April box office up as Super Mario Bros Galaxy Movie becomes top film of 2026
UK and Ireland box office totalled £102.5m in April, a 2% increase compared to the same month last year, according to the latest figures from Comscore.
Year-to-date box office surpassed £365m and is now running 7% ahead of 2025.
Three films surpassed £10m in box office in April, with two additional titles nearing the mark for a well-rounded month.
DCM’s head of film, Tom Linay, told The Media Leader April admissions are also expected to be “slightly up” year on year. Official admissions figures are not released until the middle of the month.
For Linay, April’s box office performance was encouraging considering its difficult comparison to April 2025. That month saw the release of the year’s top film, A Minecraft Movie, whose performance was bolstered by the full Easter holiday occurring within the month of April.
This year, Easter began in March, but that didn’t stop families from turning up to the biggest film of the month, Universal Pictures’ The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which grossed £34.6m to become the highest-grossing film of the year so far.
Its £14.9m opening was the second-highest debut for an animated title following the pandemic, only after its predecessor, The Super Mario Bros Movie (£15.6m), which went on to gross £54.9m.
Universal also took home the second top spot in April with musical biopic Michael (£11.5m).
This was followed by March carryover Project Hail Mary, which earned another £13.9m during the month of April. Its total gross of £32.4m is good for second-best in 2026.
“It’s had the best word of mouth of any film for quite a while,” Linay commented of Project Hail Mary. “It’s had an amazing long tail.”
A24’s The Drama (£9.5m) and March carryover The Magic Faraway Tree (£8.4m in April; £14.0m total) rounded out April’s top five.
May preview: Devils, detectives and backrooms
The biggest title to release in the month of May is undoubtedly The Devil Wears Prada 2 (1 May), which had previously been earmarked by Linay and the DCM team as a likely cultural touchstone in the spring.
But the month is also full of a diverse slate of releases targeting a wide array of demographics. For gamers and action fans, there’s Mortal Kombat II (8 May). Families can treat themselves to comedy mystery The Sheep Detectives (2 May) as well as the first Star Wars film in seven years, The Mandalorian and Grogu (22 May).
Horror fans have three major releases to look forward to, including two by young directors who first honed their craft online. Adam Scott Irish horror Hokum releases 1 May, followed by Obsession (15 May) and Backrooms (29 May).
For those into black comedy, Steven Soderbergh’s The Christophers, starring Ian McKellen and Michaela Cole, comes out 15 May.
“It’s a real nice mix for all ages,” Linay said, adding The Backrooms in particular “has a nice chance to break out” due to its viral inspiration and strong cast.
