Horror movies have always been popular. Studios can pour millions of dollars into computer-generated CGI aliens, but sometimes all it take to get people into theaters is a guy in a mask, a knife and a few screaming extras. Case in point: Halloween, the modern-day follow-up to John Carpenter’s 1978 horror classic, opened this weekend in North America and raked in $77.5 million, according to Variety. That’s the second-best October opening of all time, behind only Venom, which opened earlier this month to the tune of $80 million. It’s also the second-best R-rated horror movie opening of all time (IT, released last year, holds that title) and the best opening for any movie in the Halloween franchise, of which there have been 11 (!) entries, all of which the latest movie acts like never happened, at least until the next reboot.
And given these kinds of numbers, the odds are good that we’ll see more Halloween sooner or later immediately. The movie is a milestone for star Jamie Lee Curtis, too. It’s the highest opening of her career, and that includes blockbusters like 1994’s True Lies. It’s also the biggest opening ever for a horror movie with a female lead and the biggest opening ever for a movie — any movie, horror or otherwise — with a female lead over the age of 55 (Curtis is 59).
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Like I said, when a studio gets a good horror movie in its roster, there’s no stopping it.
Meanwhile, people are still seeing A Star Is Born and Venom, which took the second and third spots on this weekend’s box office chart respectively. Between those three flicks, the Halloween costumes buy themselves.
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h/t The A.V. Club