For King + Country's 'Unsung Hero' Film Takes No. 2 Spot at Box Office

A new Christian film that shows the power of faith, prayer, and family beat out major Hollywood films at the box office over the weekend to reach the No. 2 spot.

"Unsung Hero" is the inspiring story of the Smallbone family, which includes for KING + COUNTRY members Joel and Luke Smallbone and their sister, singer-songwriter Rebecca St. James, as they emigrated from Australia to the United States after the collapse of their father's successful music company.

The film hit theaters last Friday and went up against several new movies, including "Challengers" and "Boy Kills World."

By the end of the weekend, the Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company film finished behind "Challengers" in the second spot and grossed $7.8 million.

The heart of the story is Helen Smallbone, the mother of the seven children, who is played by Daisy Betts. For KING + COUNTRY crafted a song for their mom which is also the title of the hit film. 

The "Unsung Hero" official website describes the film as "based on a remarkable true story, a mum's faith stands against all odds; and inspires her husband and children to hold onto theirs." 

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"It's every mom's story, every mom is an unsung hero, but not only that, I love the adventure of it," Joel Smallbone said. 

It is the first film where the Grammy-winning duo both worked behind the scenes together – Joel made his directorial and screenwriting debut and Luke co-produced the film.

Before the film's release, Luke told a crowd at Liberty University he hoped it would inspire families to draw closer together and nearer to God.

"I believe in the power of the family," he said. "I think the family is more important today than it ever has been in the history of the world."

The film's release coincided with David and Helen Smallbone's 49th wedding anniversary.

As CBN News reported, Helen Smallbone joined "The Prodigal Stories Podcast" in 2022 to tell her family's story. 

She shared that God guided her after the family came to America with absolutely nothing and catapulted them onto national and international stages.

"America was sort of the land of opportunity," Smallbone said, noting their experience in the U.S. was a culture shock. "At this point, we were living hand to mouth. We knew we had nothing much behind us, financially. We had no family anymore, minimal friends, work acquaintances, but that was about it."

She said through faith and perseverance the family found massive success. For KING + COUNTRY are platinum-selling artists and St. James has won a Grammy and multiple Dove Awards. 

"There is a great responsibility under God that you honor God and finish strong," she said of the platforms her children have. "And that has been spoken about within the home to everybody."

For KING + COUNTRY say the film is more than just a movie, but rather a tribute to their parents and the sacrifices they made. 

"God is the great designer of motherhood and of music: of family and faith. Those beautiful truths are encapsulated in our parents' adventurous immigration journey from Australia to America," the Smallbone brothers told ChurchLeaders last year. "We couldn't be more thrilled to be bringing this '90s music biopic to silver screens."