The Monday Morning Hangover Report is Now The Monday Morning Box Office Hangover Report
Every Monday, we here at Cocktails and Movies give you the Monday Morning Box Office Hangover Report where we break down the weekend box office: who won, who didn’t, and what the numbers are really saying about what audiences want right now. It’s your post-weekend debrief with a little cocktail bite.
Opening Pour
This weekend did not have the blood-in-the-water chaos of Scream 7’s launch. It had something healthier for theaters: a steady No. 1 hold, a female-skewing adaptation that showed up stronger than expected, and a creepy little horror title that walked in on a tiny budget and still made noise. Hoppers held onto the top spot with $28.5 million in weekend two, while Reminders of Him opened to $18.25 million and Undertone used A24 horror buzz to land a very solid $9.34 million debut.
Top 5 Domestic Films
(Weekend estimates, March 13 to 15, from Box Office Mojo and The Numbers)
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Hoppers — $28.5M
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Reminders of Him — $18.25M
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Undertone — $9.34M
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Scream 7 — $8.35M
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GOAT — $4.7M
Recap
No big draw for one of Cocktails and Movies’ Tuesday Night Movie Clubs, but this weekend was a “good enough to feel promising” kind of weekend. Hoppers did what you want a crowd-pleasing original animated film to do in week two: drop a reasonable 37 percent and keep control of the chart. Meanwhile, Reminders of Him proved again that BookTok-fueled romance drama is not some fluke niche, and Undertone reminded everyone that horror remains one of the most reliable ways to punch above your weight at the box office.
Highlights and insights
1) Hoppers won because audiences did not treat it like disposable family filler
A 37 percent second-weekend drop is a pretty damn nice hold for a film that opened at $45.3 million last weekend. That suggests strong word-of-mouth, family appeal, and the kind of broad audience goodwill Pixar desperately wants when it is not leaning on an existing franchise. AP also noted the movie’s strong reception, including a 94 percent Rotten Tomatoes score and an “A” CinemaScore, which helps explain why it stayed on top.
2) Reminders of Him did exactly what studios hope these adaptation plays will do
The movie opened with $18.25 million, which is better than many early projections had it tracking. More importantly, it reinforces that Colleen Hoover adaptations are still commercially viable with women who want an emotional event movie, not just IP explosions and masked maniacs. Against a reported $25 million budget, this is the kind of start that can put a studio in a very decent mood by Monday morning.
3) Undertone is this weekend’s “holy hell, that was cheap” story
A24’s Undertone opened to $9.3 million on what AP reported was a $500,000 budget. That is the kind of math executives frame and put on a wall. Horror keeps doing this because the genre sells urgency, communal reactions, and curiosity better than almost anything else when the hook is clean and the campaign knows what it is selling.
4) Scream 7 did what front-loaded horror sequels usually do, but there is still good news in there
Down in fourth place, Scream 7 pulled in $8.35 million, bringing its domestic total past $100 million. So yes, the second-weekend drop hit, as horror often does after a huge opening, but crossing that $100 million mark means the film still converted its event status into a real run, not just one loud weekend and a hangover.
5) The ugly story belongs to The Bride!
If there is one title at the bar tonight pretending it is fine while clearly not being fine, it is The Bride!. AP reported a 70 percent drop in its second weekend, down to $2.1 million. That is not a stumble. That is a faceplant in public.
What’s next
The big takeaway is that the market looks healthier than one giant opener followed by roadkill. Hoppers is showing legit legs, Reminders of Him brought in an audience that was not there for talking animals or slashers, and Undertone kept horror in the conversation. Overall weekend business also improved from the same point last year, with AP reporting year-to-date ticket sales up 15.2 percent. That does not mean all is forgiven, but it does mean 2026 is showing more pulse than some of the early weekends suggested.
Final Pour
This weekend was not about one movie kicking the saloon doors off the hinges. It was about range. Hoppers held strong, Reminders of Him proved the romance crowd still has money and feelings, and Undertone showed that horror can still make a nasty little pile of cash with the right setup. That is a much better box office story than “everybody stayed home,” and frankly, theaters will take that drink every time. 🍸🍿
