Faith-Based Movies at the 2026 Box Office, Ranked: David, Young Washington and More

Five faith-themed films have earned about $104 million at the US and Canadian box office in 2026, led by Young Washington at $47.1 million. That is roughly 11% of what the year's biggest film, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, has earned on its own ($958.8 million). Here is the full ranking from Box Office Mojo's 2026 chart, why Angel's animated David sits second on one version of the list and first on another, and how to read these numbers without being fooled by them.

The 2026 faith-film box office, ranked

These figures are domestic (US and Canada) grosses from Box Office Mojo's 2026 yearly chart, checked on November 1, 2026. "Rank" is each film's place on the full all-genre 2026 chart. Totals keep moving for any title still in theaters.

1. Young Washington (Angel, opened July 3): $47,075,084. No. 41 on the 2026 chart. Opened to $19.4 million in 2,725 theaters.
2. David (Angel, opened December 19, 2025): $21,799,988 counted in 2026, $80,382,774 lifetime. No. 62 on the 2026 chart.
3. I Can Only Imagine 2 (Lionsgate, opened February 20): $18,588,615. No. 68. Opened to $7.75 million in 3,105 theaters.
4. Daniel and the Fiery Furnace (EKKL Entertainment, opened September 18): $8,368,653. No. 98. Opened to $3.3 million in 1,525 theaters.
5. A Great Awakening (Roadside Attractions, opened April 3): $8,149,028. No. 99. Opened to $2.0 million in 1,289 theaters.

How we picked them. A film is included when its story is explicitly Christian or biblical, or when it was released and covered mainly for a faith audience. That is a judgment call, and there is no official list. David retells the Bible story of King David; Daniel and the Fiery Furnace is a biblical drama; A Great Awakening is about the Rev. George Whitefield's friendship with Benjamin Franklin; I Can Only Imagine 2 follows MercyMe singer Bart Millard. Young Washington is the loosest fit: it is a history drama about George Washington's early years, included because faith outlets covered it heavily and its writer discussed Washington's faith in a ChurchLeaders interview. We scanned the top 200 releases of the year, so anything earning under roughly $1.4 million would not show up.

Why David is second here and first in the all-time view

David opened on December 19, 2025, so Box Office Mojo splits its money between two calendar years. The 2026 chart shows only the $21.8 million earned from January 1. Its full domestic run is $80.4 million, with another $10.7 million overseas for about $91.1 million worldwide. If you rank these five by lifetime domestic gross instead, the order becomes David ($80.4M), Young Washington ($47.1M), I Can Only Imagine 2 ($18.6M), Daniel and the Fiery Furnace ($8.4M) and A Great Awakening ($8.1M).

This is the same trap that catches music chart readers: the question "which was biggest" depends on the date window. For the all-time picture, see our list of the highest-grossing Christian movies of all time, where David ranks eighth.

Three ways to read the same numbers

1. Opening weekend versus staying power

Dividing total gross by opening-weekend gross shows how long a film kept earning:

• A Great Awakening: about 4.0 times its opening. It grew the most from a small opening.
• David: about 3.7 times (including its December opening).
• Daniel and the Fiery Furnace: about 2.5 times.
• Young Washington: about 2.4 times. Big opening, steadier decline.
• I Can Only Imagine 2: about 2.4 times.

Higher is not automatically better, since a low opening makes any multiple look large. But it is a quick check on word of mouth versus marketing push.

2. Money per theater

The opening weekend average per theater, from Box Office Mojo's figures, shows where demand was strongest:

• Young Washington: about $7,100 per theater.
• David: about $7,100 per theater.
• I Can Only Imagine 2: about $2,500 per theater.
• Daniel and the Fiery Furnace: about $2,200 per theater.
• A Great Awakening: about $1,600 per theater.

The two Angel releases opened in roughly the same number of theaters as the Lionsgate sequel, but drew nearly three times as much per screen.

3. Gross is not profit

Box office totals are ticket sales, and theaters keep a share. Box Office Mojo lists a $18 million budget for I Can Only Imagine 2, against $18.6 million domestic, but that comparison says nothing about profit, because it leaves out the theater share, marketing costs and later streaming and home-video income. Young Washington moved to Wonder Project's subscription service on Prime Video in October, after what ChurchLeaders described as a theatrical run of more than $47 million. For faith films, a growing share of the audience arrives after the theater run, and no box-office chart captures it.

What the year says about faith films

• One breakout. By 2026 calendar-year gross, Young Washington earned more than twice the next-best faith release (David), and the rest sit in the $8 to $19 million range.
• Angel's animated and historical titles carried the year. Both Angel releases earned over $21 million in the 2026 calendar year; no other distributor reached that level with a faith title.
• Mid-sized releases are the norm. Three of five films finished between $8 and $19 million, in a year when 38 releases passed $50 million overall.
• Next year is already lined up. Forrest Frank's tour film is planned for 2027, and we covered what is known in our Forrest Frank documentary guide.

The same habit applies to music charts, where Billboard's genre and all-genre lists answer different questions. Our explainers on how Hot Christian Songs works and on Kid Rock's Christian chart debut walk through that.

FAQ

What is the highest-grossing faith-based movie of 2026 so far?

By 2026 calendar-year domestic gross, Young Washington at $47.1 million. By lifetime gross, Angel's David is ahead at $80.4 million, but most of that was earned after its December 2025 opening.

Where does I Can Only Imagine 2 rank?

Third among the five films here, at $18.6 million domestic, and No. 68 on the full 2026 chart.

Are these worldwide numbers?

No. They are US and Canada only. David is the only title here with a notable international total ($10.7 million). I Can Only Imagine 2 added about $153,000 abroad.

Will the ranking change?

Possibly at the margins. Late-year releases and re-releases can add to totals, and Box Office Mojo revises figures when studios report final numbers.

Sources: Box Office Mojo, 2026 domestic yearly chart and individual release pages for Young Washington, David, I Can Only Imagine 2, Daniel and the Fiery Furnace and A Great Awakening (all checked November 1, 2026); ChurchLeaders (October 26, 2026). Grosses are domestic and change as studios report.