Indies grab five top 10 spots as Runner opens fourth
Independent films took five of the top 10 places at the domestic box office, the United States and Canada, for the weekend ending 13 September 2026, led by newcomer Runner and holdover Buddy, according to studio estimates reported by Deadline.
Runner opened at No. 4 with $6.67 million from 2,568 theatres. The Angel Studios release stars Alan Ritchson and Owen Wilson. Audiences gave it an A-minus CinemaScore, the polling service that surveys opening-night crowds.
Just behind it, Ketchup Entertainment's Coyote vs. Acme was No. 5 with $6.23 million from 3,355 locations, taking its domestic cumulative total to $47.8 million, studio estimates reported by Deadline. That total sits close to Angel Studios' Young Washington, which topped out at $47 million.
Buddy, the horror-comedy from Roadside Attractions and Saban Films, was No. 6 with $3.5 million in its third weekend from 1,719 screens. The film fell 39% from the previous weekend and reached an estimated $21.2 million in total domestic takings, studio estimates reported by Deadline.
The film follows children on a 1990s-style retro television show who rebel against their orange unicorn host, voiced by Keegan-Michael Key. It has built a loud online following, with more than 1 million followers on TikTok. It is now Roadside's fifth-highest-grossing release and its strongest box office performer since Covid.
Two more independents landed back to back. Neon's South Korean monster film Hope took $3.3 million from 1,560 theatres to place No. 8, for a $5 million total since its Wednesday opening. Focus Features' The Uprising, starring Andrew Garfield, was No. 9 with $3.2 million from 2,068 locations, studio estimates reported by Deadline.
Lower down the charts, A24 holdover Tony added $497,000 from 380 screens in week six for a $14.7 million total. Onslaught took $278,000 from 1,252 screens in week two for a $3 million total. Hanuman Ansh, from Prathyangira Cinemas, opened with $740,000 from 200 locations. Disney's event cinema title Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger opened with $1.435 million from 1,225 theatres.
Specialist releases also found room. If I Go Will They Miss Me, starring Danielle Brooks and J Alphonse Nicholson and directed by Walter Thompson-Hernandez, opened exclusively at AMC Century City in Los Angeles with $42,250. The Rich Spirit release reported multiple sellouts with added showtimes. It was the second-highest opening of the year for a single-theatre engagement, behind Maddie's Secret at $58,000 at the IFC, and was set to expand to 250 theatres the next week. Watermelon Pictures' documentary American Doctor passed $400,000 in total after $66,200 in week five from 65 screens. It follows three US doctors who travel voluntarily to Gaza to help save lives.
What makes this stand out is the spread. Big independent distributors, foreign-language genre fare, event cinema and a one-screen opener all posted results on the same weekend. All figures are studio estimates until Monday's actuals confirm the order.
