Nia DaCosta's Candyman keeps winning big at the box office race, despite fears of the delta variant scaring away moviegoers. After opening up strong last Friday, Candyman held the first position of the whole weekend with $22.4 million, an impressive mark for a movie that cost only $25 million to produce.

Produced by Jordan Peele, Candyman brings back the Black horror icon that debuted in 1992 on a movie helmed by Bernard Rose. Just as in the first movie, the new Candyman uses horror to discuss racism and Black representation in the United States, which helps to bring more than horror fans to theaters. Peele’s last two movies, Get Out and Us, also did a fantastic job using the horror language to discuss social problems. So, having his name attached to Candyman as a producer probably helped with the box office success. Candyman also made another $5.23 million internationally, for a total of $27.6 million.

candyman-social-feature
Image via Universal

RELATED:‌ Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Teyonah Parris on Why ‘Candyman’ Is Still Relevant Now and the Importance of Filming in Chicago

Coming out in second place is Free Guy. Starring Ryan Reynolds as a self-aware NPC who must save his digital world, the summer hit keeps strong in its third week, bringing another $13.6 million home in the domestic box office. Contrary to other recent Disney releases, Free Guy launched exclusively in theaters due to previous deals made by 20th Century Fox before the House of the Mouse bought it. So far, Free Guy hauled $79 million in the U.S. and $179 million globally, and with a box office reduction of only 27% compared to last weekend, it doesn’t seem the movie will stop soon.

In third place on this weekend’s box office comes Paw Patrol. While the movie sold more movie tickets than expected, its box office is a lot more modest than the two first places of the weekend, with $6.6 million added domestically. So far, Paw Patrol hauled $24 million in the U.S. and Canada. Disney has another contender on the weekend’s top five, as Jungle Cruise is still in the race five weeks after its premiere. With $5 million added to the domestic box office, Jungle Cruise reached $100.1 million in the U.S. and Canada and $187 million globally. Rounding up the weekend’s numbers comes Don’t Breathe 2, the sequel to 2016’s horror hit that just added another $2.8 million to its $24.5 million domestic box office.

Even if a simultaneous release on streaming can help viewers to catch the latest blockbusters from the safety of their homes, an exclusive theaters window is still holding much better than a hybrid release. FIlms like Candyman, Free Guy, and Paw Patrol are opening stronger than predicted and keeping strong several weeks after their release. Considering that highly-anticipated films such as Black Window faced a huge drop in box office after the first week, the latest results might affect how big studios deal with their blockbuster releases moving forward. It’s not a coincidence that Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will have a 45-day window of theatrical exclusivity.

KEEP‌ ‌READING:‌ ‘Candyman’ Review: Nia DaCosta Crafts a Wry, Ambitious, Occasionally Frustrating Reimagining of the Horror Icon