Jamie Lee Curtis may finally be over Michael Myers as ‘Halloween Ends’ scares its way to the top of the Weekend Box Office Top 5.
The horror film is the umpteenth entry in the 44-year-old franchise. The original 1978 flick starred Curtis and Donald Pleasance, who continued with the franchise before Curtis returned following her departure after the first sequel. But, like all slasher-horror franchises, can anyone truly say Halloween ends?
‘Smile’, another horror film in theaters, came in far behind the $40.1 million that ‘Halloween Ends’ scared up. With $12.6 million, ‘Smile’ is still strong following its two previous dominate weekends on top.
Audiences are favoring screams of laughter and fun as, after the horror flicks, mostly comedy rounds out the Weekend Box Office Top 5.
Children’s film ‘Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile’ took a respectable dip into third with a 36% decrease from its debut last weekend. Starring Constance Wu, the animated musical is likely to hold decently in theaters as stronger competition hits screens next weekend. As any reader of On Genre knows, animated films are not to be underestimated.
Historical adventure ‘The Woman King’ holds fourth for a second weekend. The probable awards contender is likely to fall off the list next week after enjoying five consecutive weeks on the Weekend Box Office Top 5.
Also making its last appearance on the Weekend Box Office Top 5 is the star-studded comedy ‘Amsterdam’. After debuting in third last weekend with $6.5 million the film, directed by Davis O. Russell and featuring an all-star cast including popstar Taylor Swift, managed only $2.8 million in its sophomore weekend.
Next Friday will bring a return to the status quo of superheroes at the box office. ‘Black Adam’, based on characters from DC comics, will see Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the eponymous villain face off against Pierce Brosnan as Dr Fate leading the Justice Society, a team of superheroes which includes Hawkman, played by Aldis Hodge.
Also hitting screens is the romantic comedy ‘Ticket to Paradise’ starring Julia Roberts and George Clooney. The rom-com has already made north of $70 million overseas. With a budget of $60 million it shouldn’t take much to make a profit once it releases stateside.
WEEKEND BOX OFFICE TOP 5 (October 14 – 16, 2022)
- ‘Halloween Ends’ – $40.1 million – horror (debut)
- ‘Smile’ – $12.6 million – horror (drop $5 million, 28% down)
- ‘Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile’ – $7.4 million – children’s film (drop $4.1 million, 36% down)
- ‘The Woman King’ – $3.7 million – historical (drop $1.6 million, 30% down)
- ‘Amsterdam’ – $2.8 million – comedy (drop $3.7 million, 57% down)
Total for the Weekend Box Office Top 5 is $66.6 million. This is a gain of $22.2 million, an increase of 50%, over last weekend’s total of $44.4 million.