New R-Rated Movie Breaks Zendaya’s 8 Year Box Office Streak

Zendaya has dominated the domestic box office for nearly a decade, but a new R-rated A24 release has finally brought that streak to a halt after eight years. The film’s opening weekend numbers reveal exactly how the streak ended, and what it could mean for the actress’s box office future.

The Drama’s opening breaks Zendaya’s box office streak

A24’s The Drama opened at No. 3 domestically over Easter weekend, ending Zendaya’s unbroken run of No. 1 debuts. The film earned a projected 3-day domestic total of $14 million, debuting behind Ryan Gosling’s Project Hail Mary and the animated The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. This marks the first time a Zendaya film has not debuted at No. 1 since Smallfoot opened at No. 2 in September 2018.

Between 2018 and now, all six of her theatrically released films topped the domestic chart. Those titles included both Dune entries, two Spider-Man films, Space Jam: A New Legacy, and Challengers. The Drama opened $600K below Challengers, with a $28 million global debut led by the UK and France.

According to Box Office Mojo, the film’s exact domestic opening weekend total was $14,380,197 across 3,087 theaters. Friday delivered $6.4 million, Saturday pulled in $4.6 million, and Easter Sunday brought in $3.3 million.

The film cost a net $28 million to produce. It skewed heavily female at 68%, with 80% of its audience falling under 35. CinemaScore landed at B, half a grade lower than Challengers’ B+, while the Rotten Tomatoes audience score reached 81%.

The Drama earned a Certified Fresh 77% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. Its international performance helped push the global debut to roughly $25 million to $28 million, with the UK and France leading overseas returns. The film’s estimated break-even point sits as high as $70 million.

A24’s 2025 romance Materialists debuted at just $11.3 million before eventually grossing $107.9 million worldwide. Zendaya’s next theatrical release is Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, which opens July 17.

Source: Comingsoon.net