Box Office: ‘Venom’ Sequel Feasts on Monstrous $90 Million Debut, Setting Pandemic Record

We are on the eve of one of the biggest releases of 2021— “Dune.” The film has been delayed (like most blockbusters) for close to a year, and now, Warner Bros. is not only releasing the film in theaters, but also day-and-date on HBO Max.

It’s quite clear that the availability of Warner Bros. theatrical slate on HBO Max day-and-date this year has impacted the studio’s U.S. box office results. This has either led to a film seeing a big drop in weekend 2 at the B.O. after a solid first weekend or in the case of New Line’s Sopranos prequel feature, The Many Saints of Newark, nothing to brag about at the box office with $8.1M earned in its first ten days.

the Hollywood Reporter has revealed.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaSony’s “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” loomed large at the international box office this weekend, sinking its prodigious chompers into $62.3 million. That pushes the superhero adventure’s global haul to a muscular $283.7 million.

“Halloween Kills” may be available to watch at home, but the latest installment in the Michael Myers saga is making a killing at the North American box office in its first weekend in theaters. The David Gordon Green-directed horror scared up $50.4 million from 3,705 locations, according to studio estimates Sunday.Universal’s “Halloween Kills” far surpassed expectations, which had the film pegged for a more conservative debut in the $30 million range.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaUniversal and Blumhouse’s “Halloween Kills” topped the weekend box office with a $50.4 million debut. That’s a bloody good showing considering that the film is being release simultaneously in theaters and on-demand via Peacock, NBCUniversal’s in-house Netflix challenger.

J. Kim Murphy administratorMore than 40 years after the first “Halloween,” Michael Myers and Laurie Strode are still box office gold.

“Halloween Kills,” a direct sequel to the 2018 reboot of the Jamie Lee Curtis horror saga, is currently tracking for a $35-40 million opening weekend, with Universal projecting an opening on the lower end of that scale.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Halloween Kills,” the horror sequel starring Jamie Lee Curtis, should slash its way to the top of box office charts when it opens in 3,700 North American theaters on Friday.From Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions, the latest “Halloween” installment is projected to generate $35 million to $40 million in its first three days of release.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaAudiences are showing up in force to send Daniel Craig off in style.MGM’s “No Time to Die,” which marks the actor’s last stint as James Bond, opened to $6.3 million in Thursday previews, the best for a Bond film.

Sony’s Venom: Let There Be Carnage has feasibly crossed $100M in five days, joining Disney/Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings as the fastest titles to do so at the pandemic domestic box office. Both titles are on a theatrical window exceeding 45 days.

Following last year’s cancelation and this year’s postponements, the annual CineEurope convention kicks off today in Barcelona. And what better time for studios and overseas exhibition to come together and celebrate the theatrical experience as we come off of a banner international box office weekend led by MGM/Eon/Universal’s lively launch of No Time To Die.

Not only that, but it also exceeds the $80 million opening of the first “Venom” in 2018, putting it on course to join “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” as the second post-shutdown film to reach $200 million domestic. Premium formats like IMAX were also a major factor behind the new pandemic era record, as Premium Large Formats accounted for 23% of the weekend gross.

No Time to Die is a hit!

Of course, the biggest market for the film is Bond’s homeland of the UK, where the film has set a pandemic era record with an estimated $34.8 million 4-day opening from 772 locations, the country’s widest release ever.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage is a hit!

Not only that, it also exceeds the $80 million opening of the first “Venom” in 2018, putting it on course to join “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” as the second post-shutdown film to reach $200 million domestic. Premium formats like IMAX were also a major factor behind the new pandemic era record as 64% of tickets sold were premium tickets, bumping up the film’s performance.

Even without grading the film on a COVID-19 curve, that’s a very solid result for the sequel considering the original “Venom” earned an $80 million opening on 2018. Reception for “Venom 2,” which leans harder into the dark but silly humor of the symbiote antihero and his hapless human host Eddie, has been stronger than for the original film with a 59% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 86% audience score to go with a B+ CinemaScore.