The box office refuses to die, rising from the grave thanks to several horror movies.
The genre is stronger than ever, pumping life into theaters and passing the baton from film to film as each claim the top spot at the box office.
This weekend’s champ is Warner Bros. Pictures, who is absolutely killing it with their day-and-date releases in both theaters and on HBO Max. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (read our review), the studio’s eighth(!) film in The Conjuring Universe, took in an estimated $24M here in the States, less than the previous two entries $40M openings. It added $33.1M internationally for an estimated global total of $57.1M.
2019’s Annabelle Comes Home opened to $20M and managed $230 globally. The Nun‘s $53M opening (and $365M total) is a franchise best. It’s hard to predict the worldwide take for The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, but the budgets are so modest that this is once again a monster hit for Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema. Expect more sequels and spinoffs, hopefully the long-gestured Conjuring 2 spinoff centered around The Crooked Man.
Paramount Pictures’ A Quiet Place Part II (review) continues to make noise at the box office, adding $19.5M to a ridiculous $88M over two weekends. It has also topped $100M worldwide. Another sequel and spinoff are currently in the works.
In the John Krasinski-directed sequel, “Following the deadly events at home, the Abbott family (Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe) must now face the terrors of the outside world as they continue their fight for survival in silence. Forced to venture into the unknown, they quickly realize that the creatures that hunt by sound are not the only threats that lurk beyond the sand path.”
As for previous horror releases, Warner Bros.’ Godzilla vs. Kong (review) is about to hit the $100M milestone, sitting at $99.11M domestic and $437M global, while the studio’s Mortal Kombat (review) video game adaptation sits at $42M domestic and $81M worldwide.
As for Lionsgate’s Spiral (review), the ninth Saw film has topped $20M domestic and $30M across the globe. The previous sequel, Jigsaw, hit $100M. While not a hit, it is still profitable for Lionsgate and should lead to more sequels.
Every one of those films topped the box office, breathing life into what was prematurely called “dead” by many experts. While there is an audience that prefers the PVOD/HBO Max-style of release, millions of others still love it big and loud.
The next big genre release is The Forever Purge on July 2, 2021. Universal Pictures is expecting massive numbers for this one.
While the box office may have gone into hibernation, horror has never been more alive.
Evelyn (Emily Blunt) and Marcus (Noah Jupe) brave the unknown in A Quiet Place Part II