Universal/Blumhouse’s “Black Phone 2” is the sole bright spot on an otherwise dim box office weekend, earning $10.7 million from 3,411 locations on its opening day as it heads for a solid $24.4 million launch.
That’s just a touch above the $23.6 million that the first “Black Phone” earned in the summer of 2022 and more than double the opening weekend of any Blumhouse film released since the start of 2024.
Since the release of Blumhouse’s last big hit, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” two years ago, the hallowed horror studio has not released a film that has grossed more than $40 million domestic or $100 million worldwide, including the surprise underperforming sequel “M3GAN 2.0” this past summer.
“Black Phone 2,” which was made on a reported $30 million budget, will end that losing streak this Halloween season. Reception for the sequel, while not as strong as its predecessor, still leans positive with a B on CinemaScore and Rotten Tomatoes scores of 74% critics and 86% audience.
In second place — but a dismal second — is Disney’s “Tron: Ares,” which industry estimates have sinking 66% from its $33 million opening for an $11 million second weekend. The Jared Leto sci-fi film is pacing for a 10-day domestic total of just $54.5 million. For comparison, Disney’s spring bomb “Snow White” had a 10-day total of just under $67 million.
In third is Lionsgate’s “Good Fortune,” which earned $2.4 million on its opening day from 2,990 theaters and is heading for a muted $6 million opening weekend. The comedy written, directed and starring Aziz Ansari and co-starring Keanu Reeves, Seth Rogen and Keke Palmer is a $30 million co-production financed in part through Lionsgate’s slate deal with Media Capital Technologies.
Reception for “Good Fortune” has leaned positive with a B+ on CinemaScore alongside Rotten Tomatoes scores of 77% critics and 76% audience.
