Markiplier’s “Iron Lung” Surges Past Hollywood Heavyweights at the Box Office
A crowded weekend at the box office brought new movies from big-name filmmakers, action stars, and even a First Lady — but the clear breakout came from an unexpected place. Iron Lung, a low-budget horror film made by YouTube creator Mark “Markiplier” Fischbach, surged to the top in both the U.S. and U.K., beating studio-backed releases and blowing past early expectations.
In North America, Iron Lung earned an estimated $8.9 million on Friday alone from just over 3,000 theaters, putting it ahead of Sam Raimi’s survival thriller Send Help. With strong previews and fan turnout, the film is now expected to reach around $17 million by the end of the weekend, which is a huge leap from earlier forecasts that put the estimates closer to $10 million. That’s especially impressive given the movie was self-financed, self-distributed, and reportedly made for under $3 million.
The sci-fi horror story, adapted from the 2022 indie video game, is set after a catastrophic event known as “The Quiet Rapture” where all the stars and planets vanished, leaving only humans on space stations and starships alive. Fischbach co-directed the film alongside game creator David Szymanski and also stars in it, playing a convicted man sent into an ocean of blood aboard a decaying submarine to look for resources to help the human race to continue to survive in exchange for his freedom. The cast includes Troy Baker, Elsie Lovelock, Seán “Jacksepticeye” McLoughlin, and Caroline Kaplan.
The film’s momentum isn’t limited to the U.S. In the U.K., Iron Lung launched strongly through Shear Entertainment and quickly led the market in ticket sales. One senior distribution source summed it up bluntly: “Iron Lung is your story for this weekend.” They added, “It shows that YouTube and Gen Z aren’t the death of cinema… Cinemas provide a great hub for fans to congregate in real life, and real world stage for content creators.”
While Iron Lung dominated on Friday, Raimi’s Send Help isn’t far behind. The desert island thriller, starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, pulled in $7.2 million on its first day and is still expected to take the overall weekend crown. The film, which flips a toxic workplace dynamic after a plane crash strands its leads on a remote island, carries a reported $40 million budget.
Elsewhere, Brett Ratner’s documentary Melania landed in third place, earning $2.9 million on Friday. The film focuses on the First Lady during the 20 days before Donald Trump’s second inauguration and marks Ratner’s first major theatrical release since sexual assault allegations in 2017. Jason Statham’s action thriller Shelter followed in fourth, while Disney’s Zootopia 2 continued its long run in fifth place.
What’s turning the most heads, though, is just how effectively Markiplier’s fanbase has shown up. The film boasts a strong audience response so far, with fans far more enthusiastic than critics — a gap familiar to anyone who remembers the box office run of Five Nights at Freddy’s, another game adaptation embraced by viewers. With more international releases rolling out and demand pushing Iron Lung into additional theaters, its first weekend may be just the beginning.
