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Emerald Fennell\u2019s bold reimagining of \u201cWuthering Heights\u201d<\/a> brought crowds of women to movie theaters this weekend. The Warner Bros. release topped the box office charts<\/a> and nabbed the title for the year\u2019s 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<\/a>, the total could rise to $40 million from its 3,682 locations. <\/p>\n The romantic drama starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi as the star-crossed Catherine and Heathcliff, won out over the weekend\u2019s other newcomers, including the animated \u201cGOAT\u201d<\/a> and the heist thriller \u201cCrime 101.\u201d<\/a> Its biggest day was Saturday’s Valentine’s Day holiday, where it earned $14 million. \u201cWuthering Heights\u201d is also performing even better internationally, where it\u2019s expecting to rake in an additional $42 million from 76 territories. <\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n The success comes while the future of Warner Bros. hangs in the balance<\/a>, as Paramount continues to sweeten<\/a> its hostile takeover bid in hopes of winning out over Netflix. \u201cWuthering Heights\u201d is the studio’s ninth No. 1 opening in a row.<\/p>\n Fennell\u2019s version of \u201cWuthering Heights,\u201d which takes many liberties with Emily Bront\u00eb\u2019s<\/a> novel, largely divided critics. It\u2019s currently sitting at a mixed 63% on Rotten Tomatoes. While that didn\u2019t dissuade audiences from buying tickets, only 51% of the opening weekend audience said that they would \u201cdefinitely recommend\u201d the film to friends. Moviegoers also gave it a less-than-stellar B CinemaScore.<\/p>\n The mid-February weekend has hosted big superhero movies on occasion, including \u201cBlack Panther\u201d and \u201cDeadpool,\u201d but a more relevant comparison is \u201cFifty Shades of Grey\u201d<\/a> and its two sequels. The first movie opened to over $85 million, the third to $38.6 million.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was a solid if not record-breaking Presidents Day\/Valentines weekend,\u201d said Paul Dergarabedian, who heads marketplace trends for Comscore. \u201cBut that was to be expected without an MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) film.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGOAT,\u201d 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 \u2014 the biggest animated debut since \u201cElemental\u201d in 2023. It also pulled in $15.6 million internationally, bringing its global total to $47.6 million. <\/p>\n The family-friendly film was the only new opener of the weekend to get an A CinemaScore. Sony Pictures Animation was also behind \u201cKPop Demon Hunters.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n In third place, \u201cCrime 101\u201d 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\u2019s 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 \u201cCrime 101\u201d a B CinemaScore.<\/p>\n \u201cSend Help\u201d and \u201cSolo Mio\u201d rounded out the top five with $9 million and $6.4 million, respectively. Further down the charts, at No. 7, was Briarcliff Entertainment\u2019s sci-fi comedy \u201cGood Luck, Have Fun, Don\u2019t Die,\u201d<\/a> starring Sam Rockwell and Haley Lu Richardson. It made an estimated $3.6 million from 1,610 locations.<\/p>\n 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 \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash,\u201d but also helped by the continued success of \u201cZootopia 2,\u201d which remains in the top 10 after twelve weekends in theaters. <\/p>\n