Knives Out Scores Win For Original Cinema With $300 Million In Worldwide Box Office

Knives Out is 2019’s gold standard for the argument that original cinema is far from dead, as it has crossed another box office milestone. The Rian Johnson-directed whodunit has now passed $300 million worldwide, topping that mark on Wednesday.

The ensemble film is one of the unmitigated successes of the past year, with a domestic total of $159.7 million as of now which is a stellar 5.97 multiple of its $26.8 million opening weekend on November 27th. Films released over the holidays often have longer box office runs, but Knives Out’s ability to hang in the top ten for 10 out of its first 11 weeks (it slipped just barely out in week ten before jumping back in) has been impressive.

While $300 million seems small compared to box office blockbusters — it ranks at #28 for 2019 worldwide, behind films like Dumbo and Alita: Battle Angel — it’s important to note the budgetary differences. It’s long been said that mid-budget films (in the $25 million to $60 million range) are a dead form of cinema because they’re too expensive to make back budgets on modest release, but also get lost in the shuffle amongst the more expensive blockbusters because of the pressure to pour all marketing efforts into those $100 million-plus budgeted films. At $40 million, Knives Out represents a counter to that argument.

Knives Out is also the second-highest grossing film not based on an existing IP (i.e. sequels, remakes, adaptations) for 2019 behind only Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which has grossed $371.2 million worldwide against a $90 million budget.

Lionsgate has already greenlit a sequel to Knives Out, which Johnson is writing and will follow Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc on to a new mystery.