhere for coming out and experiencing our film the way it was meant to be seen,” said Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, who co-produced “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” alongside Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, and Rachel O’Connor. “This debut reflects the enduring power of Marvel’s characters, and the connection they continue to have with fans around the world — and, as audiences saw, it sets up exciting things to come.”
The Film Industry Regains Its Footing
The film industry has struggled to recover since the pandemic. Apart from Disney and DreamWorks’ mass-appeal franchises, and nostalgia-driven features like “Deadpool & Wolverine,” box office figures have consistently lagged behind their peak in the 2010s. Despite a crowded year, there have already been notable disappointments in 2026. “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” “Mortal Kombat II,” “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” “Moana,” and “Supergirl” all underperformed relative to expectations and promotion.
On the other hand, several successful releases have helped offset these pricey losses. “Toy Story 5” (which currently ranks as the year’s highest-grosser) and “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” performed in line with expectations, both scoring over $1 billion worldwide. “Michael” went on to become the highest-grossing biopic of all time with a $1.016 billion box office gross. Meanwhile, supernatural thriller “Obsession” became one of the biggest commercial successes ever produced, so far grossing over $474 million on a $750,000 budget. Ryan Gosling’s sci-fi drama “Project Hail Mary” also topped industry estimates with $684.3 million. Finally, “The Devil Wears Prada 2” fulfilled long-standing audience anticipation with a final total of $690 million.
Films Still To Come
2026 was poised to set the industry back on track with several high-profile releases. October brings Tom Cruise’s “Digger,” David Fincher’s “The Social Reckoning,” and the “Street Fighter” reboot. November sees releases of “Focker-in-Law” and “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.” All eyes are on December, where “Avengers: Doomsday” and “Dune: Part Three” will be released on the same day. That weekend could surpass the current record set by “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey.”
Other anticipated releases, “The Angry Birds Movie 3” and “Jumanji: Open World,” will conclude the year.
