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Documentary box office · May 2020

Documentary Box Office, May 2020: Top-Grossing Releases

The House in Between (2020) is the highest-grossing documentary movie released in May 2020, with $1.7M worldwide, ahead of On the Record (2020) at $992.1K and The Painter and the Thief (2020) at $547.7K. 9 documentary films released in May 2020 report a worldwide gross, $3.8M in all. That is up 99% on April 2020, whose releases took $1.9M. By language, English leads with $3.6M across 6 documentary releases.

May 2020 releases with a gross
9
combined worldwide
$3.8M
The House in Between (2020), the #1
$1.7M
vs April 2020
+99%
The House in Between (2020) movie poster #1 of 9
#1 documentary movie of May 2020

The House in Between (2020)

2020 · Thriller, Horror

$1.7M worldwide · 44% of the chart's total

No US & Canada figure reported
Top 5

What Were the Biggest Documentary Hits of May 2020?

The House in Between (2020) leads with $1.7M, 44% of the total. The top 5 together took $3.7M, 98% of what all 9 films earned. Each bar splits a film's gross into the US & Canada and the rest of the world.

  1. The House in Between (2020) movie poster Number 1
    $1.7M The House in Between (2020)
    No US & Canada figure reported
  2. On the Record (2020) movie poster Number 2
    $992.1K On the Record (2020)
    No US & Canada figure reported
  3. The Painter and the Thief (2020) movie poster Number 3
    $547.7K The Painter and the Thief (2020)
    No US & Canada figure reported
  4. Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020) movie poster Number 4
    $439.6K Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020)
    No US & Canada figure reported
  5. Graves Without a Name (2020) movie poster Number 5
    $91.3K Graves Without a Name (2020)
    No US & Canada figure reported

US & Canada (domestic) Rest of the world

The chart

Every Documentary Release of May 2020, Ranked by Worldwide Gross

Lifetime worldwide grosses in US dollars, not adjusted for inflation; domestic means the US & Canada. Films are grouped by their release date in May 2020.

  1. 1 The House in Between (2020) movie poster
    The House in Between (2020) May 5, 2020 · English · Thriller, Horror, Documentary $1.7M worldwide
    May 5, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $1.7M
  2. 2 On the Record (2020) movie poster
    On the Record (2020) May 27, 2020 · English · Documentary $992.1K worldwide
    May 27, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $992.1K
  3. 3 The Painter and the Thief (2020) movie poster
    The Painter and the Thief (2020) May 22, 2020 · English · Documentary $547.7K worldwide
    May 22, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $547.7K
  4. 4 Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020) movie poster
    Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020) May 1, 2020 · English · Documentary $439.6K worldwide
    May 1, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $439.6K
  5. 5 Graves Without a Name (2020) movie poster
    Graves Without a Name (2020) May 12, 2020 · Documentary $91.3K worldwide
    May 12, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $91.3K
  6. 6 The Wall of Shadows (2020) movie poster
    The Wall of Shadows (2020) May 28, 2020 · Polish · Documentary $54.8K worldwide
    May 28, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $54.8K
  7. 7 Becoming (2020) movie poster
    Becoming (2020) May 6, 2020 · English · Documentary $14.3K worldwide
    May 6, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $14.3K
  8. 8 A Loss of Something Ever Felt (2020) movie poster
    A Loss of Something Ever Felt (2020) May 28, 2020 · Estonian · Documentary $2.3K worldwide
    May 28, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $2.3K
  9. 9 Spaceship Earth (2020) movie poster
    Spaceship Earth (2020) May 8, 2020 · English · Documentary $362 worldwide
    May 8, 2020 US and Canada: – Rest of the world: – Worldwide: $362
By release week

Which Week of May 2020 Had the Biggest Releases?

Films released in week 19 (May 3–9) took $1.7M, led by The House in Between (2020). Each column links to that week's chart; weeks are Sunday to Saturday.

  1. Week 18 Wk 18 Apr 26–May 2 Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020) $439.6K Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2020)
  2. Week 19 Wk 19 May 3–9 The House in Between (2020) $1.7M The House in Between (2020)
  3. Week 20 Wk 20 May 10–16 Graves Without a Name (2020) $91.3K Graves Without a Name (2020)
  4. Week 21 Wk 21 May 17–23 The Painter and the Thief (2020) $547.7K The Painter and the Thief (2020)
  5. Week 22 Wk 22 May 24–30 On the Record (2020) $1M On the Record (2020)
  6. Week 23 Wk 23 May 31–Jun 6 No reported grosses – No reported grosses
Earlier years

How Does May 2020 Compare With May in Earlier Years?

Of these 10 years, May 2013 earned the most: $84.2M from 19 films, led by The Source Family (2013). May 2020 took $3.8M.

Month Films Worldwide Change Biggest film
May 2011 14 films 14 $13.2M – Flying Monsters 3D with David Attenborough (2011) $10.8M
May 2012 14 films · −72% 14 $3.7M −72% First Position (2012) $1.7M
May 2013 19 films · +2182% 19 $84.2M +2182% The Source Family (2013) $78.4M
May 2014 16 films · −96% 16 $3M −96% Fed Up (2014) $1.5M
May 2015 8 films · +1028% 8 $33.4M +1028% The Crossing (2015) $32.8M
May 2016 15 films · −88% 15 $4.1M −88% Weiner (2016) $1.7M
May 2017 22 films · +1% 22 $4.1M +1% Buena Vista Social Club: Adios (2017) $701.6K
May 2018 19 films · +549% 19 $26.6M +549% RBG (2018) $14.5M
May 2019 28 films · −53% 28 $12.6M −53% The Biggest Little Farm (2019) $5.3M
May 2020 9 films · −70% 9 $3.8M −70% The House in Between (2020) $1.7M
By language

Which Languages Do the Biggest Documentary Movies Speak in May 2020?

English-language documentary films took $3.6M across 6 films, 96% of the total, ahead of Polish-language documentary films ($54.8K) and Estonian-language documentary films ($2.3K).

May 2020 Documentary Box Office by Language

  1. English $3.6M
    6 films · #1 The House in Between (2020)
  2. Polish $54.8K
    1 film · #1 The Wall of Shadows (2020)
  3. Estonian $2.3K
    1 film · #1 A Loss of Something Ever Felt (2020)
Archive

Documentary Box Office in 2020, Month by Month

The months of 2020 with their totals: September leads with $15.2M, led by Break the Silence: The Movie (2020).

FAQ

Documentary Box Office May 2020: Questions & Answers

The chart's numbers in short: the #1 film, the total, the billion-dollar hits and the US & Canada share, answered from the same 9 films as the chart.

What is the highest-grossing documentary movie in May 2020?

The House in Between (2020) leads with $1.7M worldwide. Next come On the Record (2020) at $992.1K and The Painter and the Thief (2020) at $547.7K.

How much did documentary movies released in May 2020 earn?

9 documentary films released in May 2020 report a worldwide gross, $3.8M in all, or $422K per film on average. April 2020 releases took $1.9M.

How many documentary movies released in May 2020 made $1 billion?

None. The biggest, The House in Between (2020), earned $1.7M.

How is the May 2020 documentary box office chart ranked and where do the numbers come from?

Films are ranked by lifetime worldwide gross in US dollars, not adjusted for inflation, and grouped by their release date in May 2020. The figures are the reported box office grosses in our database. A gross that looks misattributed, such as one figure shared by two unrelated films or a blockbuster total on an obscure title, is left out rather than shown as a fact.

How often is the May 2020 documentary box office chart updated?

Grosses change while films are in theaters and whenever a new figure is reported; this chart reads the latest numbers in our database, so an older film can still move after a re-release.