The weekends keep getting pierced more often in the past few weeks, with the total domestic box office dwindling this weekend to a freezing $64.6 million total (might be $65 million once actuals come in tomorrow). Gnarly and in a bit of a free fall, the only solace this weekend was the return of a serial killer known as The Grabber, making his way through the ice to attack some old friends once more.
Black Phone 2 earned $26.5 million domestically in its debut, which is excellent news for Blumhouse and Scott Derrickson, as it slid past its excellent predecessor, released in June 2022, that opened with $23.6 million. Yes, the budget is almost triple this time around compared to its predecessors’, but this is a relative win to snap a two-year streak for Blumhouse. You see, most Blumhouse follow-ups in the past two years flame out (check out the recent miss from M3GAN 2.0), and it’s been a while for them to realize that their strengths come from dropping horror originals that folks are curious/hooked towards. Legs with the likes of Smile 2 might get it to $80 million in North America and $125 million worldwide, even though that is a bit of a step down from its predecessor’s $90 million domestic and $161 million global cume. Audiences had no problem wanting to show up again to see the siblings we saw a few years ago return to take on Ethan Hawke and his notorious grabbing methods once again, and they did deliver with solid albeit unspectacular reviews and a B from CinemaScore.
Is this the rejuvenation for Blumhouse? Not necessarily, but ask this writer again once Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 explodes during the winter season in between Zootopia 2 and Avatar 3. And assuredly, the game-to-film adaptation follow-up will assuredly join Ethan Hawke and friends in getting Blumhouse out of this commercial slump they’ve been in for a while. Neither title is predicated on nostalgia or digging up old IPs for the sake of it (which is a good thing!). It’s simply unfortunate that Blumhouse fell to the same IP trap as many other studios recently, and that has given A24, NEON, and IFC the opportunity to deliver originals that folks will tune in for. Reset the clock, guys; this is a wake-up call!
In other grim news for the weekend, Tron: Ares tumbled with a 66% drop in its second weekend, earning $11.14 million. True, Jared Leto’s record for dropping as hard on a Friday wasn’t touched (thanks, Morbius!), but this science-fiction film is not cutting it as we preached last week for another IP tossed out there because someone thought it might have a chance due to online discourse. It will probably end its domestic run around $75 million and maybe $150 million worldwide at this pace, so the nigh optimism from last week’s predictions went out the door as it’s a stark reminder that A) Jared Leto is no draw and B) folks didn’t ever really ask for another Tron tale. A bust it will become nonetheless when all is wrapped up.
Good Fortune could only ever dream of whipping up a $6.2 million debut, even with the stacks of Keanu Reeves, Keke Palmer, and Seth Rogen. Comedy itself has been a tough sell for an original, as most other franchises and animated tales have integrated it as part of their proceedings for the past decade. Good reviews and a simple concept are great, but it’s not anchored by much else.
One Battle After Another earned $4 million in its fourth weekend, as it has passed $60 million domestically and $162 million worldwide. Yes, this will be a box office disappointment as it will struggle to reach $180 million worldwide, but it may have a shot at something once the Oscar season rolls around. Can the same be said for The Smashing Machine, which has crashed and burned with not even $20 million worldwide on a $50 million budget? Hard to say, but we’ll teeter to the unlikely side for now, as it’s more of a bundle of good shots in a scattered tale on the MMA fighter’s life.
Roofman has passed $16 million worldwide on a $19 million budget, so a bit more justifiable, yet not enough to ink a greenlight for follow-ups. Truth & Treason from Angel Studios opened with $2.72 million. Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie will pass $60 million worldwide by Monday night, while The Conjuring: Last Rites will scare past $485 million globally once it wraps up, maybe take a strike for $490 million. And After the Hunt may have expanded into 1,232 theaters in its second weekend, but it still doesn’t get bank for relying on stars that are no longer bankable in today’s time and age.
Next weekend sees the release of Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, Regretting You, Bugonia, Shelby Oaks, Last Days, and Queens of the Dead.
