“Other Mommy” has stormed the domestic box office. Universal and Blumhouse’s horror release opened to an estimated $27.5 million from 3,365 North American theaters over the October 9–11 weekend, according to studio estimates reported by Comscore — more than doubling its $19 million production budget in a single three-day frame. Worldwide, the film has already collected roughly $44 million.
The debut puts “Other Mommy” comfortably ahead of last weekend’s champion, “Verity,” which fell to second place with $11.4 million in its sophomore frame (and a $53.9 million domestic total). “Resident Evil” held third with $8.35 million, pushing its domestic haul to $138.5 million, while “Heart of the Beast” and “The Social Reckoning” rounded out the top five.
A win built on trailers, not reviews
Directed by Rob Savage and fronted by a marketing hook that leaned entirely on its star — “Jessica Chastain IS Other Mommy!” — the film arrived with one of the most deliberate anti-critical campaigns in recent memory. Universal chose not to screen the movie for press anywhere before release, a move widely read as an attempt to keep negative word-of-mouth from forming before opening night.
It worked — briefly. The teaser trailer played in front of virtually every moviegoer who saw Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” over the summer, attaching a jolting horror tease to one of the year’s biggest hits. The campaign also sold the film as coming “from the studio that brought you ‘Obsession’ and ‘Backrooms,'” framing it as the latest chapter in Blumhouse’s horror assembly line.
But the critical reception was brutal. “Other Mommy” sits at just 18% on Rotten Tomatoes and earned a D+ CinemaScore from opening-night audiences — numbers that usually foreshadow a steep second-weekend collapse. For now, though, the opening itself is all that matters: the film doubled its budget before its first weekend was over.
Horror remains Hollywood’s most reliable bet
The result is the latest proof that horror, more than any other genre, can still reliably convert a strong trailer into a big opening. With a $19 million price tag, “Other Mommy” needed only a single strong weekend to become profitable — a sharp contrast with this season’s big-budget misfires, like the $125 million-plus Tom Cruise satire “Digger,” which dropped 60% in its second frame and is shaping up as one of the year’s biggest flops.
The weekend also pushed total domestic ticket sales past $8 billion for the year, another sign that premium-format and genre audiences are still showing up even as mid-budget adult dramas struggle.
What comes next for “Other Mommy”
The question now is how far the fall goes. A D+ CinemaScore is historically one of the worst audience grades a wide release can earn, and horror films already tend to be front-loaded. Analysts expect a sharp drop next weekend, when “Street Fighter” — tracking for a $30–40 million opening — arrives to claim the top spot.
Still, Blumhouse’s low-budget model means the math was settled by Sunday night. Even a 70% second-weekend decline would leave “Other Mommy” firmly in the black, with streaming and home-video revenue still to come. Expect a sequel conversation to start sooner rather than later — nothing gets a horror franchise greenlit like a profitable opening.
FAQ
How much did “Other Mommy” make at the box office?
“Other Mommy” opened to an estimated $27.5 million domestically and roughly $44 million worldwide over its first weekend (October 9–11, 2026).
What was the budget for “Other Mommy”?
The film was produced for a reported $19 million, meaning it more than doubled its budget in three days.
Who directed “Other Mommy”?
Rob Savage directed the film, which stars Jessica Chastain and was released by Universal Pictures and Blumhouse.
Why wasn’t “Other Mommy” screened for critics?
Universal deliberately skipped press screenings ahead of release, a strategy widely seen as a way to prevent negative reviews from dampening opening-weekend turnout. The film holds an 18% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
What was “Other Mommy’s” CinemaScore?
Opening-night audiences gave the film a D+ CinemaScore, one of the lowest grades for a wide release this year, suggesting weak word-of-mouth ahead of its second weekend.