Receipts: ‘Stray Kids’ Dominate Screens, South Korea Crowns ‘The King’s Warden’

Domestic: February so far at the domestic box office reinforced a recurring truth: theatrical success does not always belong to the loudest or most expensive title in the room. Event cinema once again demonstrated how concentrated fandom can convert directly into receipts. Stray Kids: The dominATE Experience opened wide in early February and continued performing strongly through the Presidents’ Day stretch, grossing $7.158 million domestically in February and playing across 1,724 screens.

Concert films operate under a different financial logic than narrative tentpoles. Production costs are typically leaner, marketing is driven heavily by preexisting fan infrastructure, and urgency is built into the theatrical window. In this case, the math is straightforward: high per-screen averages, immediate turnout, and minimal drop-off across the extended weekend frame. While a publicly confirmed production budget is not disclosed in the same way studio features report theirs, films of this type often move into profitability quickly because overhead is controlled.

More importantly, the receipts underscore the purchasing power of Asian global pop fandom within the American theatrical marketplace. Rather than relying on crossover appeal, The dominATE Experience filled seats by mobilizing a loyal audience base. It is a reminder that cultural export power, especially from Korean pop culture, continues to reshape what qualifies as a theatrical “event.”

At the arthouse end of the spectrum, My Father’s Shadow, directed by Akinola Davies Jr., maintained a quieter but symbolically significant presence. The film reached $22,714 domestically in limited release. While modest in scale, the figure reflects sustained theatrical positioning for a Nigerian feature in North America rather than an automatic pivot to streaming.

Prestige imports rely less on opening-week spectacle and more on platform build-out and critical endorsement. The strategy centers on longevity rather than velocity. In that context, every additional weekend in theaters becomes part of the cumulative story. My Father’s Shadow may not headline charts, but its continued theatrical life signals incremental but meaningful expansion for African cinema within U.S. exhibition spaces. Between event-driven fandom and prestige-driven persistence, the domestic marketplace during this period demonstrated that profitability and visibility can take multiple forms.

International: The international markets once again delivered performances that rival, or exceed, U.S. openings when viewed within their own ecosystem. In South Korea, The King’s Warden opened with a $5.039 million weekend gross and reached $6.558 million in its first five days of release. That kind of velocity positions the film as a major domestic success in its home territory.

Historical dramas in South Korea often rely on strong opening weekends supported by national marketing campaigns and wide exhibition support. The film’s screen count and early momentum reflect sustained audience appetite for large-scale, locally produced storytelling. Rather than competing with imported U.S. blockbusters, titles like The King’s Warden operate as domestic tentpoles within their own market.

India’s box office offered a different financial rhythm. O’ Romeo, directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and starring Shahid Kapoor and Triptii Dimri, crossed ₹51 crore worldwide within its first five days. Using the February 2026 exchange average (approximately ₹90.7 per $1), that total converts to roughly $5.625 million globally in under a week.

However, the early surge was followed by noticeable weekday softening. In the Indian theatrical ecosystem, opening strength must be paired with week-to-week hold to secure long-term success. A powerful debut can generate headlines, but sustainability determines profitability. The receipts during this period suggest strong front-loaded turnout with pressure on subsequent holds.

Taken together, South Korea and India illustrate two distinct but equally valid international models: immediate domestic dominance and star-driven surge performance. Both markets reinforce the global significance of non-U.S. theatrical revenue in shaping the industry’s financial landscape.

Streaming: February in streaming highlighted the durability of creator-driven brands within platform ecosystems. Tyler Perry's Divorce in the Black, written and directed by Tyler Perry, resurfaced in prominent U.S. streaming rankings during the window, signaling renewed engagement.

Unlike theatrical releases, streaming success is often measured through placement and minutes watched rather than ticket sales. While platform-specific view counts were not publicly detailed during this frame, third-party tracking confirmed the film’s continued presence among top-performing streaming movies. Catalog resurgence is financially meaningful in this ecosystem, even if compensation metrics remain less transparent than box office reporting.

Perry’s work consistently demonstrates how audience loyalty translates across release models. Whether debuting theatrically or on streaming, his films benefit from a reliable viewer base that returns when titles resurface in recommendation feeds. The streaming model rewards familiarity and repeat discovery, extending the lifecycle of titles well beyond their premiere windows.

In contrast to the urgency of theatrical event cinema, streaming thrives on sustained visibility. A film does not need a single explosive weekend to matter; it needs to remain accessible and discoverable. During this February corridor, POC-led creator brands continued to circulate strongly within that framework, reinforcing the long-tail value of culturally specific storytelling in platform libraries.