Nope Continues Jordan Peele's Streak Of $100 Million Domestic Grossers

Looks like the one place Jordan Peele can't unleash nightmares is a studio accounting office where people tally up his box office receipts. As of today, his latest film, "Nope," has crossed the threshold and brought home over $100 million at the domestic box office, making it a hat trick for the comedian and filmmaker following "Get Out" and "Us." Three truly is a magic number, as "Nope" also managed to reach the goal after only three weeks in theaters. As of publication, the film is sitting pretty at $100.32 million domestic, and that number is only going to grow. This accomplishment is extra impressive when considering the current landscape of blockbusters, which is overstuffed with existing IP and sequels. "Nope" joins the rom-com adventure flick "The Lost City" as the only original films to surpass $100 million domestically so far this year. To be fair, Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis" also managed to hit the mark, but classifying a biopic based on one of the most iconic musicians in history as "original" is a stretch.

"Nope" stars Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer as siblings OJ and Emerald Haywood, who work together to solve the mystery of the UAP (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena) surveilling their family's horse ranch. While the film hasn't met the booming numbers of "Get Out" or "Us," the success of "Nope" is still impressive given there are still plenty of diehard Peele fans that haven't seen the film due to the continuing pandemic, so it'll be interesting to see how VOD numbers shake out for audiences who have avoided theaters.

When "Get Out" was released, the film completely changed the landscape of horror and proved to the industry that original, envelope-pushing stories were surefire moneymakers. Many feared that Peele's debut feature was just a fluke, but he shut the naysayers up real fast when "Us" hit theaters. Now, in this third feature, Jordan Peele has both embraced and subverted his blockbuster reputation. "Nope" is his biggest venture yet, but still provides plenty of meaty subtext to nourish the analytical masses. The success of Peele's movies completely buck the idea that films based on existing IP are the only guaranteed successes in Hollywood, and disproves the claim that "audiences only care about superheroes." The reality is that audiences are willing to invest in creators they believe in, and will turn out for original stories based on who is telling said story. Peele has been able to stick to his visions and deliver the films that he wants as he sees fit, and audiences have responded accordingly by busting out their wallets. Here's hoping his hits are able to not only provide the freedom for him to keep making original movies, but pave the way for the next generation of directors to do the same thing.