411 Box Office Report: Smile 2 Reigns At #1, Terrifier 3 Holds Well

It was a strong weekend for horror at the box office, with Smile 2 winning the frame while Terrifier 3 had a solid hold. The Smile sequel claimed #1 with $23 million, a solid result and slightly above the $20 million expected for it coming into the frame. That is about equal to the $22.6 million that the original Smile opened to in September of 2022.

It’s a solid result for a horror sequel, a genre that doesn’t often see later entries equal or top their predecessors. That can be attributed to the positive sentiment generated by the first film, which surprised many with its better-than-expected start and very strong legs.

When the Naomi Scott-starring sequel was announced, there was an undercurrent among fans of whether this was milking a strong one-and-done story. But the strong critical reaction (an 83% Rotten Tomatoes aggregated average) built the buzz and positive word of mouth carried its estimate higher through the weekend. The RT audience score is an 83% and the CinemaScore is a B, both improvements on the original (77% RT, B- CinemaScore).

As it stands, Smile is well-positioned to be a hit. It replicated its domestic start with $23 million overseas for a $46 million worldwide start, compared to a $28 million budget. It’s unlikely to leg out like the first one did; sequels tend to be more frontloaded as a rule. But a $75 million domestic take is very likely, which will make this a sizable hit for Paramount Pictures.

The Wild Robot continued to soar as counterprogramming against horror and dropped just 28% in its fourth weekend to $10.1 million. The Universal Pictures animated film has now totaled $101.7 million domestically and $196 million worldwide, a hit against a $75 million production budget. The well-reviewed film is now looking at a domestic total of around $125 million, a number the studio will be very happy with considering a sequel is on the way.

There was an expectation that Terrifier 3 would suffer a hefty drop at the box office after it smashed records in its opening weekend. However, it continued to prove unprecedented as the gory slasher was off just 51% to $9.3 million. That’s an average hold for a horror film, but in this case the extreme violence and massive overperformance indicated that it might have frontloaded. Not particularly the case, as it turns out.

Terrifier 3 is now at $36.2 million domestically and $41.6 million worldwide, making it the 20th highest-grossing unrated film of all time and the highest since 2002. (For context, the top 20 includes films like the original West Side Story, The Dirty Dozen and South Pacific which simply didn’t get rated for one reason or another.) It seems likely to pass the $50 million mark without breaking a sweat, making it a massive win for CineVerse.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice slipped 32% in its seventh weekend to add $5 million to its coffers. To date the Tim Burton-directed comedy has grossed $284 million domestically and $434.6 million worldwide, making it a huge hit against a budget of $100 million. It’s conceivable the film could cross the $300 million mark if the holds continue, though $295 million seems more likely.

We Live in Time wend semi-wide this weekend and landed at #5 with $4.2 million. The romantic drama, which stars Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh, may not have had the mass appeal of Smile 2 but still did solid enough business with the second highest per-theater average in the top 10. That’s thanks to strong critical regard (80% on RT) and positive word of mouth (an 89% RT audience score).

We don’t have budget information on We Live In Time, but A24 doesn’t tend to spend a lot on their films and has this film positioned to do well. Like most of the studio’s non-genre fare, this is likely to hit a profit margin when it gets to home video. Domestically it should end its run in the $10 million to $12 million range.

Joker: Folie à Deux continued its race to the bottom, falling 69% to $2.2 million. The Joker sequel has established itself as one of the year’s biggest bombs with just $56.4 million domestically and $191.9 million against a $190 budget plus a huge marketing campaign. It seems unlikely to even pass $65 million in the States at this point.

Piece By Piece was down 45% in its second frame to $2.1 million. The LEGO-animated Pharrell Williams biopic has now grossed $7.6 million and will reach profit once it hits digital. The budget was $16 million, with the final domestic gross a probable $12 million.

Transformers One fell 48% in its fifth weekend to $2 million. That puts the animated prequel at $56.6 million domestically and $119 million worldwide against a $70 million budget. It won’t make it out of the red before its theatrical run ends and should finish out at around $60 million.

The SNL ensemble drama Saturday Night was down 47% in its second weekend of wide release to $1.8 million. The film is continuing to struggle and has totaled $7.6 million domestically against a $25 million budget, with a $10 million US final gross likely.

Disney’s The Nightmare Before Christmas a re-release closed out the top 10 with its second weekend, bringing in $1.1 million (down 53% from last weekend). The 1993 Henry Selick stop-motion film has now grossed $92.4 million throughout its theatrical runs and $106.5 million worldwide.

Next weekend will see Venom: The Last Dance claim the top spot at the box office, targeting $60 million to $70 million. Also opening is the Pope-themed mystery-thriller Conclave which could hit the high single digits.

BOX OFFICE TOP TEN (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)
1. Smile 2 – $23 million ($23 million total, $46 million WW)
2. The Wild Robot – $10.1 million ($101.7 million total, $196 million WW)
3. Terrifier 3 – $9.3 million ($36.2 million total, $41.6 million WW)
4. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice – $5 million ($284 million total, $434.6 million WW)
5. We Live In Time – $4.2 million ($4.5 million total, $4.6 million WW)
6. Joker: Folie à Deux – $2.2 million ($56.4 million total, $191.9 million WW)
7. Piece By Piece – $2.1 million ($7.6 million total, $7.6 million WW)
8. Transformers One – $2 million ($56.6 million total, $119 million WW)
9. Saturday Night – $1.8 million ($7.6 million total, $7.6 million WW)
10. The Nightmare Before Christmas – $1.1 million ($92.4 million total, $106.5 million WW)