The 2026 summer box office season is closing in on a record that has stood for 13 years, and a handful of days remain to get there.
According to Deadline, the North American box office from the first Friday in May through the end of August 31 stands at $4.598 billion, making it the second-highest summer ever. The all-time record belongs to summer 2013 at $4.756 billion. To beat it, the current season needs $158 million more. Industry estimates suggest the final number could fall $18 million to $22 million short.
This past weekend generated $100 million across all titles in the U.S. and Canada, up 46% over the same frame a year ago. Spider-Man: Brand New Day, now in its fifth weekend, led with $22.2 million. Indie distributor Ketchup Entertainment posted its biggest opening ever with $15.4 million for the Warner Bros. Animation film Coyote vs. Acme, a title that had been previously shelved. The only major new wide release next weekend is Paramount's Mark Wahlberg crime drama By Any Means.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, is on the verge of crossing $900 million domestically. That would make it only the second film in history to reach that mark, joining Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which holds the all-time domestic record at $936.66 million. Spider-Man alone represents roughly 20% of the entire summer's box office business.
Add in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, which has grossed $563.8 million domestically and stands as Nolan's highest-grossing film ever, and just two movies account for close to 32% of all ticket sales between the first Friday of May and Sunday, August 31.
Paul Dergarabedian, Rentrak's Head of Marketplace Trends, has been tracking the race closely. He has described the suspense around the final number as a Hollywood Cliffhanger.
"No matter where the final number lands, we have to keep the calendar in mind. There are still eight days of box office to be added from Monday, August 31 through Labor Day Monday, Sept. 7, giving this year a full 130-day summer movie season. For a true apples-to-apples comparison, the first 123 days of Summer 2026 should be compared with the 123-day summer of 2013. Based on the current forecast, Summer 2026 should stand at approximately $4.612 billion through Monday, August 31, making it the second-highest-grossing 123-day summer movie season of all time," Dergarabedian said.
He added that the record itself may not be the most important measure. "I don't think it really matters at this point whether we beat the record. This has been such a spectacular moviegoing season that the numbers are just that and the incredible mix of films presented to audiences this year has been a game changer, not only for the industry, but for younger moviegoers."
Dergarabedian drew a historical comparison for what this season may mean for a new generation. "This could be their version of what Jaws was to audiences in 1975, Star Wars in 1977, and Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T. in the early '80s," he said.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is expected to gross between $18 million and $20 million over the four-day Labor Day holiday weekend.
