Help me if you can, I'm feeling...

The UK box office delivered its worst weekend of the year, with the top 15 titles combining for £7,798,600. Even so, a pair of new releases managed to inject some energy into the chart, while several long‑running performers crossed notable milestones.

Weekend Roundup

• Send Help - £1,593,703 opening; 593 screens; Week 1; includes £259,444 from 489 previews. A strong debut in a soft market, ranking as the third‑best opening of the year, behind Hamnet. Its screen average was one of the weekend’s highest, and it should remain competitive heading into half‑term play.

• STRAY KIDS: The DominATE Experience - £1,083,889 opening; 457 screens; Week 1. A major concert‑film launch that lands as the 10th‑best opening of the year, just behind Mercy. With no preview uplift, this is a clean, front‑loaded fan turnout and one of the strongest music‑event openings of the past year.

• The Housemaid - £929,424; Week 7; down 34%. Now at £30,086,192, it becomes the 173rd top‑grossing film of all time, just behind A Star Is Born. It has also climbed to 8th place on the 2025 year‑to‑date chart, overtaking a long list of major studio titles including Superman, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, How to Train Your Dragon, F1, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, The Conjuring: Last Rites, and Captain America: Brave New World.

• Hamnet - £830,376; Week 5; down 42%. Total now £16,619,693, making it the top‑grossing film of 2026 so far and the 431st highest‑grossing film of all time, just behind The Imitation Game. Its run remains one of the year’s most consistent.

• Zootropolis 2 - £603,913; Week 11; down 29%. Total now £33,328,154, placing it as the 140th top‑grossing film ever, just behind The Matrix Reloaded. Still a strong family performer deep into its run.

• Shelter - £480,130; Week 2; down 50%. Total now £1,914,216. A sharp but expected second‑week drop for a drama‑leaning title.

• Marty Supreme - £431,698; Week 7; down 38%. Total now £15,574,603. A steady long‑tail performer.

• Avatar: Fire And Ash — £378,226; Week 8; down 50%. Total now £41,939,600, making it the 84th top‑grossing film of all time, just behind Bridget Jones’s Diary. One of the few major blockbusters still contributing meaningfully to the market.

• Iron Lung - £362,066; Week 2; down 62%. Total now £1,686,076. Without previews, the fall‑off is 57%, indicating a steep but typical horror trajectory.

• 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple - £254,644; Week 4; down 58%. Total now £7,458,325. A solid mid‑tier run.

• The Strangers - Chapter 3 — £179,520 opening; 286 screens; Week 1. A modest debut for the franchise’s latest entry.

• Is This Thing On? - £179,210; Week 2; down 70%. Total now £1,056,398. Without previews, the fall‑off is 59%, suggesting limited staying power.

• Primate - £173,458; Week 2; down 74%. Total now £1,113,419. Without previews, the fall‑off is 66%, one of the sharpest drops in the chart.

• No Other Choice - £169,459; Week 3; down 38%. Total now £1,520,790.

• The Spongebob Movie: Search for Squarepants - £148,884; Week 7; down 50%. Total now £8,403,133.

Quick Take

A historically low‑earning weekend still produced two notable openers, with Send Help and STRAY KIDS: The DominATE Experience outperforming expectations in a depressed market. The Housemaid continues its remarkable climb up the all‑time chart, while Hamnet, Zootropolis 2, and Avatar: Fire And Ash each crossed significant lifetime milestones. Steep declines among second‑week titles reflect the lack of new wide releases and limited audience activity overall.

Ones to Watch Next Week

• Wuthering Heights

• Crime 101

• The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie

• Paul McCartney: Man On The Run

• Chase Atlantic: LOST IN HEAVEN (Concert)

• Stitch Head

• The Swedish Connection

• Anomie

• With Love

• What A Feeling

• O’ Romeo

• The Rose: Come Back To Me

• Woolf Works – ROH, London 2026 (Ballet)

Final Take

Despite the lowest overall grosses of the year, the weekend delivered meaningful stories: a top‑three yearly debut for Send Help, a top‑ten concert‑film opening for STRAY KIDS: The DominATE Experience, and major lifetime milestones for several long‑running hits. With a significantly more crowded release calendar ahead, the market should rebound sharply next weekend.