Every October brings a major studio horror film, and this year’s offering will be Universal/Blumhouse’s “Black Phone 2,” the sequel to director Scott Derrickson’s 2022 low-budget summer hit that grossed $161.4 million at the global box office.
Box office projections have the film at least matching the $23.6 million opening of the first “Black Phone,” with the most optimistic tracking reaching $30 million. That’s supported by strong reviews from critics, who have given the film — which takes place four years after the first movie and switches the POV to the sister of the Grabber’s (Ethan Hawke) only known survivor — an early 83% Rotten Tomatoes score.
For Blumhouse, a successful sequel launch is something the once-consistent horror label could really use. Even if it opens slightly below projections, “Black Phone 2” would be the first Blumhouse film in two years to open above $12 million, the last being the studio-record $80 million opening for “Five Nights at Freddy’s” in October 2023. Prior to “FNAF,” the five previous Blumhouse wide releases going back to the first “Black Phone” opened to more than $20 million.
Since the start of 2024, most of Blumhouse’s films have made back their relatively low production and marketing spend, but none of them have become the sort of breakout horror/thriller hits the studio has been known for since it launched with “Paranormal Activity” in the late 2000s.
In the past 18 months, the studio’s highest grossing release has been its September 2024 remake of “Speak No Evil” with $36.9 million domestic and $77.2 million worldwide. And in 2025, none of Blumhouse’s films have passed $40 million globally.
That includes this summer’s big bust, “M3GAN 2.0” with $39 million worldwide, down 78.6% from the $181.7 million global total of its hit January 2023 predecessor. The sequel’s shift of its titular android character from a 21st century killer doll to a sassy antihero was widely rejected by moviegoers, causing a film that was expected to snap Blumhouse’s drought to continue it.
And it’s not like horror has lost its appeal. Quite the opposite. Warner Bros. has released multiple horror films — most of them through New Line Cinema — that carry budgets well above what Blumhouse spends. Those horror films, which include “Sinners,” “Weapons,” “Final Destination: Bloodlines” and “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” have combined to gross $740 million in domestic receipts this year alone.
But the last quarter of 2025 should be much better for Blumhouse starting with “Black Phone 2.” The fundamentals are sound: a well-received sequel to a well-received horror film released just in time for Halloween.
With “Tron: Ares” already showing signs of a quick fade after its depressed opening weekend, and next weekend’s top releases being Oscar contenders like “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere,” “Black Phone 2” will have a lane all to its own given that its direct horror competition will be the sixth weekend of “The Conjuring: Last Rites.”
Put together, “Black Phone 2” has all it needs to match its predecessor’s $90 million domestic total, assuming that audiences who saw the first film are interested enough in seeing Ethan Hawke return as The Grabber from beyond the grave.
Also coming out this weekend is Lionsgate’s “Good Fortune,” a comedy written, directed and starring Aziz Ansari as a struggling gig worker whose life is completely changed by a visit from a “budget” guardian angel played by Keanu Reeves.
“Good Fortune” has been praised by critics since its TIFF premiere, receiving an 83% Rotten Tomatoes score. But it is not tracking for an opening in the eight digits, with projections currently standing at $5-8 million.
