Jordan Peele, known for the terrifying "Get Out", signs an unclassifiable film, between horror and science fiction, all in a western setting.
"Nope" grossed $44 million in its first weekend, "an excellent start for an original horror movie," according to David Gross of firm Franchise Entertainment Research.
Oscar-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya portrays a horse trainer frightened by the appearance of mysterious phenomena in the sky of his ranch.
But he and his sister (Keke Palmer) are torn between fear and the desire to reach glory by capturing these scenes for social networks.
The feature film preceded the blockbuster "Thor: Love and Thunder", fourth episode of the saga of the Nordic superhero with the hammer embodied by Chris Hemsworth, accompanied by Natalie Portman and Christian Bale.
The film still earned $22.1 million.
In third place is "The Minions 2: Once Upon a Time Gru" (17.7 million), the broadcast of which had been postponed by two years by Universal because of the pandemic.
The animated film explores the beginnings of Gru, a villainous but nevertheless endearing character in this successful saga.
"Where the Crawfish Sing," Olivia Newman's teenage thriller, took fourth place, with $10.3 million.
It is an adaptation of the best-selling book by American novelist and zoologist Delia Owens, about a young girl who grew up in the heart of a coastal swamp in North Carolina in the 1950s.
"Top Gun: Maverick" and its accumulated $ 10 million follows closely.
The sequel, thirty-six years later, to Tom Cruise's hit airplane movie, has already earned more than $635 million in revenue.
Here's the rest of the top 10:
6 - "Elvis" ($6.3 million)
7 - "Samurai Academy" ($3.9 million)
8 - "Black Phone" ($3.4 million)
9 - "Jurassic World: The World After" ($3 million)
10 - "A Dress for Mrs. Harris" ($1.3 million)
© 2022 AFP