Jeremy Strong Texted Jessica Chastain After 'Other Mommy' Beat His Film

By Elena Vasquez

"Other Mommy" took $27.5 million at the domestic box office this past weekend. "The Social Reckoning," starring Jeremy Strong as Mark Zuckerberg, managed $5.5 million. But the two leads are not feuding — Jessica Chastain posted the proof on Monday night.

Chastain, who plays a demonic mother in the Blumhouse and Universal horror film, shared a string of text messages with Strong on her Instagram Story. Strong sent her a Vulture headline that read: "'Other Mommy' Spanks 'The Social Reckoning' at the Box Office."

"Omg," Chastain replied. Strong fired back with a middle finger emoji and a kiss emoji.

The exchange turned to Vulture's photo choice, which showed the two actors side-by-side in character.

"These pics are hysterical," Chastain wrote.

"Its so funny," Strong said.

"You look SO SAD!" Chastain responded.

Takeaway: the weekend's lopsided box office result produced jokes, not grudges, between the longtime friends.

How big was the gap?

The numbers frame the rout. "Other Mommy" scored the No. 1 spot with $27.5 million — roughly five times the $5.5 million that "The Social Reckoning" earned. The horror film also beat expectations despite poor reviews and a D+ grade on CinemaScore.

The film's budget was just $18 million, which puts the campy thriller in a strong financial position after a single weekend. "The Social Reckoning," by contrast, failed to reach its projected debut of $7 million to $8 million.

Takeaway: a cheap, poorly reviewed horror film out-earned a prestige drama five-to-one.

What is 'The Social Reckoning' about?

Aaron Sorkin directed the film as his follow-up to "The Social Network." The plot follows a Facebook engineer, played by Mikey Madison, who leaks thousands of internal documents to a reporter, played by Jeremy Allen White, to expose the company's dark practices.

Strong plays Mark Zuckerberg. Critics were mixed on the result.

Takeaway: Sorkin's Zuckerberg sequel drew divided reviews and a weak opening.

How did Strong prepare to play Zuckerberg?

Strong once again used Method acting for the role. Sorkin told The New York Times that Strong treated his co-stars "the way he imagines" Zuckerberg would.

"I told all the other actors in his scenes: 'Guys, he's not going to be hanging out with you at craft service. He's not going to be yucking it up with you between takes. He's probably not going to speak to you at all. He is going to treat you the way he imagines Mark treats the people around him,'" Sorkin said. "And that's what happened. You cannot argue with the results."

On screen, the Method did not translate into ticket sales. Whether "The Social Reckoning" can recover in coming weekends will test whether star-driven prestige dramas can still open theatrically against low-budget horror.