Jordan Peele's Us is about to tear up the box office — and accomplish a feat that has become depressingly rare.
The latest film from the director of Get Out is set to be one of the few movies not based on anything to top the box office since 2017, observes IndieWire's David Ehrlich. As he points out, the only films in the past two years that were original stories and beat the competition were Get Out, Dunkirk, Coco, The Hitman's Bodyguard, Happy Death Day, A Quiet Place, and Night School.
In that time, just about everything else has been a sequel, a reboot, an adaptation, or a film set in a cinematic universe, plus movies based on real people (although technically, Dunkirk is also based on a real event, so Us would be seventh if this were included). Thus far in 2019, the films that have scored the number one spot include three based on a comic book or manga, three sequels, and one remake.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
At the moment, Us is projected to make about $64 million over the weekend, per The Hollywood Reporter, which would make it the biggest opening ever for an original R-rated horror film. Clearly, the horror genre has played a major role in keeping audacious, original movies alive at the box office, making up half of Ehrlich's list — with two being helmed by Peele himself. Screenwriter C. Robert Cargill observed on Friday that horror is "the last genre you can make $100 million in while discussing smartly the problems that plague both the individual and our society." After the success of Us, expect Peele to show back up on the list many more times in the years to come.
-
Why Britain is struggling to stop the ransomware cyberattacksThe Explainer New business models have greatly lowered barriers to entry for criminal hackers
-
Greene’s rebellion: a Maga hardliner turns against TrumpIn the Spotlight The Georgia congresswoman’s independent streak has ‘not gone unnoticed’ by the president
-
Crossword: October 26, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to ChinaSpeed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
