Horror films continued to dominate the domestic box office this weekend, with the release of “Smile 2” attracting significant attention and promising early performance for an Oscar hopeful. The sequel to the supernatural thriller “Smile” opened with an impressive $23 million, pulling ahead in North America, while the Palme d’Or award-winning film “Anora” achieved the highest per-theater average in over a year.
“Smile 2,” helmed again by Parker Finn who also wrote the script, was a notable debut as it took the top spot, exceeding expectations. Its predecessor, released in fall 2022, initially aimed for a streaming debut but became a surprise hit, raking in approximately $217 million against a modest $17 million budget. The new installment, featuring Naomi Scott as a pop star, had a larger budget and was introduced with a theatrical release from the outset, showcasing its reception across 3,619 screens, where it slightly surpassed the original’s opening weekend of $22 million.
Following closely in second place was “The Wild Robot” from Universal and DreamWorks Animation, which marked its fourth weekend with a solid $10.1 million, pushing its total past the $100 million milestone in North America. Family films generally enjoy a longer theatrical run, particularly successful ones like “The Wild Robot.” There’s speculation that its ticket sales benefitted from teenagers purchasing tickets for the PG-rated feature then sneaking into the unrated “Terrifier 3.” Meanwhile, Damien Leone’s “Terrifier 3,” which had a low production cost of $2 million, added an estimated $9.3 million to its earnings over the weekend, totaling $36.2 million overall.
The success of “Smile 2” and “Terrifier 3” can be attributed, in part, to the disappointing performance of “Joker: Folie à Deux.” The much-anticipated sequel continued to decline in its third weekend, plummeting 69% and only managing to secure $2.2 million, which brings its total to $56.4 million domestically.
In a more favorable scenario, Warner Bros. celebrated the continued success of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” which finished fourth in its seventh weekend, earning an additional $5 million and reaching a domestic total of $284 million. At the same time, Michael Keaton’s other new release, the father-daughter drama “Goodrich,” opened to a disappointing $600,000 across 1,055 locations.
Completing the top five was the romantic drama “We Live In Time,” which expanded from its limited opening to 985 theaters, generating $4.2 million over the weekend. Audience demographics showed that 85% were under 35 and 70% of ticket buyers were female, suggesting strong appeal among younger viewers. The well-received A24 release, starring Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh, is set to further expand in the coming weeks.
Among the standout performances of the weekend was Sean Baker’s “Anora,” which launched in six theaters in New York and Los Angeles, amassing an estimated $630,000. This resulted in a remarkable $105,000 per theater average, among the highest since “Asteroid City” last summer. This Neon release, generating excitement at the Cannes Film Festival and seen as a potential Oscar candidate, features Mikey Madison in the role of a New York sex worker who finds herself involved with the son of a Russian oligarch.
After a trend of lackluster responses to several awards-contending films in recent weeks, “Anora’s” performance signals a promising interest from moviegoers in more artistic, adult-oriented cinema.