Now You See Me 3 Pulls Off a Box Office Heist, Tripping Up The Running Man as Women Lead the Charge

Two very different movies opened, and the one about magicians stealing things is pulling a rabbit out of the hat. Yes, the heist-with-card-tricks threequel is outpacing a big, R-rated sci‑fi chase from an A-list director. Here is where the weekend box office is landing, and why.

Now You See Me 3 is pacing to win the weekend

Now You See Me 3, billed as a rethink of the franchise from director Ruben Fleischer, is tracking for a $21–24 million debut, edging past Edgar Wright's The Running Man, which is looking at $17–19 million, per industry estimates reported by The Hollywood Reporter. The magic caper also squeaked ahead in early previews. Not bad for a sequel arriving nine years after the last one, with Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, and Dave Franco back on the marquee.

The twist: reviews are mixed across the board, and yet the magicians are still outdrawing the runners.

Why the edge is going to the magicians

A few factors are doing the heavy lifting here:

• Audience makeup: Women account for 54% of tickets sold so far for Now You See Me 3, which helped it climb past its initial $19 million projection.
• Rating matters: Now You See Me 3 is PG-13; The Running Man is R. That extra slice of the audience is clearly helping the former.
• Word of mouth: Both films landed a B+ CinemaScore, which is solid but not spectacular. That usually translates to decent legs if people keep recommending it, but chatter for The Running Man is softer than you would expect from a Wright release.
• Expectations vs reality: The Running Man, led by Glen Powell and adapted from Stephen King, was originally projected to open higher at $24–25 million. It is now trailing.

The score so far

If you are keeping track of the numbers (and I am), here is the snapshot:

Now You See Me 3

- IMDb: 6.3
- Rotten Tomatoes: 58% Tomatometer / 81% Audience Score
- Expected opening weekend: $21–24 million

The Running Man

- IMDb: 6.8
- Rotten Tomatoes: 64% Tomatometer / 80% Audience Score
- Expected opening weekend: $17–19 million

Both titles opened to mixed reviews and the same B+ CinemaScore. For extra context, trades have noted that The Running Man ended Wright's streak on the Tomatometer, which is a polite way of saying the critics are not over the moon this time.

What this means for The Running Man

This one is a tougher hill. The Running Man reportedly cost around $110 million. Using the standard 2.5x rule of thumb, that means it needs roughly $275 million worldwide just to hit break-even territory. With Now You See Me 3 kneecapping its opening momentum, the runway gets shorter fast.

And the calendar is not friendly: Wicked 2 arrives next week, followed by Zootopia 2 later this month. Those are major, four-quadrant sequels poised to swallow up screens and attention. In other words, the window for Wright's film to stabilize is narrow.

Does that mean it is over? Not necessarily. A B+ can still mean steady holds if the audience warms to it. But right now, the break-even line looks far away, and this could end up as Glen Powell's first real box office stumble since his hot streak kicked in.

The bottom line

Despite divisive reviews, the more accessible PG-13 magician sequel is winning the weekend on the strength of female turnout and broader reach. The R-rated sci‑fi chase, meanwhile, is fighting uphill against softer word of mouth and a brutal release calendar.

Both films are in theaters now.