AceShowbiz - Despite facing significant competition from the annual Oscars telecast and a formidable second-weekend contender, two new releases — the A24 horror film undertone and the romantic drama Reminders of Him — demonstrated impressive resilience at the domestic box office. The weekend ending March 15, 2026, proved to be an unexpected success story for these films, with both exceeding their initial projections, even after slight deflations from Saturday morning estimates.

The highly anticipated romantic drama, Reminders of Him, which has garnered the best Rotten Tomatoes score for any Colleen Hoover adaptation to date, debuted on March 13. Simultaneously, the chilling A24 horror production, undertone, also premiered, captivating audiences with its premise of a podcaster delving into potentially cursed recordings. Both films entered a competitive landscape, not only contending with moviegoers staying home for Sunday's Oscars ceremony but also battling against the strong sophomore weekend of Hoppers, the animated Pixar title that achieved the best debut for an original film from the studio since 2017.

According to reports from Variety on Sunday morning, Hoppers was poised to secure the No. 1 spot for its second consecutive weekend. The film achieved a robust 3-day gross of $28.5 million at the domestic box office, showcasing an unusually narrow week-on-week drop of only 34%. This performance underscored its continued appeal and strong hold on audiences.

However, the real surprise came from the new releases. Both Reminders of Him and undertone significantly surpassed their original debut weekend projections. Industry analysts had initially forecast Reminders of Him to earn between $10 million to $12 million, while undertone was projected at approximately $8 million. By Sunday, these figures had been comfortably exceeded. Reminders of Him was expected to debut at No. 2, achieving an impressive 3-day total of $18.2 million. Close behind, A24's undertone was set to claim the No. 3 position, reaching $9.3 million in its opening weekend.

This remarkable performance marks the second consecutive weekend that two new releases have successfully debuted within the Top 3 at the domestic box office. The prior weekend, ending March 6, saw Hoppers launch at No. 1, with The Bride! securing the No. 3 spot. This trend of multiple new entries breaking into the top tier had not been observed since Valentine's Day weekend, which witnessed a crowded field of strong debuts with Wuthering Heights at No. 1, GOAT at No. 2, and Crime 101 at No. 3, dominating the box office chart.

Financially, undertone has already proven to be a significant success for A24. With a reported production budget of just $500,000, the horror movie has already recouped its initial investment and then some. By the close of the weekend, undertone was projected to have grossed more than 20 times its original price tag. While a more substantial advertising budget would likely push its theatrical break-even point higher, its strong opening suggests a very profitable run.

In contrast, Reminders of Him, with a reported production budget of $25 million, will require a more sustained audience hold to reach its break-even point. Given that films often need to earn back approximately two and a half times their production budgets to cover marketing and distribution costs, its break-even point could be as high as $62.5 million. However, the romantic drama is showing promising signs of becoming a word-of-mouth success, building on its solid debut weekend. Audience reception indicators are strong, with Reminders of Him achieving an 89% score on the Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter and a respectable CinemaScore of B. This contrasts with undertone, which received a 54% Popcornmeter score and a CinemaScore of C, suggesting that while the horror film had a strong opening, its audience satisfaction was not as universally high.

The weekend's domestic Top 5 chart further illustrates the dynamic shifts in the box office landscape:

• #1: Hoppers - Secured $28.5 million for the 3-day total, bringing its cumulative domestic gross to $86 million in its second weekend.
• #2: Reminders of Him - Debuted with a strong $18.2 million 3-day total, matching its cumulative domestic gross in its first weekend.
• #3: undertone - Opened with $9.3 million for the 3-day total, also representing its cumulative domestic gross in its first weekend.
• #4: Scream 7 - Earned $8.3 million for the 3-day total, pushing its cumulative domestic gross to an impressive $107 million in its third weekend.
• #5: GOAT - Added $4.7 million to its 3-day total, bringing its cumulative domestic gross to $90.5 million in its fifth weekend.

With two new releases successfully entering the Top 3, it was inevitable that some titles would be displaced. Emerald Fennell's Wuthering Heights, which had been holding the No. 5 slot, was pushed out of the chart in its fifth weekend. Similarly, Maggie Gyllenhaal's The Bride! experienced a precipitous drop, plummeting from its former No. 3 position with a significant 70% week-on-week decline. Meanwhile, GOAT moved down one spot from No. 4 to No. 5, and Scream 7 shifted from No. 2 to No. 4. However, the slasher sequel celebrated a notable achievement, becoming the fourth installment in the long-running franchise to surpass the $100 million domestic box office milestone.

The strong overperformance of both Reminders of Him and undertone this weekend is likely to be a crucial advantage, as both titles are expected to face intense competition in their sophomore weekends. The upcoming weekend will see the arrival of two highly anticipated new releases: the Ryan Gosling sci-fi movie Project Hail Mary and the horror-comedy sequel Ready or Not 2. These new contenders are poised to create further shifts in the box office rankings, making the strong debuts of Reminders of Him and undertone even more vital for their long-term theatrical prospects.

Reminders of Him, directed by Vanessa Caswill and written by Lauren Levine and Colleen Hoover, features Maika Monroe as Kenna Rowan and Tyriq Withers as Ledger Ward. The film centers on Kenna's journey to reconnect with her daughter despite resistance from the child's grandparents, all while forming a secret romance with former NFL player and bar owner, Ledger. Producers include Gina Matthews, Colleen Hoover, and Lauren Levine, with a runtime of 114 minutes and a PG-13 rating.

undertone, directed and written by Ian Tuason, stars Nina Kiri as Evy Babic and Kristen Holden-Ried as Justin. The film follows Evy, a popular paranormal podcast host, who finds herself entangled in a chilling mystery after receiving eerie and inexplicable recordings. Produced by Cody Calahan and Dan Slater, the horror film has a runtime of 84 minutes.