“Scary Movie 6” Beats “Masters of the Universe” at Weekend Box Office!

The battle for the top spot between nostalgia plays Scary Movie 6 and Masters of the Universe has come to an end. And, as expected, He-Man was no match for the R-rated comedy.

While it didn’t pan out the way the creative team likely anticipated, releasing Masters of the Universe opposite Scary Movie made sense for offering counter-programming to the theater-going audience. Both new films were also supposed to be strong nostalgia plays. And while it all worked out on paper, I have to say the forecast was quite different if one took a look at fandom spaces.

Yes, numerous fans were excited about the long-running Scary Movie IP returning to the big screen with the Wayans attached. Even if certain fans didn’t vibe with the promotional campaign, it was obvious that Scary Movie 6 was going to make a good amount of money, especially considering the reported $30 million production budget.

On the other hand, things were the opposite for live-action Masters of the Universe. Yes, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is a familiar IP. However, one has to realize that the IP hasn’t been part of recent pop culture for a long time. At least, not in a positive sense, with the animated Netflix series Masters of the Universe: Revelation (2021) doing a lot of harm to the IP by switching the focus from He-Man to Teela. Also, in my opinion, while I knew about the 80s He-Man animated series while growing up, I have to say that it didn’t feel as popular to me as, let’s say, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

That’s why a good number of people were a bit confused when the live-action Masters of the Universe was announced. Not only did it not have a proven box office draw as the lead (no shade to Nicholas Galitzine, whom I liked as Adam Glenn/He-Man), but the reported $170-$200 million production budget made no sense for, again, an IP that most people, particularly the current generation of kids, aren’t interested in.

So, yeah, while disappointing, it’s not surprising that Masters of the Universe only managed to see an estimated $29.4 million debut at the box office. As of writing this post, the film has grossed a mere $54 million at the global box office. Masters of the Universe is objectively a flop. And gain, that’s a bummer because I did enjoy watching it!

You can see my quick review below.

Coming to the sixth installment in the Scary Movie series, it sat nicely with a No. 1 weekend debut of almost $54.3 million. The film currently boasts an impressive $106 million worldwide haul. We can expect a Scary Movie 7 soon enough.

As for the rest of the box office list, Backrooms and Obsession secured third and fourth spots with $26.2 million and $25.3 million, respectively. There seems to be no slowing down when it comes to the cash that Obsession is printing.

Made with a reported production budget of $0.75 million, Obsession has grossed nearly $225 million worldwide and will continue to collect more money. As anticipated, fans have become vocal on social media about how much of a profit the creative team will be seeing. And, as expected, many fans are learning about how contracts work in Hollywood, especially involving projects that have been fully bought for theatrical runs.

The animated Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act came in fifth place with around $12.3 million. You can read our review of the movie here.

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu managed to collect an estimated $9.9 million and secure 6th place. With a reported production budget of around $165 million, the movie has a current global haul of $294 million. Yeah, it’s clear that Disney needs to look into pivoting the Star Wars IP for the big screen.

June 5, 2026 – June 7, 2026 Weekend Box Office

1. Scary Movie – $54.3 million
2. Masters of the Universe – $29.4 million
3. Backrooms – $26.2 million
4. Obsession – $25.3 million
5. The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act – $12.3 million
6. Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu – $9.9 million
7. Michael – $7.6 million
8. The Breadwinner – $3.4 million
9. Pressure – $3 million
10. The Devil Wears Prada 2 – $2.7 million

Did you watch Scary Movie and Masters of the Universe? What did you think of them?

Let us know.

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(via Box Office Mojo)

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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