2026 First Quarter Box Office Shows Promising Recovery

The first quarter of 2026 has marked a significant recovery for the domestic box office, surpassing the previous year and achieving the best start since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to data from Comscore, domestic grosses reached $1.77 billion through March, exceeding the first quarter total for 2023 by approximately $20 million and showing a 22% increase over the $1.45 billion grossed in the first quarter of 2025, which was the lowest non-pandemic March in three decades.

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Leading the box office was Amazon MGM’s “Project Hail Mary,” which grossed $177 million in just 11 days, becoming Amazon’s highest-grossing film in studio history. Disney/20th Century’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” followed closely, grossing $153.8 million since its release on New Year’s Day, contributing to a total of $404.2 million since its December 2025 debut. Pixar’s original film “Hoppers” also performed well, grossing $141.6 million. Other notable films included Paramount/Spyglass’s “Scream 7,” which earned $119.2 million, and Sony Pictures Animation’s “Goat,” with $101 million. Additionally, “Zootopia 2” contributed $90 million, while Warner Bros.’ “Wuthering Heights” grossed just under $84 million.

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Looking ahead, the box office is projected to exceed $9 billion for the year, with a possibility of reaching $10 billion if several upcoming films perform well during the summer and holiday seasons. The Easter weekend is anticipated to be bolstered by the release of Universal/Illumination’s “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” expected to gross over $175 million in its extended opening. However, despite this promising start, 2026 is not expected to match the pre-pandemic domestic box office totals of over $11 billion, largely due to a decrease in film releases and evolving audience habits. The current quarterly total remains 27% lower than the $2.41 billion recorded in the first three months of 2019.

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While five films surpassed the $100 million mark in the first quarter of 2026, this figure is notably lower than the seven films that achieved the same milestone in 2019, including Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel,” which grossed $353.9 million during that quarter. This comparison highlights the ongoing challenges faced by the film industry as it navigates a post-pandemic landscape.

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The first quarter of 2026 demonstrates a positive trend for the domestic box office, signaling a potential recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the industry must adapt to changing audience behaviors and a reduced number of film releases to sustain this momentum moving forward.

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