Drishyam 3 Box Office: Mohanlal Starrer Going Empuraan Way Amid Contrasting Trend Domestically and Overseas

By Sunit Jangir
May 25, 2026 at 3:53 PM IST
882
2 min read

Drishyam 3 has delivered the second biggest opening weekend (including extended) at the worldwide box office for a Malayalam film with 140+ crores gross. Mohanlal's Empuraan remains the biggest with around 175 crores weekend globally.

Drishyam 3 Box Office: Mohanlal Starrer Going Empuraan Way Amid Contrasting Trend Domestically and Overseas

Kochi, May 25 - Superstar Mohanlal's Drishyam 3 is witnessing a fascinating box office trend as the crime suspense thriller continues its impressive theatrical run worldwide. Directed by Jeethu Joseph, the film had a huge extended 4-day weekend globally with around 140 crore gross (with estimated overseas), but its performance pattern is now drawing comparisons with Mohanlal's earlier blockbuster L2: Empuraan.

While expectations were sky-high for Drishyam 3 to emerge as Malayalam cinema's second 300 crore grosser after Lokah Chapter 1, the latest trends suggest that the milestone may not be as straightforward despite the massive opening weekend numbers. The film has maintained a strong overall overseas total, but the momentum internationally has started showing signs of flattening after the massive initial rush.

Markets in the Gulf, North America, the UK, and Australia delivered excellent opening numbers, driven by franchise hype and huge anticipation surrounding Mohanlal's return as Georgekutty. However, the day-to-day trend overseas has remained relatively flat over the weekend with a drop on Sunday, indicating that sustaining the extraordinary pace required for a 300 crore worldwide finish could become challenging from this point onward.

In contrast, the domestic box office trend has been far more encouraging. Drishyam 3 recorded healthy growth over the weekend in India after an expected drop on Friday, especially in Kerala, where the audience response remains solid. The thriller is also showing strong advance bookings for Monday, suggesting that the film may enjoy a stable weekday run in its home state despite mixed-to-polarising reactions from certain sections of viewers.

Interestingly, this contrasting domestic and overseas trend mirrors the pattern seen during Empuraan's theatrical run last year. It was the film which was seen as Mohanlal's biggest bet for a 300 crores grosser, especially after a weekend of around 175 crores. While the film still managed to gross over 265 crores worldwide, it failed to achieve one of the most desired box office numbers in Malayalam cinema over the last year, due to mixed word of mouth.

A similar trend is visible in Drishyam 3's box office trajectory. While the film has still managed to ensure strong global opening weekend numbers despite divided word-of-mouth, Mohanlal's star power and the franchise value have, the coming weekdays will now be crucial in determining whether Drishyam 3 can regain momentum internationally while maintaining its strong hold domestically.

Published on May 25, 2026 at 10:23 AM

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