Horror sequel ‘Black Phone 2’ dials up a No. 1 opening

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The horror sequel “Black Phone 2” topped the North American box office charts this weekend with $26.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. Not only did it surpass the original's $23.6 million debut, it's a much-needed win for Blumhouse after a string of disappointments this year like “M3GAN 2.0.”

Though “Black Phone 2” opened in line with expectations, moviegoing in October continues to be slow — down about 11% from last year, according to Comscore. The overall box office is still up about 4% compared with last year, but a big blockbuster hit that could spark more momentum might not arrive until late November or December.

Universal Pictures released “Black Phone 2” in 3,411 theaters in North America on a wave of good reviews. Coming four years after the original, the sequel sees the return of filmmaker Scott Derrickson, as well as stars Ethan Hawke and Mason Thames. Opening weekend audiences were 63% between the ages of 18 and 34, according to exit polls, and the biggest demographic was Hispanics, making up 39% of ticket buyers while Caucasians accounted for 35%.

With an additional $15.5 million from 71 international territories, “Black Phone 2” had a $42 million worldwide launch against a reported $30 million production budget.

“It’s a fantastic opening,” said Jim Orr, who heads Universal’s domestic distribution. “Our great partners in Scott Derrickson and Blumhouse once again took this property and crafted an unbelievably haunting, chilling story that audiences just simply couldn’t get enough of.”

The first “Black Phone” was a bit of a sleeper hit for Universal and Blumhouse in 2021 as cinemas were beginning to come back to life after COVID shutdowns. By the end of its run, it had earned more than $161 million worldwide against an $18 million budget.

Blumhouse has had a rocky 2025, with a handful of duds including “Wolf Man” and “The Woman in the Yard.” But the once impenetrable horror hitmaker could be on the upswing again with a “Five Nights at Freddy’s” sequel coming in December. The first movie earned nearly $300 million worldwide.

The horror genre in general has soared to record-breaking heights this year, with hits like “Weapons” and the multi-genre “Sinners," generating over $1.2 billion for the industry, noted Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore’s head of marketplace trends.

“Black Phone 2” was also the only film to really break through this weekend, despite a slew of options playing in wide release including the R-rated Seth Rogen, Aziz Ansari and Keanu Reeves comedy “Good Fortune,” which opened in 2,990 locations to $6.2 million, and the expansion of the Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield drama “After the Hunt,” which made $1.6 million from 1,238 theaters. Also new in theaters is Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” although Netflix does not report box office grosses.

“Tron: Ares” fell about 67% to $11.1 million in its second weekend in theaters, which was enough to snag second place on the charts. Globally it has now earned $103 million.

“Good Fortune,” which opened in third place, had mostly positive reviews on its side, but Ansari's comedy with a side of social commentary did not drum up a lot of enthusiasm in its first weekend. With a B+ CinemaScore, though, it likely has a better chance in the coming weeks than the campus drama “After the Hunt,” which got a very poor C- score.

“This is a quintessential October for movies, meaning this is not a hotbed of box office blockbusters,” said Dergarabedian. “But the marketplace is flush with titles. This is awards season; this is where you have a lot of auteur driven films, edgier films. Collectively these don’t generate a ton of box office, but there’s the currency of goodwill created with movie fans.”

Next weekend audiences will get another batch of awards-hopefuls, including Yorgos Lanthimos’s latest Emma Stone collaboration “Bugonia” and the Bruce Springsteen biopic “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere,” starring “The Bear’s” Jeremy Allen White.

With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:

1. “Black Phone 2,” $26.5 million.

2. “Tron: Ares,” $11.1 million.

3. “Good Fortune,” $6.2 million.

4. “One Battle After Another,” $4 million.

5. “Roofman,” $3.7 million.

6. “Truth & Treason,” $2.7 million.

7. “Gabby’s Dollhouse,” $1.7 million.

8. “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” $1.6 million.

9. “After the Hunt,” $1.6 million.

10. “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle,” $1.3 million.