With ‘Sinners,’ Ryan Coogler Sets New Box Office Marker for Original IP | Analysis

The genre-blending horror and music tale sets a high bar for critical and audience enthusiasm The post With ‘Sinners,’ Ryan Coogler Sets New Box Office Marker for Original IP | Analysis appeared first on TheWrap.

Apr 21, 2025 - 15:30

With ‘Sinners,’ Ryan Coogler Sets New Box Office Marker for Original IP | Analysis

With a $45.6 million domestic opening weekend, Warner Bros.’ “Sinners” has set a new mark for the best box office launch for an original film since the pandemic. But that figure only scratches the surface of how historic the critical and audience acclaim has been for Ryan Coogler’s genre-blending horror tale, and why the R-rated film’s theatrical outlook is looking so bright.

On Rotten Tomatoes, “Sinners” — which takes place in 1930s Mississippi and follows a pair of gangster twins (Michael B. Jordan) who open a juke joint, only to have its grand opening crashed by vampires — has earned a fantastic 98% critics and 97% audience score, the highest RT scores for a studio wide release since Universal/DreamWorks’ “The Wild Robot” last September. “Sinners” also earned an A on CinemaScore, marking the first time in 39 years that a horror film has earned a grade that high from the audience poll that can portend strong word-of-mouth for box office business in weeks to come.

Historically, a B+ is considered a good CinemaScore grade for a horror film. Recent box office hits in the genre like “It” ($329 million domestic), “A Quiet Place” ($188 million) and “The Black Phone” ($90 million) have earned that grade. The list of horror films that have earned an A- is short, and includes classics like “Get Out” ($176 million domestic), “The Conjuring” ($137 million) and “The Silence of the Lambs.”

Before “Sinners,” one had to go back to “Poltergeist” in 1982 and “Aliens” in 1986 to find horror movies that have earned a straight A. It would be enough of an achievement for this film to break the genre’s grading curve in a way that hasn’t been seen for nearly four decades. But Warner Bros. domestic distribution chief Jeff Goldstein pointed out another way “Sinners” defied trends with audience returns on PostTrak.

Hailee Steinfeld in "Sinners" (Warner Bros. Pictures) — Hailee Steinfeld in “Sinners” (Warner Bros. Pictures)

“With PostTrak scores, a film usually gets its highest scores on Thursday previews and on Friday, because that’s when the biggest fans show up. Then more general audiences see the film on Saturday and Sunday and it levels out a little,” he explained to TheWrap. “With ‘Sinners,’ we’ve actually seen the PostTrak scores get higher as the weekend has progressed.”

On Thursday, 80% of preview screening moviegoers polled by PostTrak said they would “definitely recommend” the film, the highest rating available in the survey. By Saturday, the percentage of moviegoers who chose “definitely recommend” increased to 84%, with the overall positive rating coming in at a fantastic 92%.

That surge in reception equated to stronger-than-expected grosses on Saturday. After earning a $19 million opening day, Friday-to-Saturday grosses for “Sinners” dropped just 14%, less than the 35% that Warner Bros. had projected.

More than a horror film

Perhaps the biggest reason why “Sinners” struck a chord with critics and audiences alike is because, like some other wildly acclaimed horror hits like “Get Out” and “Aliens,” it manages to blend genres in its story without compromising its horror core.

While Coogler brings plenty of gory kills and action when the vicious vampire Remmick (Jack O’Connell) arrives at the Smokestack Twins’ brand new juke joint, it takes a while for the film to get there. The first hour or so plays like a period drama, immersing the audience in its 1930s Mississippi setting with dialogue-heavy scenes that establish the relationship between Smoke and Stack, played by Michael B. Jordan, and the residents that join them at their new club like the humorous blues musician Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo), Stack’s white-passing ex-girlfriend Mary (Hailee Steinfeld) and the true protagonist of the film, the blues-loving preacher’s son Sammie (Miles Caton).

And even after the vampires make their entrance, Coogler offers thrilling musical numbers with genres ranging from blues to Irish folk, with a time-bending sequence that serves as an ode to the tapestry of Black culture and music as its centerpiece. Then the action kicks into high gear — the climactic fight has the energy and verve of any number of four-quadrant action films.

“Sinners” doesn’t try to please everyone, but it reveals pretty quickly that it has more to offer than one may expect from a horror movie, and its surprises and emotional beats are a big reason why so many fans are gushing about it on social media. (NOTE: spoilers in the examples below).