Pennywise the Dancing Clown returned this weekend, and as expected, the final chapter of the “It” story dominated the first box office frame of the fall. In fact, the only real story to talk about this weekend is just how Andy Muschietti’s “It: Chapter Two” simultaneously destroyed the competition, but somehow still is a bit of a disappointment. So, let’s take a look at just how high the Losers’ Club floated this weekend, shall we?
In its first three days of release, “It: Chapter Two” opened with an estimated $91 million domestically. Sure, it’s only $9 million away from a $100 million opening, but there’s something about $91 million that just seems seriously under the predicted debut for the Stephen King adaptation. Considering ‘Chapter One’ shocked the world last year with a $123 million opening, many wondered if ‘Chapter Two’ would surprise analysts and perhaps beat that total. Unfortunately for Warner Bros, that wasn’t in the cards, but even still, the new film is well on its way to profitability.
And in terms of the domestic top 10, the ‘It’ sequel absolutely killed the competition, with “Angel Has Fallen” coming in at #2 with $6 million. Typically, this time of year is slow as the box office flushes out the remaining summer films, school begins for just about every child, and fall films begin to make their debut. So, don’t misunderstand, the fact that WB can launch an R-rated horror film to a $91 million opening is admirable. It’s just that the film isn’t quite up to the 2017 original’s (perhaps unrealistic) standards.
When you look at the worldwide total, “It: Chapter Two” debuted with $185 million, which is a great opening for any film, let alone a three-hour, R-rated horror sequel. You have to wonder if WB will let the franchise die or figure out some way to do a spin-off featuring Pennywise? This is Hollywood after all.
LISTEN: Bill Hader Talks ‘It: Chapter Two’s’ Big Surprise, ‘Barry’ Season 3 & More [The Fourth Wall]
So, as mentioned, $91 million domestic and $185 million worldwide is a very solid opening for ‘Chapter Two,’ and with only a reported $79 million budget, the film is well on its way to becoming a winner for the studio. But, when a film opens 26% below the first one, you have to wonder what’s going on, right?
In the case of ‘Chapter Two,’ there are a couple of reasons this film will likely fall well behind the first. Obviously, outside of Marvel films, sequels do tend to underperform, compared to their predecessors. Combine that with the fact that critical reception for ‘Chapter Two’ was well behind ‘Chapter One’ (Rotten Tomatoes scores of 64% and 82%, respectively) and a very long three-hour runtime (it drags quite a bit in the middle), it’s clear that the sequel just isn’t set up to be the crowd-pleasing surprise the original film was two years ago.
There is a bit of hope left for WB though. Sure, ‘Chapter Two’ won’t come close to the first film in terms of total box office, but the studio is probably looking at the CinemaScore of ‘B+’ as a sign that fans are enjoying the film just as much as the first (which also got a ‘B+’). So, if the new film has similar legs to the first, you could be looking at a domestic total somewhere around $241 million (based on the 2.65x multiplier that ‘Chapter One’ had). And again, that sort of total is nothing but great news for WB, even if it’s over $80 million off the first film’s $327 million cume. So, let’s not be too doom and gloom about the horror finale. We just have to be fair, is all. And if this was a Marvel franchise film that dropped 26% between entries, people would be rioting in the streets, wondering if it was the death of comic book films.
With the debut of “It: Chapter Two,” we can officially close the book on the summer (plus one week) blockbuster season. Next weekend marks the beginning of the time of year when studios debut their awards-contending dramas. That’s when we see the much-hyped films that have been debuting over the last week at the film festivals attempt to woo the general public, beginning with Jennifer Lopez’s “Hustlers” and the Nicole Kidman/Ansel Elgort film “The Goldfinch.”
Both films have high hopes of becoming box office hits for their respective studios and both have outside shots at awards contention, depending on how the fall plays out. So, even though neither is looking at $100 million opening and franchise potential, the fall box office will have plenty of intrigue.
Here’s the domestic top 10 for September 6 to 8:
1. It: Chapter Two – $91M (Debut)
2. Angel Has Fallen – $6M ($53M Overall)
3. Good Boys – $5.4M ($67M)
4. The Lion King – $4.2M ($529M)
5. Overcomer – $3.75M ($25M)
6. Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw – $3.72M ($164M)
7. The Peanut Butter Falcon – $2.3M ($12M)
8. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark – $2.28M ($62M)
9. Ready or Not – $2.23M ($26M)
10. Dora and the Lost City of Gold – $2.2M ($54M)