• The rights to "Sinners" will revert to the film's director, Ryan Coogler, in 2050.
• Veteran entertainment and technology attorney Jonathan Handel explained how Coogler could cash in.
• "He's definitely betting that it will have value in 25 years," Handel said.

After years of making films based on existing IP like Marvel comics and Apollo Creed, Ryan Coogler finally made an original movie. It could pay dividends for the rest of his life.

The unique terms of Coogler's deal with Warner Bros. for his genre-bending vampire movie "Sinners" give the 38-year-old filmmaker ownership of the movie in 25 years, putting him in rare company with the likes of auteurs like Jim Jarmusch and Quentin Tarantino, both of whom have landed similar deals.

And with "Sinners" becoming a box office sensation — it's brought in over $200 million domestically, making it the second-highest-grossing North American release in 2025 — Coogler could have his hands under a moneymaking faucet.

"He's making a lot of money off it now and has the potential to make money 25 years from now through ownership," Jonathan Handel, a veteran entertainment and technology attorney with the law firm Feig Finkel, told Business Insider. "But he's rolling the dice."

Will that gamble pay off, and how, exactly, could Coogler make or lose money on the deal?

Though Handel hasn't seen the contract between Coogler and Warner Bros., he used his decades of experience negotiating contracts for directors and stars to walk us through some scenarios to explain what could happen when Coogler regains the rights to "Sinners."

Deals like Coogler's come with creative control — but they're not a blank check

There are various ways a filmmaker can come to own their own work. Some use a tactic known as a "negative pickup," in which the filmmaker finds the financing and makes the movie on their own, then sells the finished project to a studio, which distributes it and does the marketing.

M. Night Shyamalan did this with Universal for the 2019 thriller "Glass," and most recently, Francis Ford Coppola did it with Lionsgate for "Megalopolis" (the difference between the two is that Coppola retained copyright of the movie).

Others self-distribute, side-stepping a studio or distributor and footing the bill for the entire release. For instance, Steven Soderbergh launched Fingerprint Releasing for the run of his 2017 heist movie "Logan Lucky," while Taylor Swift made deals directly with theater chains for the release of her Eras Tour concert movie in 2023.

But it's exceedingly rare to get a studio to agree to give the rights of one of its movies back to the filmmaker after some period of time.

Many of the auteurs who enjoy this perk got their start on the independent film scene, where the practice was more common. Jim Jarmusch has pushed to own most of his films, while Quentin Tarantino owns "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood" because he made a deal with Sony that grandfathered him into the rights deal he'd had since the "Pulp Fiction" days with Harvey Weinstein at Miramax Films.

Creatively, the deal was something Coogler said he needed. He previously told Business Insider that his only motivation for the deal was to emphasize the film's themes of Black ownership, as the two main characters, both played by Michael B. Jordan, set out to own a juke joint in the Jim Crow South before things take a bloody turn.

Handel noted that by pushing for ownership in 2050, Coogler is literally and symbolically betting on himself, and the prospect that "Sinners" will still be in the public consciousness two-plus decades from now.

"Coogler would have gotten more money up front if he hadn't pushed for ownership," he said. "You have to give something to get something in negotiation. So he's definitely betting that it will have value in 25 years."

Coogler could score a major licensing deal if new technology changes how we consume movies after 2050

According to Handel, Coogler could really cash in if there's a major shift in the way we watch movies after he regains the rights to "Sinners."

For example, if we suddenly watch movies on an immersive 3D platform and "Sinners" is owned by Coogler, he could earn millions by landing licensing agreements to view the film in that format.

However, if that technology becomes the streaming of tomorrow before the rights to "Sinners" revert to Coogler in 25 years, the director could miss out, either because Warner Bros. could choose not to convert the title to that platform, or because of something called a "holdback," in which terms are agreed upon in which Coogler can't exercise aspects of the copyright for a certain period of time.

"In this instance, WB might do a holdback where there can be no new version created within five years of the rights reverting," Handel said.

Though this is only a hypothetical, Handel said it's an example of the level of complexity that could be in the contract Warner Bros. and Coogler signed.

Even if Coogler doesn't have the rights to 'Sinners' sequels, he could still cash in

The ending of "Sinners" hints at a potential franchise, and 25 years from now, Coogler would be in control to do whatever he wants in building that out. But chances are, Warner Bros. would want a sequel — maybe even more than one — a lot sooner than 2050.

When that moment comes, a lot of questions about payout will depend on who has the sequel rights. Reps for Coogler and Warner Bros. did not respond to a request for comment about who holds those rights.

Even if Coogler doesn't have the rights to the sequels, Handel said he would still benefit. Coogler would still presumably have profit participation on any sequels, as he did on the first movie, and if Warner Bros. wanted to do any kind of box set 25 years from now, they would have to make a deal with Coogler to have the first movie involved.

"He's got the upper hand, because if I'm Warners and I own the other pictures, I have to go to Ryan and do a deal with him," Handel said.

So, how much money could Coogler make once the "Sinners" rights revert to him? Reports from Matthew Belloni at Puck put that figure at about $1 million a year, based on the predictions of Hollywood insiders who focus on movie libraries and licensing deals. But Handel isn't confident that any figure can be put on the deal as of now.

"To contend that you can make a prediction like that is fantasy land," he told BI, noting that there are too many unknown variables to predict what Coogler could earn from "Sinners" 25 years in the future.

What he is sure of is that Coogler's deal has left the rest of Hollywood interested and intrigued: "The high-level directors are having conversations with their representatives about this."

Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. said his team’s fans have turned on him in the worst way. 

After a rough start on Saturday, where he allowed seven earned runs in just one-third of an inning pitched against the Cincinnati Reds, McCullers said he received death threats from Astros fans online. 

"I understand people are very passionate and people love the Astros and love sports, but threatening to find my kids and murder them is a little bit tough to deal with," the 31-year-old right-hander said. "So, just as a father, I think there have been many, many threats over the years aimed at me mostly, and I think actually one or two people from other issues around baseball actually had to go to jail for things like that. 

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"But I think bringing kids into the equation, threatening to find them or next time they see us in public, they’re going to stab my kids to death, things like that, it’s tough to hear as a dad."

Houston Police Department and MLB security have both been alerted to the threats against McCullers, the organization said. 

This was only McCullers’ second start for the Astros since the 2022 World Series, as he’s been battling through several injuries over the last two seasons. 

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It was disastrous from the start as Elly De La Cruz hit a three-run homer after McCullers walked TJ Friedl and hit Matt McLain with a pitch to start the game. McCullers got an out following the home run, but two more walks and two hits after that quickly turned the game to a 5-0 lead. 

Manager Joe Espada had to pull the plug on McCullers, but the base runners on second and third were still his responsibility. They came across later in the 10-run first inning for Cincinnati.

Espada also spoke on the death threats against his veteran starter. 

"There are people who are threatening his life and the life of his kids because of his performance," Espada explained. "It is very unfortunate that we have to deal with this. After all he’s done for this city, for his team, the fact that we have to talk about that in my office – I got kids, too, and it really drives me nuts that we have to deal with this. Very sad, very, very sad."

McCullers is a two-time World Series champion trying to find consistency on the mound once again. His injury problems began in spring training in 2023, when a muscle strain in his pitching arm shut him down. Then, in June of that year, he underwent season-ending surgery to repair a flexor tendon in his arm as well as remove a bone spur. 

McCullers’ rehab didn’t go as planned either. In July 2024, he was shut down from throwing and it was announced he would miss the entire season. He would finally get his chance back on the mound on May 4, where he threw three scoreless innings against the Chicago White Sox.

"If you fail, you fail on a very large stage (with) a lot of eyes and there’s nowhere to hide," McCullers added. "At the end of the day, I just want to do my job. I just want to be a good pitcher for the Astros, and I believe I’ll get there. But, like I said, I just think that having to worry about that, worry about leaving town and leaving them and things like that or dropping her off at school, I just think… there should be some type of decency."

McCullers, who made the All-Star team in 2017, owns a career 3.55 ERA with the Astros, even after his rough outing on Saturday. He also has a 3.47 ERA in 19 postseason games, all with Houston. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into the Minneapolis-area Hennepin County Attorney’s Office’s new directive for its prosecutors to consider race when negotiating plea deals with criminal defendants. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi, Acting Associate Attorney General Chad Mizelle and Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division Harmeet Dhillon informed Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty in a letter that the Justice Department is opening a probe into whether the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office "engaged in a pattern of practice of depriving persons of rights, privileges or immunities secured or protect by the Constitution or laws of the United States." 

The letter, dated May 2, cited Moriarty’s recently adopted "Negotiations Policy for Cases Involving Adult Defendants," which instructs prosecutors to consider race when formulating plea offers, stating that "racial identity… should be part of the overall analysis," and that prosecutors "should be identifying and addressing racial disparities at decision points, as appropriate."  

"In particular, the investigation will focus on whether HCAO engages in illegal consideration of race in its prosecutorial decision-making," they said in the letter, which Dhillon shared on X.

SOROS PROSECUTOR RIPPED FOR FAILING TO CHARGE WALZ STAFFER OVER TESLA VANDALISM: 'TWO-TIERED JUSTICE SYSTEM'

Bondi, Mizelle and Dhillon said their investigation will include "a comprehensive review of all relevant HCAO policies and practices that may involve the illegal consideration of race in prosecutorial decision-making." 

Dhillon has also authorized a "full investigation to determine whether the HCAO is engaged in a pattern or practice of depriving persons of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States." 

"Please be assured that we have not reached any conclusions about the subject matter of the investigation," their letter addressed to Moriarty said. "We will consider all relevant information, and we welcome your assistance in helping to identify what that might be. We would appreciate your cooperation in our investigation. In our years enforcing civil rights statutes involving state and local law enforcement agencies, we have worked with jurisdictions of all sizes across the nation to resolve investigations, usually without contested litigation."

 LEFT-WING DA FORCING PROSECUTORS TO CONSIDER 'RACIAL IDENTITY' IN PLEA DEALS

The letter said the Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Sections will oversee the investigation and will be in contact with Moriarty "shortly to set up a mutually agreeable date and time to discuss the parameters of this investigation, including the scope of information that we will be seeking from you." 

Fox News Digital reached out to Moriarty's office and the DOJ for comment on Sunday. 

Moriarty was elected among a wave of progressive district attorneys who took office following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and subsequent Black Lives Matter protests and riots. She has been backed by groups tied to money from megadonor George Soros, one of the most prominent backers of progressive issues in the United States.

The former chief public defender for the county, Moriarty became the Hennepin County Attorney in January 2023 after promising to deliver on holding police accountable in the community where Floyd was killed. 

Moriarty’s two immediate predecessors had been in office for a combined 31 years, and her promises of dramatic changes had the backing of the state Democratic Party and community leaders. Since then, however, Moriarty has faced fierce backlash, even among some former supporters, as critics questioned decisions to seek lighter sentences for violent crimes in some cases and to divert more people to programs rather than jail.

Police officers, local officials and some progressive activists condemned Moriarty after she charged a White state trooper with the killing of a Black man last summer, only to later reverse course and drop the charges. Leaders of the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association had waged a high-profile campaign urging Tim Walz, the state’s governor and former Democratic vice presidential nominee, to reassign the prosecution away from Moriarty. 

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Last month, Republicans across the North Star State condemned Moriarty for failing to charge a Walz staffer who allegedly vandalized at least six Tesla vehicles. President Donald Trump's administration has identified Tesla vandalism as "domestic terrorism" and led a nationwide effort alongside the Justice Department to hold vandals accountable. 

Fox News Digital's Deirdre Heavy, Andrew Mark Miller and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Virginia State Police arrested an illegal immigrant after he was released as a result of a plea deal made by the Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office.

Guatemalan national Wilmer Osmany Ramos-Giron, 34, faced numerous felony charges in January, including abduction by force, assault on a family member and felony strangulation causing injury to a Virginia woman, according to ICE, which has Ramos-Giron in custody.

Ramos-Giron spent only two months in an adult detention center in Fairfax County. 

The county attorney’s office, led by Democrat Steve Descano, arranged a plea deal dropping Ramos-Giron's charges to misdemeanors. Ramos-Giron would have faced up to 16 years behind bars on the felony charges if convicted, according to ABC 7. 

DEM PROSECUTOR LETS OFF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CHARGED WITH STRANGULATION, KIDNAPPING

The outlet reported that even though the county attorney’s office said the plea deal was what the victim wanted, the victim said that’s not true. Ramos-Giron was deported two other times but found his way back into the U.S. despite being convicted in a federal gun case. But it’s not clear when he returned to the country, according to ICE.

Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office praised the April 24 arrest.

"It’s disappointing that the Fairfax Commonwealth Attorney’s Office has been more concerned about shielding dangerous illegal immigrants than ensuring the safety of Virginians," Peter Finocchio, Youngkin’s press secretary, told Fox News Digital in a statement.

"Fortunately, Wilmer Osmany Ramos-Giron will no longer pose a threat to Virginia families, thanks to brave federal and state law enforcement heroes."

Descano's campaign received over $627,000 between 2019 and 2023 from the Justice and Public Safety PAC, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Fox News Digital previously reported that a large majority of the super PAC's funding came from liberal billionaire George Soros.

ICE NABS MORE THAN 425 MIGRANT CRIMINALS IN VIRGINIA, GOV. YOUNGKIN SAYS

Fairfax County District Attorney Steve Descano, a Democrat, has had a clear policy against wanting to enforce federal immigration laws and has a history of not complying with many ICE detainers, ABC 7 reported.

"Wilmer Ramos-Giron represents a significant threat to our Virginia residents," said Russell Hott, who directs the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Washington, D.C., field office.

"He has displayed a blatant disregard for our immigration laws and, more importantly, for the safety and well-being of our community. He is a violent and recidivist threat to public safety that ICE Washington, D.C., cannot tolerate. Regardless of the obstacles placed in our way, we remain committed to prioritizing public safety. The men and women of ICE Washington, D.C., will continue to arrest and remove criminal alien threats from our Washington, D.C., and Virginia neighborhoods and ensure their victims receive the justice they so rightly deserve."

ICE TOUTS RECORD-BREAKING IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT DURING TRUMP'S FIRST 100 DAYS

Descano’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

As ICE continues its crackdown on illegal immigrants it considers public safety risks, state and local laws nationwide continue to face scrutiny. Last month, the state of California said it would transfer an illegal immigrant into ICE custody after the state prison system was preparing to release a man convicted of killing two teenagers in a DUI manslaughter who was 3½ years into a 10-year sentence in July.

Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve asked manager Joe Espada to move him out of the leadoff spot for a peculiar reason. 

Altuve, 34, is playing left field this season for the first time in his career after he spent the first 14 years of his career at second base. 

The Astros star asked to be dropped from the leadoff spot because he needed a little more time to get ready to hit because of the farther run into the dugout from the outfield than his old spot at second base. 

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"I just need like 10 more seconds," Altuve said. 

Altuve was transitioned into the outfield following the departure of outfielder Kyle Tucker and third baseman Alex Bregman. 

The Astros’ game against the Detroit Tigers on Monday was the first time since 2023 that Altuve hit in a spot other than leadoff, as he hit second. Shortstop Jeremy Pena hit leadoff in his place. 

YANKEES MAKE HOME RUN HISTORY WITH 3 CONSECUTIVE BLASTS TO BEGIN GAME VS ORIOLES

"I just told Joe that maybe he can hit me second some games at some point, and he did it today," Altuve said. "I just need like that little extra time to come from left field, and he decided to put Jeremy (there)."

"I enjoy playing baseball," Altuve said. "I love playing, especially with these guys. I like being in the lineup. In the end, it doesn’t really matter if I play second or left, if I lead off or not. I just want to be in the lineup and help this team to win."

In his career, Altuve has hit leadoff in 919 games, hit second in the lineup in 541 games, and third in 333 games. 

In 28 games this season, Altuve has a .272 batting average with four home runs and 12 RBI. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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A recent profile piece on Alex Soros, the heir to the vast liberal mega donor George Soros' progressive fundraising network, suggested the younger Soros has hurt the family brand with his public profile in recent years.

The article, posted by New York Magazine this week, takes place in Alex Soros' luxury penthouse in Manhattan and characterizes the home as an example of his indifference to public opinion, which the story suggests hasn't been beneficial to the family's Open Society Foundations.

"The setting itself is a testament to a certain indifference to public opinion on Alex’s part — or perhaps a lack of awareness," the story says. 

ALEX SOROS FUMES AT LEFT-WING CLIMATE GROUP OVER 'PALESTINE' OBSESSION: 'WHAT THE HELL'

"This past fall, he held a fundraiser at the apartment for vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz, then created a PR headache by posting photos from the event on social media, as is his custom after meeting heads of state and elected officials. (As a former OSF higher-up says, Alex likes to collect "shiny objects.") 

"It was deemed unhelpful to a presidential ticket straining to underscore its regularness that the son of the 94-year-old hedge-fund billionaire accused of puppeteering the Democratic Party was publicly advertising his centrality to the election effort from a New York City penthouse."

MEET THE FAR-LEFT GROUPS FUNDING ANTI-DOGE PROTESTS AT GOP OFFICES ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Soros drew strong criticism on social media over the photo with Walz in his penthouse standing next to a vice presidential candidate who had been labeled as someone who would resonate with rural and working-class voters.

"This guy goes around saying he's a small town midwestern guy who understands the struggles of the middle class and then goes to hang out at the floating home in the sky of the world's biggest billionaire nepo baby," digital strategist Greg Price wrote on X at the time.

"A post like this does nothing to help Kamala Harris & Tim Walz win — if anything, it hurts them," journalist Jerry Dunleavy posted on X at the time. "So why would Soros post something like this? To publicly signal his power & influence within the next would-be presidential administration."

New York Magazine wrote that Alex Soros' "fondness for collecting powerful figures embarrasses people at the foundation."

"It also underscores his influence. OSF is by some measures the second-largest charitable foundation in the United States, trailing only the Gates Foundation. It gives out roughly $1.5 billion a year, and it spends its U.S. budget not only on liberal causes but also on some of the big dark-money nonprofits aligned with the Democratic Party, including America Votes, the Sixteen Thirty Fund, and the pro-Harris spending group Future Forward USA Action."

Fox News Digital has documented Soros' online presence, which includes all the photos he takes with Democratic politicians in recent years, and his Rolodex includes some of the most powerful politicians in the Democratic Party. During the Biden administration, Soros visited the White House over 22 times and met with both Biden and Harris.

His social media profiles have dozens of pictures of him and leading House and Senate Democrats since 2018. The two who appear the most are Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California. Alex had at least nine meetings with Schumer, whom he referred to as his "good friend." 

Soros had at least eight visits with Pelosi, whom he has called the "greatest Speaker of the House in American History!" 

Soros has donated millions to Democrats over the past several years, albeit far less than his father. In 2020, he contributed over $700,000 to the Biden Victory Fund, making him among its top donors. For the 2024 cycle, he maxed out $6,600 in donations directly to Biden's campaign, federal filings show.

Since the 2018 elections, he has poured more than $5 million into federal political coffers. Records show that his largest contribution was $2 million to the Schumer-aligned Senate Majority PAC during this time. 

He's also contributed hundreds of thousands in cash to the Nancy Pelosi Victory Fund, Democratic National Committee and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. He has given tens of thousands more to state Democratic parties and individual campaigns, many of which were maximum contributions. 

The article notes that the Soros network spent hundreds of millions in the last election cycle trying to elect Democrats and push progressive causes and that Soros was "probably the biggest liberal donor of the most recent election cycle" but that it is "hard to know for sure because of untrackable dark-money spending."

Alex Soros, the son of notorious billionaire George Soros and chair of the Open Society Foundations, took aim at a left-wing climate group, saying: "All they do is talk about Palestine."

In an interview with New York Magazine in which he detailed his plans to fund efforts to foil the Trump administration’s agenda, Soros expressed his frustration with the leftist environmentalist group "Sunrise Movement," which is heavily funded by Soros-backed organizations.

"What the hell did they do, by the way?" Soros, who is Jewish, complained. "We gave them money, and now all they do is talk about Palestine. It’s ridiculous."

During the 2020 election season, Sunrise Movement, whose website says it wants to "force the government to end the era of fossil fuel elites," received nearly a third of its funding from the Soros-backed Democracy PAC and Sixteen-Thirty Fund, totaling $750,000.

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Shortly after receiving these funds, Sunrise stepped into a massive controversy sparked by its Washington, D.C., chapter posting an antisemitic statement in which it vowed to boycott any events co-sponsored by "Zionist" Jewish groups.

In an October 2021 statement on "future coalition spaces with Zionist organizations," Sunrise DC said it was declining to participate in a D.C. statehood rally specifically because of the inclusion of the Jewish Council on Public Affairs, the National Council of Jewish Women and the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, which it said "are all in alignment with and in support of Zionism and the State of Israel."

Sunrise DC called Israel a "colonial project" that "treats all Palestinians, as well as Black and brown Jewish-Israelis, as second-class citizens." The group went on to ask the event organizers to remove the Jewish groups from participation, saying that the D.C. statehood movement is "incompatible with Zionism."

The statement was quickly slammed as blatantly antisemitic.

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One user named Blake Flayton, a Jewish podcaster, called out the group, commenting, "You are intentionally pushing Jewish people outside of your movement."

"You are associating Jews in the United States with the actions of Israel," added Flayton. "This is antisemitic. You are antisemites."

In a follow-up post published several days later, Sunrise DC apologized for singling out the three Jewish organizations while not mentioning other groups associated with the event "with similar positions." The group doubled down on its stance against Zionism, calling it an "ideology that has led to Palestinians being violently pushed out of their homes since 1948."

The group said it was "committed to learning and growing as we continue to stand against Zionism, antisemitism, anti-Palestinian racism, and all other forms of oppression."

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This post was also widely panned as antisemitic, with one user named Joel Petlin commenting that Sunrise was "trying to get out of a hole they dug for themselves by digging it deeper."

"*We apologize for singling out 3 Jewish organizations when we should've singled out everyone who doesn't hate Israel* is not actually an apology. It's just doubling down on Antisemitism," said Petlin.

This past October, Sunrise Movement published a long Instagram post railing against Israel, saying, "Climate justice means freedom for Palestinians."

"Why? Because Israel’s ongoing oppression of Palestinians means they will suffer some of the most devastating impacts of climate change, and Israel’s constant bombing harms the climate, ultimately harming us all," Sunrise Movement continued. "While committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, the Israeli military – which is backed and armed by the US – has released more carbon emissions than 20 of the world’s most climate-vulnerable nations combined.

Democrats and left-wing leaders have long called criticisms of George Soros, who is a Hungarian-born Jew, antisemitic attacks. However, the Soros family’s funding of progressive anti-Israel agitators across the country, including those who mobilized at New York City’s Columbia University, has raised eyebrows as well.

Fox News Digital previously reported on Israel's minister of diaspora affairs and social equality, Amichai Chikli, saying that Alex is a mirror image of his father’s anti-Israel agenda.

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When asked if Alex will continue to fund anti-Israel entities that bash the Jewish state, Chikli said it "looks like the son is a replica of his father. We have no expectation that his son will be a big Zionist."

Chikli noted that the Soros foundation "gives money to radical small Palestinian organizations in Israel that describe Israel as a colonial state and a moral sin." 

Fox News Digital reached out to Open Society Foundations and the Sunrise Movement for comment, but neither responded in time for publication.

Benjamin Weinthal and Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.

• Ryan Coogler's "Sinners" topped the box office last weekend, earning $63.5 million worldwide.
• "Sinners" outperformed expectations, surpassing "Minecraft" at the domestic box office.
• Warner Bros. marketed "Sinners" as an event, with 45% of earnings from large-format screens.

It was a big weekend for fans of original movies.

Ryan Coogler's deep South vampire movie "Sinners" pulled off an Easter weekend win over "Minecraft," taking in $48 million at the domestic box office and $63.5 million worldwide.

Going into the weekend, many in the industry forecast "Minecraft," the hit blockbuster based on the popular video game, to win out for a third straight weekend with "Sinners" coming in second place. But the thriller, starring Michael B. Jordan in dual roles, overperformed to take the top spot and dethrone "Minecraft," which brought in $40.5 million.

The film centers on Jordan portraying identical twin brothers, Smoke and Stack, who start up a Mississippi juke joint only to find it all unravel on opening night when a trio of vampires show up.

Some took to social media to downgrade the win for "Sinners," pointing out that with its $90 million-plus budget, it's still in the red. Others felt the movie was getting its high praise only because it was directed by the guy behind the "Black Panther" franchise.

Still, Warner Bros., which released "Sinners" (as well as "Minecraft"), went much farther to make the movie a hit than leaning on its director's name recognition.

"Sinners" is a box office hit because Warner Bros. made it an "event."

When Coogler originally came up with the idea for "Sinners," he was thinking very low budget.

"I thought we were going to shoot it on Super 16mm," Coogler told Business Insider ahead of the film's release. "I thought it was going to be a down-and-dirty movie."

That all changed when the director took a trip to Mississippi, where the movie would be set, and realized it had to be "epic and mythic." Then Warner Bros. put the cherry on top.

"An executive at Warner Bros. reached out and asked if I considered large format," said Coogler, referring to having the movie released for IMAX and other large format screens. "And he was asking from a business sense, seeing how complicated it's become to convince folks to come out of their house and watch something that's original."

"As soon as he said that, it unlocked something in me," the director continued. "It was the missing link to what the movie needed."

Coogler didn't just make a story for the biggest screens; he shot on IMAX cameras, which led to the movie having IMAX 70mm screenings, the first movie to have that kind of special treatment since Christopher Nolan's Oscar-winning best picture, "Oppenheimer."

Warner Bros. built the movie up as an event so that you had to see it — not just on the big screen but on the biggest one you could find.

It resulted in 45% of the opening weekend domestic gross for "Sinners" coming from premium large-format screens. Twenty percent of that was from IMAX alone, the highest ever for a horror movie shown in that format.

Coogler's "Sinners" will not only turn a profit but will hopefully prove to the industry that audiences want more than just adaptations, sequels, and remakes when they go to the movies.

A $60 million-plus opening weekend is in no way a disappointment

Yes, "Sinners" does have a big budget, but to put it simply, you have to spend money to make money, particularly when trying to get an original movie out to a wide audience.

And "Sinners'" overperformance domestically and taking in $63.5 million worldwide isn't just a step in the right direction for Warner Bros. toward profitability; it's a giant leap forward.

If "Sinners" were a major blockbuster based on an existing IP, taking in $60 million-plus worldwide would be a huge disappointment. But getting audiences out in droves is a gargantuan task for an original movie.

Warner Bros. executives must be doing backflips this morning. "Sinners" had the biggest opening for an original movie since the pandemic, passing Jordan Peele's thriller "Nope" ($44.3 million). That 2020 film went on to make over $100 million at the domestic box office and $171 million worldwide.

Warner Bros. has one more weekend to earn big before Marvel's "Thunderbolts*" opens May 2. That's more than enough time for the movie to come close or even surpass its $90 million budget at the worldwide box office.

And if Warner Bros. is smart, it will keep the movie in theaters into the summer, as last weekend clearly showed that audiences want original story options at their multiplex.

San Diego Padres first baseman Luis Arraez was stretchered off the field at Daikin Park in Houston on Sunday night after colliding with Astros second baseman Mauricio Dubon while running out a bunt. 

Arraez was busting it down the line after dragging his bunt toward the bag, and Dubon noticed that first baseman Christian Walker and pitcher Framber Valdez were not going to get to the base in time to make the out. 

Walker flipped the ball to Dubon, who just beat Arraez to the bag, but he didn’t provide Arraez any way to run through the bag. In a blink, Arraez and Dubon collided, and the Padres star caught the worst of it. 

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The scene was a scary one as Arraez lay still on the grass near first base. Medical staff rushed to help the designated hitter. After an 11-minute delay, he was placed on a stretcher with his neck and head secured and carted off the field to Houston Methodist Hospital.

The Padres released a statement later saying that Arraez was in stable condition.

"He is currently stable, conscious, responsive, and able to move his extremities," the statement reads. 

Arraez also gave a thumbs-up to the crowd at Daikin Park to show he was conscious and aware, which led to a positive reception from everyone.

"That was very scary," Padres manager Mike Shildt told ESPN’s Buster Olney during the "Sunday Night Baseball" broadcast. "We don’t see those kind of collisions in our sport a whole lot. Luis is a really, really tough guy, and to see him down like that, you know something is pretty serious. Took a pretty good blow, sounds like he’s stable now, has feeling in his extremities, is alert, aware of what took place, which is clearly good. Now we’re worried about – because he’s got a little bit of a cut on the jaw – worried about the jaw and what’s the stability of that. And, of course, the cervical, making sure it’s stable as well."

Arraez’s Padres teammates on the field were visibly shaken, with Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado praying together.

"This is a very close group, man, this is a group that really, really genuinely loves each other," Shildt added. "People say that a lot, but there’s a lot of real love. Luis is a big part of our team, big part of the heart of the club. I just told him I loved him and we’re going to be all right and we pray for him, just thinking about him."

The high-contact Arraez is a clear asset in the Padres’ hot start to the season, owning a .287 average to begin the year. Arraez went 1-for-18 to start the year, but he has been hitting .338 over the last 17 games. 

Arraez has been a batting champion in each of the past three seasons and notched 200 hits in 2023 and 2024.

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Tommy Helms, a two-time MLB All-Star and the 1966 National League Rookie of the Year, has died, the Cincinnati Reds announced on Sunday. He was 83.

Helms debuted for the Reds in 1964 but did not play full time until 1966. He spent eight years with Cincinnati and also played for the Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Red Sox before he stepped away from the majors following the 1977 season.

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"We are saddened to hear of the passing of Reds Hall of Fame second baseman Tommy Helms," the team announced. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends."

Both of Helms’ All-Star seasons came when he was with the Reds.

In 1967, he batted .275 with 136 hits in 497 at-bats and drove in 35 runs. He also had four triples, which were a career-high for him at the time. Helms followed that up with a .288 batting average, 47 RBI and 28 doubles. He earned MVP votes in 1968.

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Helms won a Gold Glove as a second baseman in 1970 and 1971 before he joined the Astros.

Helms hit .269 with 34 home runs, 477 RBI and 223 doubles in 14 seasons. In his post-career, he briefly managed the Reds in the 1988 and 1989 seasons. He was 28-26 in those two partial seasons.

He was inducted into the Reds’ Hall of Fame in 1979.

Wes Helms, Tommy’s nephew, played 13 seasons in the big leagues. He appeared for the Florida Marlins, Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies.

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Another fan-player controversy involving a foul ball found its way to the MLB stage on Saturday night, this time involving Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout and a Houston Astros patron. 

Yanier Diaz of Houston skied a ball down the right field line, and Trout began tracking it all the way toward the edge of the seats. 

That’s when he jumped to catch the ball only to have it ripped out by Astros fan Jared Whalen out of his glove. 

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MLB fans on social media immediately compared the situation to the 2024 World Series when New York Yankees fans took the ball, and glove, off Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts’ hand, causing their ejection. Those fans also got an indefinite ban from all 30 big league ballparks. 

However, there’s a key difference in this situation because Whalen was in his right to grab the ball due to it being in foul territory. He never reached over the border to make the catch a la Steve Bartman on that fateful day at Wrigley Field.

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Whalen spoke to The Athletic after the game, saying he was simply defending his son as the ball was headed in his direction. 

"I just didn’t know what was going on," he said. "I didn’t realize it was a play. It was coming at my son’s face. I just reached out."

Trout appeared like he was going to make a tremendous foul-ground play, and he was heated when an umpire simply called it a foul ball. 

Security came down to address Whalen, but he wasn’t ejected from the game. Instead, he and his son were moved to different seats. 

Then, after the Angels’ 4-1 victory over the Astros, Trout met with Whalen and his son in the Daikin Park tunnel. Trout was heard telling Whalen that he appreciated his reaction, and Whalen said he meant no ill will toward the Angels outfielder. He even offered the ball back to Trout.

Trout, giving Whalen’s son a signed bat, signed the foul ball his father caught.

Trout went 1-for-4 with two RBI in the win, while fellow outfielder Taylor Ward went 2-for-5 with a homer. Nolan Schanuel also put one out in the victory.

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• Diddy and Warner Bros are fighting over his demand for outtakes from the "Fall of Diddy" docuseries.
• Diddy wants all unaired footage and paperwork concerning two accusers from the series.
• The studio says the subpoena is too broad and violates long-standing legal protections for reporters.

With jury selection three weeks away in his Manhattan sex-trafficking trial, Sean Combs is fighting with Warner Bros over his demand for unaired footage from the documentary series "The Fall of Diddy."

Lawyers for Combs had subpoenaed Warner Bros in March asking for "all recordings, including raw and unedited footage" from interviews with two accusers who appeared in the series, which aired in January on the studio's subsidiary, Max.

Combs' subpoena also demands any notes or journals the accusers gave the documentary's producers, and any records of financial payments the producers made to the accusers in connection with their involvement in the project.

Warner Bros is fighting the subpoena. On Tuesday, the studio's lawyers asked the federal judge overseeing the sex-trafficking case to quash. The lawyers' nine-page court filing cites "reporter's privilege" and calls Combs' effort an overly broad "fishing expedition."

"Mr. Combs seeks outtakes from interviews with two persons featured in the docuseries," studio attorney Thomas B. Sullivan wrote to US District Judge Arun Subramanian.

"The interview outtakes it seeks are protected by the reporter's privilege that applies to unpublished newsgathering materials," the studio's lawyer wrote.

Journalists have long been protected from being compelled to reveal unpublished notes and confidential sources under an array of long-standing federal and state court decisions recognizing the public's interest in a free press.

"Mr. Combs has not met, and cannot meet, his burden to overcome that privilege," the studio lawyer wrote.

The Warner Bros filing does not name the two accusers whose notes and outtakes are being sought by Combs. Instead, they are described as Individual A and Individual B.

"Individual A is Mr. Combs' former personal chef," the studio wrote. "She is featured in the docuseries speaking about how Mr. Combs treated her when she was employed by him, as well as about various rumors she heard about his behavior during her time in his orbit."

The studio refers to Individual B as "a former romantic partner of Mr. Combs. She is featured in the docuseries discussing the origins and path of her relationship with him, including one alleged incident of sexual assault."

Combs may be seeking the outtakes and other records in hopes of finding something to use against the two accusers should they testify against him at trial, the Warner Bros lawyer wrote.

However, "recordings of interviews with Individual A and Individual B would be hearsay, and therefore, not directly admissible," the lawyer wrote.

Also, "Courts have consistently held that broad subpoenas for journalistic outtakes based on the hope that the unpublished material might prove relevant in some way are insufficient to overcome the reporter's privilege," the lawyer wrote.

Combs' subpoena had given Warner Bros a Tuesday deadline for turning over the outtakes and other records.

Combs' attorneys have yet to publicly reply to the studio's efforts to quash his subpoena. The judge has given them until Thursday to do so.

Lawyers and media representatives for Combs did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the studio's efforts.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Spencer Arrighetti sustained an unfortunate injury on Monday prior to the team’s game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park. 

Arrighetti, 25, was hit by a line drive while playing catch in left field during batting practice and suffered a broken right thumb, the Astros said in a statement. 

The injury to Arrighetti’s thumb was on his throwing hand. The team has not yet provided a timeline for his return.

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Arrighetti made two starts for the Astros this season and went 1-1 with a 5.59 ERA across 9.2 innings of work. Last season, Arrighetti appeared in 29 games and had 28 starts. He went 7-13 and had a 4.53 ERA across 145 innings and struck out 171 hitters.

Arrighetti’s absence is one the Astros can ill-afford, as their rotation was already hampered by injuries. 

The team has four starting pitchers on the injured list, with some closer to returning than others. Lance McCullers Jr. has been rehabbing in Triple-A and could return soon. 

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However, he is the only injured starting pitcher close to returning. J.P. France is expected to come back at the All-Star break at the earliest after he underwent surgery to repair a torn right shoulder last July. 

Luis Garcia had a setback in his recovery from Tommy John surgery during spring training, and was transferred to the 60-day IL on Monday with elbow inflammation. Cristian Javier is still recovering from Tommy John surgery and will maybe return in the second half of the season. 

In addition to being without McCullers, France, Garcia and Javier, they are now without Arrighetti. 

The Astros are 4-6 to begin the season, and lost to the Mariners 4-3 on Monday. They will play the second game of their three-game series on Tuesday at 9:40 p.m. ET. 

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• Kids showed up to theaters in droves this past weekend to see "A Minecraft Movie."
• The video game adaptation shattered box-office estimates, continuing a notable trend.
• Here's what Disney and other studios can learn from the Minecraft film's massive success.

How can Hollywood studios like Disney get kids off YouTube or video games like Fortnite and Minecraft and into movie theaters?

The best answer so far this year seems obvious in hindsight: a movie about Minecraft itself.

Movie industry observers were caught off guard by how well "A Minecraft Movie" did this past weekend. The film from Warner Bros. and Legendary Studios opened to $313 million globally, including a $163 million showing in the US that more than doubled estimates.

Box-office analysts — who are adults — may not have fully realized what a sensation Minecraft is among Gen Z and Gen Alpha.

"This was a wildly underrated movie, in terms of its potential box-office performance," Paul Dergarabedian, a box-office analyst at Comscore, told Business Insider in an interview.

Everyone in Tinsel Town is surely taking notes about the film's success, including executives at Hollywood titan Disney, which is full of famed franchises but has an uneven track record with video games.

Hollywood's video game wars are ramping up

The spectacular start for "A Minecraft Movie" makes sense considering how video game fans have shown up at theaters, said David A. Gross of movie consultancy FranchiseRe.

"Video-game-based movies are not a secret," Gross said, noting the hit movies based on Super Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, Rampage, Uncharted, Angry Birds, and Pokémon.

Still, the Minecraft movie's success is another head-turning moment for studio heads.

"Every studio executive is really looking at this right now and saying, 'How can we amplify — or level up — our participation within the video-game adaptation category?'" Dergarabedian said. He added that "they're mining the vaults — no pun intended — for whatever IP they may own or that they could acquire that's in the video game realm."

If video games surpass superheroes as the next movie mega-trend, it could reshape Hollywood.

Universal Studios could be a big winner since it has a strong relationship with Nintendo and has already scored big hits with the Super Mario blockbuster and "Five Nights at Freddy's." And while Warner Bros. still needs heroes as it reboots its DC Comics franchise with "Superman" this summer, its success with "A Minecraft Movie" will set up a potentially lucrative sequel.

Disney could have a secret weapon

Disney could suffer most in a shift away from superheroes, given its success with Marvel movies and spotty performance with video games.

The Mouse House has been leaning heavily on sequels and remakes lately, with mixed results. This strategy gave Disney the three biggest movies of 2024, but the subpar performance of "Snow White" last month suggests the plan is far from foolproof.

Could it be time to hunt for some new blockbuster IP? If so, Disney may have an ace in the hole: its $1.5 billion investment in Epic Games, which is the company behind Fortnite.

A movie about Fortnite, one of the world's most popular video games, could be a cash cow for Disney. If executed properly, such a film could perfectly strike the balance between familiarity — the backbone of Disney's beloved franchises — and novelty since the film would be fresh for audiences.

Although Disney doesn't appear to be actively doing much with its investment in Epic so far, it could end up being the IP breakthrough its film business needs.

• Elon Musk has become a major boogeyman for Democrats, with some taking aim at Tesla.
• One Democratic senator recently sold off his Tesla to stick it to Musk.
• But some Democrats on Capitol Hill have invested in Tesla in recent weeks.

In early February, as the furor around Elon Musk and DOGE's remaking of the federal government began to swell on the left, Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson sold off her Tesla stock.

The Texas Democrat wasn't trying to make a statement. An independent financial advisor had made the decision to sell off her shares — worth between $16,000 and $65,000 — without her input.

"I'm all for people selling Tesla stock," Johnson told BI. "In my personal situation, I have money managers that take care of all of it, and I don't have anything to do with what we buy and sell."

While Johnson was selling, some of her fellow Democratic colleagues were buying, according to a review of recently filed periodic transaction reports.

Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, whose South Texas district is home to the headquarters of Musk's SpaceX, bought at least $65,000 worth of Tesla stock earlier this month. Rep. Gil Cisneros of California, meanwhile, bought between $1,000 and $15,000.

And Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, one of the most frequent traders in Congress, bought and sold thousands of dollars in Tesla stock several times in both January and February of this year.

As with Johnson, some of those trades are said to have been made by someone else. A spokesman for Cisneros said that "outside financial advisors who have a fiduciary responsibility to maintain a diverse portfolio" managed the congressman's investments. He also pointed out that Cisneros was critical of Musk both before and after making the trade.

"Unlike President Trump, who held an impromptu Tesla infomercial for Elon Musk on the White House lawn, and Secretary Lutnick, who violated the law when he implored people to buy Tesla stock during a television interview, Congressman Cisneros has never abused his official position to benefit a private entity," the spokesman said.

Similarly, a spokesperson for Gottheimer told BI that all of his trades are made by a "third party" and that the congressman is in the midst of setting up a blind trust.

A spokesperson for Gonzalez did not return multiple requests for comment.

In recent weeks, some Democrats — and others opposed to Musk's politics — have taken intentional aim at Tesla, including selling their Tesla vehicles.

Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona recently sold off his Tesla for a Chevy Tahoe, and Sen. Adam Schiff of California recently told Semafor that he'd be "happy to unload" his Tesla.

"Elon Musk kind of turned out to be an asshole," Kelly said in a video at the time.

Used Tesla listings have increased by 33% this year, indicating that many are looking to sell their cars, with many apparently put off by Musk's antics.

Jose Altuve has the most starts at second base of any active MLB player, but that count may have come to a stop as the Houston Astros are planning to play Altuve mostly in left field this season, manager Joe Espada told reporters on Monday.

"Right now the plan is for him to play the majority of his games in left field," Espada said, adding that moving Altuve "back and forth is something that I am going to avoid."

It'll take some getting used to for Astros fans who've watched Altuve man the keystone since his 2011 rookie season. He won the Gold Glove in 2015, and in 2020 led the AL with the fewest errors at second base. He also helped the Astros win the 2022 World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies and the 2017 World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers, in the year he won the AL MVP. 

Altuve's bat may not be at the level it was during his MVP campaign — he hit .295 in 2024 — but his fielding hasn't taken a hit. In 2024, he committed just five errors across 146 starts at and led all AL second basemen with a fielding percentage of .989. 

It's an interesting move as the Astros didn't go out and acquire a blatant replacement at second base. The idea of moving Altuve to left was first broached when the team was looking to keep third baseman Alex Bregman. If Bregman had returned to Houston, it might have forced newly acquired Isaac Paredes to shift to second base and Altuve to the outfield, but with Bregman joining the Red Sox, Paredes will remain at third.

[Related: 2025 MLB free-agent signing tracker, trades]

When talking about Bregman at the team's FanFest in January, Altuve said, "Whatever I have to do for him to stay, I'm willing to do it." Asked about how difficult it would be to switch to the outfield after never playing there before, he said with a smile, "For Alex, nothing will be difficult."

Even after Bregman signed with Boston, moving Altuve to the outfield still made sense to the team.

Mauricio Dubon and Brendan Rodgers have swapped starting duties at second base throughout spring training. Dubon is a utility man who has played every position on the diamond across two seasons in Houston, while Rodgers came to Houston from the Colorado Rockies in free agency. 

A nine-time All-Star and three-time batting champion, Altuve has played all but two of his 1,767 major league starts at second base. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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