You Can See Everything rivals Clayface at box office with huge takings

A documentary called You Can See Everything came close to beating a big comic-book movie at the box office this weekend. The film is about Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of a company called Theranos who was sent to prison for fraud. It earned $19.5 million in its second weekend, coming in just behind Clayface, a new horror movie based on a Batman villain.

Clayface took the top spot at the box office, earning $24 million in its first weekend. It played in 3,458 theaters across North America. For a comic-book movie, that was a modest opening, but it was still a welcome win for DC after a tough year at the movies.

DC's struggles this year have been hard to ignore. Its film Supergirl was a major flop in July, earning only $126 million worldwide while costing at least $270 million to make and market. That means the studio lost a lot of money on that film, so a No. 1 debut for Clayface came as some relief.

You Can See Everything has been a remarkable success for a documentary. The film has now earned $45 million in total in the United States alone. Its distributor, A24, expanded it to 2,655 theaters — more than triple the number of screens it opened on — because demand was so strong.

The documentary follows Elizabeth Holmes during the 34 days before she had to report to a federal prison in Bryan, Texas. Holmes was convicted on four counts of fraud and conspiracy. She had lied about what her company's blood-testing technology could actually do, and she is now serving an 11-year prison sentence.

Critics have praised the film, which was directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim. Some commentators believe it could become the first documentary ever to receive a best picture nomination at the Oscars. That would be a historic achievement for the genre.

In third place this weekend was Wildwood, a stop-motion animated film about a teenage girl who goes into an enchanted forest to rescue her kidnapped brother. It debuted with $11 million and received great reviews, though it cost around $100 million to make. Stop-motion animation is a slow and expensive process, which is why the budget was so high.

The romantic fantasy film Wicker came in fourth place, earning $6 million. It stars Olivia Colman as a lonely fisherwoman who hires a basket maker to craft her a husband, played by Alexander Skarsgård. The unusual story charmed audiences looking for something different.

Klara and the Sun, based on a science-fiction novel of the same name, had a rough opening weekend. It earned just $725,000 from 880 theaters. The film stars Jenna Ortega and Amy Adams, but it failed to attract large crowds in its debut.