‘Iron Lung’ controversy explained: What happened with Markiplier’s indie directorial debut

YouTuber Markiplier recently took the world by storm when he independently released his directorial debut film ‘Iron Lung.’ With no proper backing, the content creator invested a lot of money to bring the project to fruition, and even get it to theatres across the US. However, as per the latest reports, the film’s name had been briefly removed from the official Hollywood Charts. Here’s an account of what happened and what the content creator had to say.

Markiplier's statement about the box office charts over the weekend

The controversy began after the famed content creator took to a popular video streaming platform over the weekend and shared an observation. In the video, the star pointed out that after a few days at the box office in the US, the film had managed to rank at 1 on the Hollywood charts list. While he knew that he would soon be crossed by ‘Send Help’ starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, he was happy being at the top for some time.

In the video, however, he pointed out that the film had altogether been removed from the charts, even though it was earning big numbers in theatres. In the video, the star said, “This is on Friday. I'm number one. I milked it a lot. I said it. It was very funny. I knew that Sam Raimi's movie ['Send Help'] was going to pass me eventually by the end of the weekend, but I was like, 'Ha ha I'm number one.' But then, I didn't see this yesterday, so here's Saturday, right? I swear I was on this list, but 'Iron Lung' isn't here anymore. There are no numbers for 'Iron Lung.' They took me off the chart.”

Fans rallied to social media to speculate about the matter, with many wondering whether it was simply a glitch or if there was another reason to remove his name from the list. No other official statements have been issued about the matter as of yet.

Is Markiplier’s film ‘Iron Lung’ not in the Hollywood Charts?

There have been no clarifications provided about what happened on the system over the weekend, which removed his film from the list completely. However, at the time of writing and as per reports by The Numbers, his film is no longer listed on the charts for February 16. The film is, however, available on the list for the prior dates.

As of right now, the newly released animated film ‘GOAT’ has taken over the top position. This is followed closely by Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie’s ‘Wuthering Heights’, as well as ‘Crime 101’, which stars Halle Berry, Chris Hemsworth, and Mark Ruffalo in the leading roles.

Premise of ‘Iron Lung’

‘Iron Lung’ is based on a popular video game by David Szymanski and follows the life of a loner named Simon, who is also an ex-convict. Due to his skills, He is forced to commandeer a submarine and guide it through the depths of a desolate moon's ocean of blood. This follows on after something known as the quiet rapture wipes out all humanity and planets with no explanation as to what happened and where they all went.

The film stars Markiplier, who plays the lead role of Simon, Caroline Rose Kaplan, Troy Baker, Elsie Lovelock, Elle LaMont, Jacksepticeye, and Isaac McKee.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”