3 days Ago By Pamela McClintock
Warner Bros. will collect more eggs than any other studio at the Easter weekend box office , between smash sensation A Minecraft Movie and Ryan Googler’s critically acclaimed original film Sinners starring Michael B. Jordan .
The big question: which film will win the race? Warners, trying to manage expectations, is targeting an opening in the $35 million to $40 million range for Sinners . There’s reason to be circumspect, considering the film is an R-rated, period supernatural vampire pic. Tracking services are more bullish in suggesting $40 million to $45 million, while rival studios think Sinner ‘s launch could end up north of $50 million.
A Minecraft Movie , produced and co-financed by Legendary, should easily earn $40 million to $45 million in its third outing as it jumps the $600 million mark globally, including $300 million domestically. The film is on its way to becoming one of the top video game adaptations of all time, and is already the top-grossing pic of 2025 in a much-needed win for Warner Bros. movie chiefs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy , who have come under intense scrutiny following several high-profile misses.
Sinners is a defining moment for the executive duo and their commitment to working with high-profile auteurs and giving filmmakers a relatively wide berth in terms of budget. Sinners cost $90 million to make before marketing, a relatively hefty price tag for a genre movie (that’s ahead of the $50 million budget for Coogler and Jordan’s Creed ). If the critical response to Sinners is any indication, Coogler has delivered the goods.
As of Wednesday, the film’s critics score on Rotten Tomatoes was 99 percent — the best of Coogler’s career. He burst onto the scene with the indie hit Fruitvale Station before going on to direct Creed and two hit Black Panther films. The 1932-set Sinners stars Jordan in dual roles as identical twin entrepreneurs known as Smoke and Stack.
Having survived the WWI trenches and Chicago gangland, the brothers return after seven years to their segregated Mississippi Delta hometown, Clarksdale. They are flush with cash and have a truckload of liquor and a plan to open a juke joint. However, they encounter unexpected horrors.
“ Sinners is the gifted writer-director’s first entirely original feature, not based on real-life events or existing IP, and he packs it with enough thematic layers and genre fluidity to fuel at least three movies,” writes David Rooney in The Hollywood Reporter ‘s review . Continuing, Rooney writes, “There’s a lot going on here — an evocative portrait of life in the Jim Crow South; a pulpy explosion of vampire horror; a dynamic reflection on the spiritual and supernatural power of the blues; an allegory for the struggle for freedom, both earthbound and other-worldly. As much arthouse as grindhouse, it’s a blood-drenched mix tape that shouldn’t work.
But it does, thanks to Coogler’s muscular direction, a terrific cast, enveloping IMAX visuals, body-quaking sound and music that stirs the soul while setting the pulse racing.” Hailee Steinfeld , Jack O’Connell, Delroy Lindo, Wunmi Mosaku and Miles Caton also star in Sinners , which opens everywhere on April 18 following Thursday previews..
