Universal and Blumhouse are poised to hit the jackpot with their new horror movie, “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” based on the popular video game. Industry projections are setting the opening weekend earnings at a minimum of $50 million, potentially surpassing that figure.
This movie adaptation of “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is slated to release simultaneously on Peacock, marking a significant achievement as it’s expected to score one of the top horror movie openings of the year. Currently, 2023’s biggest horror openings include “Scream VI” at $44.4 million, followed by “The Nun II,” “M3GAN,” and “The Exorcist: Believer.”
With a production budget of just $20 million, the financial success bar for “Five Nights at Freddy’s” isn’t set too high. This release strategy is notable as other studios are shifting back towards exclusive cinema showings, finding them more lucrative than dual cinema and streaming releases.
While Peacock trails behind giants like Disney+ and Netflix in subscriber numbers, the day-and-date release of “Five Nights” might initially boost ticket sales. This pattern was observed with Universal’s “Halloween Ends” in 2022, which opened strong with $40 million, also available on Peacock, but saw a rapid decline in following weeks, ultimately grossing $64 million in North America and $104 million worldwide. Its predecessor, Halloween Kills, had a similar pattern despite earning more both domestically and internationally. However, both films didn’t reach the heights of the 2018 “Halloween” reboot, which was exclusively theatrical and starred Jamie Lee Curtis, grossing significantly higher.
Five Nights at Freddy’s doesn’t face much competition and is predicted to dominate U.S. box office charts, boosting the somewhat quiet October sales. It overshadows other releases like Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” and Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon, both contending for the second spot in earnings.
The film, directed by Emma Tammi and featuring Josh Hutcherson, revolves around a security guard working night shifts at a deserted establishment resembling Chuck E. Cheese. He soon finds out that the animatronic figures in the restaurant have a deadly nature, endangering anyone present after midnight. Source
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