Powered by women, ‘Wuthering Heights’ digs up $34.8 million at the box
office for a No. 1 debut
[February 16, 2026]
By LINDSEY BAHR
Emerald Fennell’s bold reimagining of “Wuthering Heights” brought crowds
of women to movie theaters this weekend. The Warner Bros. release topped
the box office charts and nabbed the title for the year’s biggest
opening with $34.8 million in ticket sales in its first three days in
North American theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. According
to PostTrak polling, an estimated 76% of those ticket buyers were women.
By the end of Monday's Presidents Day holiday, the total could rise to
$40 million from its 3,682 locations.
The romantic drama starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi as the
star-crossed Catherine and Heathcliff, won out over the weekend’s other
newcomers, including the animated “GOAT” and the heist thriller “Crime
101.” Its biggest day was Saturday's Valentine's Day holiday, where it
earned $14 million. “Wuthering Heights” is also performing even better
internationally, where it’s expecting to rake in an additional $42
million from 76 territories.
The Warner Bros./MRC production cost a reported $80 million to produce,
not accounting for the millions spent on marketing and promotion. If the
four-day totals match the estimates, that makes for a strong $82 million
global debut. And the film still has several big openings on the
horizon, in Japan and Vietnam on Feb. 27, and in China on March 13.
The success comes while the future of Warner Bros. hangs in the balance,
as Paramount continues to sweeten its hostile takeover bid in hopes of
winning out over Netflix. “Wuthering Heights” is the studio's ninth No.
1 opening in a row.
Fennell’s version of “Wuthering Heights,” which takes many liberties
with Emily Brontë’s novel, largely divided critics. It’s currently
sitting at a mixed 63% on Rotten Tomatoes. While that didn’t dissuade
audiences from buying tickets, only 51% of the opening weekend audience
said that they would “definitely recommend” the film to friends.
Moviegoers also gave it a less-than-stellar B CinemaScore.
The mid-February weekend has hosted big superhero movies on occasion,
including “Black Panther” and “Deadpool,” but a more relevant comparison
is “Fifty Shades of Grey” and its two sequels. The first movie opened to
over $85 million, the third to $38.6 million.
“This was a solid if not record-breaking Presidents Day/Valentines
weekend,” said Paul Dergarabedian, who heads marketplace trends for
Comscore. “But that was to be expected without an MCU (Marvel Cinematic
Universe) film.”
“GOAT,” an animated Sony release produced by basketball star Stephen
Curry, landed in second place with an estimated $26 million from 3,863
locations. It's projected to bring in another $6 million on Monday,
which would bring its four day total to $32 million — the biggest
animated debut since “Elemental” in 2023. It also pulled in $15.6
million internationally, bringing its global total to $47.6 million.
The family-friendly film was the only new opener of the weekend to get
an A CinemaScore. Sony Pictures Animation was also behind “KPop Demon
Hunters.”
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This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Margot Robbie,
right, and Jacob Elordi in a scene from "Wuthering Heights." (Warner
Bros. Pictures via AP)
In third place, “Crime 101” made an estimated $15.1 million in its first
three days. Amazon MGM Studios opened the Chris Hemsworth and Mark
Ruffalo led Los Angeles-set thriller in 3,161 theaters. It’s expected to
pull in about $17.8 million by the end of Monday, but the movie has a
long way to go to even hit its production budget, which reportedly
exceeded $90 million. Audiences, who were 56% men, also gave “Crime 101”
a B CinemaScore.
“Send Help” and “Solo Mio” rounded out the top five with $9 million and
$6.4 million, respectively. Further down the charts, at No. 7, was
Briarcliff Entertainment’s sci-fi comedy “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t
Die,” starring Sam Rockwell and Haley Lu Richardson. It made an
estimated $3.6 million from 1,610 locations.
The Walt Disney Studios also celebrated a milestone this weekend,
becoming the first studio to cross $1 billion at the global box office
in 2026, driven almost entirely by “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” but also
helped by the continued success of “Zootopia 2,” which remains in the
top 10 after twelve weekends in theaters.
The weekend is down significantly from the same weekend last year, when
“Captain America: Brave New World” opened, but the pace is starting to
pick up and theaters have “Scream 7” and “Project Hail Mary” on the
horizon.
“It’s been a rather slow first quarter,” Dergarabedian said. “But this
could ignite a spark at the box office.”
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Tuesday, this list factors in
the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and
Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “Wuthering Heights,” $34.8 million.
2. “GOAT,” $26 million.
3. “Crime 101,” $15.1 million.
4. “Send Help,” $9 million.
5. “Solo Mio,” $6.4 million.
6. “Zootopia 2,” $3.8 million.
7. “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die,” $3.6 million.
8. “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” $3.3 million.
9. “Iron Lung,” $3.1 million.
10. “Dracula,” $3 million.
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