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‘Bloodshot’ Finishes Third at Weakened Box Office

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Bloodshot finished in third place at the weekend box office amid ever-growing fears of the global spread of the Corona Virus, leading to the lowest weekend totals since 1995 (when John Carpenter’s Vampires led the pack).

The adaptation of the Valiant comic book character actually met expectations (albeit low expectations) with an estimated $9.3 million this weekend.  Bloodshot’s 31% score on Rotten Tomatoes and B rating on Cinemascore wasn’t enough to tempt more people to venture outside of their homes, but this week’s metrics had little to do with any tickets being sold. read more

‘New Mutants’ and ‘Antlers’ Moved Off Release Schedule

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Similar to Paramount’s decision to shift A Quiet Place II to a later date in 2020, Disney followed suit by moving New Mutants, Antlers, and Mulan off of their scheduled release dates.  No new dates have been announced as of yet, but according to Deadline, Disney is “…looking at potential 2020 dates in regards to where the titles would be scheduled next.”

Although these concerns are explicitly related to Coronavirus fears, this will be the fourth time that New Mutants will shift to a new date.  Previously, the film was scheduled to screen on January 11, 2018, March 27, 2018, May 7, 2019, and March 12, 2020.   Antlers was originally scheduled to be released on April 17. read more

Often-Delayed ‘Brahms: The Boy 2’ Delivers Lowest Horror Opening of 2020

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In what has been a dismal season for the financial prospect of horror films, Brahms: The Boy 2 established a new low at the box office, opening with an estimated $6 million in its first weekend of release.

The often-delayed and rescheduled sequel to 2016’s The Boy earned another low number from Cinemascore pollsters with a C- average (in contract to the original, which scored a B-).  Critics gave Brahms a paltry 11% on Rotten Tomatoes (and the current audience score on Rotten Tomatoes sits at 41%).  The original fared relatively better, with a score of 30% on the all-powerful review site. read more

‘Fantasy Island’ is a Nightmare for Fans and Critics Alike

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If the overwhelming majority of the feedback is to be believed, Fantasy Island’s tagline “All fantasies come at a price” is accurate.  However, it would appear that the price of a ticket is your dignity.

Fantasy Island opened in fourth place at the box office with an estimated $12.9 million, and surprisingly, no Thursday preview screenings which always inflate the reported opening night ticket sales.  This fact raised many red flags, even before the critical and fan reactions were released. which proved to be a waking nightmare for Sony and Blumhouse. read more

Nothing But Crumbs For ‘Gretel & Hansel’ at Superbowl Weekend Box Office

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As bad as ticket sales have been for horror films in  January, Orion’s horror take on the classic fairy tale actually generated the smallest opening of any of the previous horror disasters this month with a fourth place finish to the tune of an estimated $6.1 million.

Despite better reviews on Rotten Tomatoes than the other January releases (with a current Tomatometer score of 58%), audiences decided to once again stay home, and those that did show up for Gretel & Hansel weren’t kind, rating the film a C- on Cinemascore. read more

‘The Turning’ Turns Off Fans and Critics Alike; Finishes in Sixth Place at Weekend Box Office

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If January’s horror releases are any indication of what the rest of the year will look like, fans may be in for a “scary bad” New Year!

January’s latest disaster came in the form of DreamWorks/Universal’s PG-13 The Turning, which effectively “turned away” ticket buyers this weekend, finishing in sixth place with an estimated $6.6 million in sales.

The long-delayed horror film (originally scheduled to be released on February 22, 2019) has the the dubious distinction of earning an F from Cinemascore, just a few weeks after The Grudge remake earned the same rare grade from viewers.  Only 20 films since 1979 have been graded F by opening night audiences, and the other metrics associated with The Turning seem to support this assessment.  Critics and fans agree that The Turning is one to turn off, giving the picture an identical 12% score on Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer and Audience Score). read more

‘Underwater’ Sinks Into Seventh Place at Weekend Box Office; ‘The Grudge’ Drops Out of Top Ten in Second Week

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The second week of the new year delivers another dud at the box office for horror fans in the form of the Aliens-esque Underwater.  The Kristen Stewart headliner finished below sea-level, in seventh place, with an estimated take seven million dollars at the box office.

The metrics for Underwater weren’t good, earning a C from Cinemascore pollsters, but critics over at Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a decent 53% (and audiences gave it a higher 63%).   With a production budget in the $50 million range, Underwater will have a hard time staying afloat, even when international box office is considered. read more

Fans Hold a ‘Grudge’ Against New Sony Film at Box Office

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A new year brings the promise of new beginning and a dedication to resolutions.  Some people decide to go to the gym more, eat less saturated fats, read Horror News Network more frequently, etc.  Others make even more lofty goals, such as reserving judgment about their co-workers or neighbors.

Unfortunately for Sony Pictures, horror fans had to break some of those resolutions only a few days into the new year, as it was apparent that the vast majority of people who bought tickets to see the Sam Raimi produced The Grudge had a legitimate ax to grind over the new reboot. read more

No Presents for ‘Black Christmas’ at Weekend Box Office

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Sometimes you just don’t get the gifts you want around the holiday season, and sometimes you get a pair of cheap socks or a fruitcake mixed with concrete.  Unfortunately, the producers of Black Christmas received the later, as the new take on the 1970’s original opened with an estimated $4.5 million at the weekend box office.

Even though awareness of Black Christmas on social media platforms was reportedly high, the yuletide slasher movie did not connect with the intended young horror audience that the film was marketed to.  Not only did most of the target audience stay home, those that witnessed the Universal Pictures Black Christmas gave the film an abysmal D+ on Cinemascore and a 29% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. read more

‘Doctor Sleep’ Snoozes at Weekend Box Office

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What a difference a week makes.  Last weekend, Terminator: Dark Fate debuted with an underwhelming $29 million, appearing to be one of the biggest financial flops of the year.  Well, the executives at Paramount can stop looking for time machines to return to the past and cancel production on Dark Fate, as Doctor Sleep is taking all of the media’s slings and arrows, declaring The Shining sequel as an even worse disaster at the box office.

Warner Bros. Doctor Sleep finished second at the box office this weekend with a comatose $14.1 million.  Initial tracking and projections placed the sequel in the $25-$30 million range.  Finishing with less than half of that total is the type of miscalculation and result that leads to pink slips all around (in addition to the fact that Doctor Sleep lost to Midway, a war film that was on no one’s radar). read more