‘Smile 2’ scares up the biggest audiences in North American theatres
Add BT as a preferred source
PARAMOUNT’S new horror film Smile 2 has surpassed its successful predecessor, taking in an estimated US$23 million in North American theatres during the weekend, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported on Sunday (Oct 20).
“This is an excellent opening for the second episode in a horror series,” said analyst David A. Gross, who noted that horror sequels tend to earn a fourth less than the originals.
The first Smile, also directed by horror-master Parker Finn, made US$22.6 million when it opened in 2022 and ultimately grossed US$217 million worldwide.
Smile 2 again tells the story of a grim curse, passed from one victim to the next, that afflicts a troubled pop star (Naomi Scott).
Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s The Wild Robot, about a dispassionate mechanical being, stranded on an island, having to cope with (and care for) fuzzy woodland creatures, placed second again with US$10.1 million, part of what Gross said has become a welcome industry trend.
“With Inside Out 2 breaking records and Despicable Me 4 finishing sensationally well, 2024 has gone from a good year for family films to an outstanding year,” Gross said.
Navigate Asia in
a new global order
Get the insights delivered to your inbox.
“Family moviegoing has come all the way back after the pandemic and is in very good health now,” he added.
Horror film Terrifier 3, from indie studio Cineverse and Icon Events, earned US$9.3 million for the Friday-through-Sunday period.
David Howard Thornton again plays the psychopathic Art the Clown.
In fourth place again, and enjoying a nice run in its seventh weekend out, was Warner Bros’ Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, at US$5 million.
Michael Keaton again plays the creepily hilarious title character.
Fifth place went to We Live in Time, a weepy romantic drama from StudioCanal, at US$4.2 million.
Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh star in what Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian called a “breakout indie hit” with “a hugely appealing cast (and) a funny, moving and romantic plot.”
Rounding out the top 10 were:
Joker: Folie a Deux (US$2.2 million)
Piece by Piece (US$2.1 million)
Transformers One (US$2 million)
Saturday Night (US$1.8 million)
Nightmare Before Christmas (reissue) (US$1.1 million). AFP
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
Share with us your feedback on BT's products and services
