Scott Derrickson’s Black Phone 2 is off to a solid start and may prove to be a much-needed box office rebound for Blumhouse Productions, following a rough patch that peaked with the costly failure of M3GAN 2.0 earlier this year—a setback that hit particularly hard for founder Jason Blum, both professionally and personally.
The sequel brought in $2.6 million from Thursday night
previews, setting it up for a projected $18 million opening weekend
domestically. Some industry insiders are predicting it could even surpass $20
million. For comparison, the first Black Phone film earned $3 million in
previews and opened to $23.6 million in 2021, when theaters were still
recovering from the COVID-19 shutdown.
Ethan Hawke returns in the horror-thriller as the chilling
masked killer known as the Grabber. The original film became a surprise hit,
grossing over $161 million worldwide—though that was before recent signs of
audience fatigue toward the horror genre.
Critics have largely welcomed the sequel. The Hollywood
Reporter’s Frank Scheck praised it as “no mere cash grab,” calling it a
more ambitious and stylistically mature effort than its predecessor.
With a modest $30 million production budget, Black Phone
2 is expected to easily claim the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office,
likely overtaking Tron: Ares, which has underperformed since its
release.
Also debuting nationwide this weekend is Good Fortune,
a comedy directed by Aziz Ansari. The $30 million Lionsgate film earned
$725,000 in Thursday previews and is projected to open in the high single-digit
millions. Despite a strong cast—including Seth Rogen, Keke Palmer, Sandra Oh,
and Keanu Reeves as a disheveled guardian angel—the film is facing a tougher
climb.
Good Fortune has received generally positive reviews,
with THR noting its “engaging ensemble” and the “breezily improvised
feel” that keeps the film light and entertaining.
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