You Can See Everything earns $19.5 million in its second weekend

Elizabeth Holmes, the Theranos founder at the center of A24’s “You Can See Everything,” anchors a three-hour documentary by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim that took in $19.5 million over its second weekend. The report’s figures break down as follows:

• Opening weekend: $15.6 million
• Increase: 25%
• Theaters: 2,655, up from 855
• Production budget: $7 million
• Total gross: $45.1 million

How did the second-weekend rise happen?

The report credited a wider release for part of the rise. The film played in 2,655 theaters, up from 855 at its debut.

That expansion complicates any reading of the 25% increase as a surge in demand at a fixed number of screens. The report noted: “Few movies see their grosses rise like that.”

A24 also kept the film under wraps. The report said its secrecy campaign persuaded audiences that buying a ticket was the only way to avoid spoilers.

Both factors helped the three-hour documentary perform like a broadly commercial feature, the report said. Its popularity was remarkable given its length and the scale of its release.

The report argued that the documentary captured the zeitgeist through its treatment of Holmes. The secrecy campaign gave viewers a reason to enter a theater before anyone could describe the film’s revelations.

How it compares with other documentaries

The box-office total had reached $45.1 million against a $7 million production budget, positioning the film among the most successful non-fiction films in history, the report said.

The report identified Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11” as the highest-grossing documentary, with just over $222 million in receipts. It described Moore’s anti-Bush treatise as a film released during the contentious 2004 presidential election.

“You Can See Everything” had also overtaken “Melania,” the year’s highest-grossing documentary at $16.3 million. The film offered a look at the gilded life of America’s First Lady.

Jeff Bezos and Amazon MGM Studios paid $40 million for its rights, leaving it a lot less profitable, the report said.

That comparison places the A24 documentary’s commercial performance within a broader shift in non-fiction filmmaking. It also separates audience interest in documentaries from the economics of acquiring them.

What does this change for the Oscar race?

The report framed the box-office result as a possible route into the Oscar race for “You Can See Everything” and its directors, Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim.

The report said the jury remained out. Awards prognosticators had already written extensively on the subject.

An awards shutout would not change the commercial verdict. The film could also fail to become the first documentary nominated for Best Picture and still count as a major hit for A24, according to the report.

The result extended the studio’s strong run at the box office. This year, A24 released “Backrooms,” its biggest blockbuster to date.

The film took $400 million globally. The studio also released winners “Primetime” and “The Drama.”

The report argued that audiences will turn up for more than superhero films and sequels. For A24, the commercial case now extends beyond the blockbuster.

The report’s conclusion was blunt: “Turns out, they’re interested in Silicon Valley flameouts too.”