Topline
Two horror films—A Haunting In Venice and The Nun 2—virtually tied for the No. 1 spot at the U.S. box office this weekend, according to data from Box Office Mojo, though neither brought in big money as movie-going slowed, setting this up to be the second worst weekend at the box office of the year.
This image released by 20th Century Studios shows, from left,Tina Fey as Ariadne Oliver, Michelle … [+] Yeoh as Mrs. Reynolds, and Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot in a scene from “A Haunting in Venice.” (20th Century Studios via AP)
Key Facts
The Nun 2 brought in an estimated $14.73 million at theaters across the country this weekend, a drop-off from its debut last weekend that totaled $32.6 million.
A Haunting in Venice—an Agatha Christie-inspired movie with a star-studded cast including Kenneth Branagh, Michelle Yeoh and Tina Fey—was right behind The Nun 2, bringing in $14.5 million on its debut weekend, according to the Box Office Mojo data.
The Equalizer 3—an action film starring Denzel Washington—took third place at the box office, bringing in $7.24 million during its third weekend in theaters.
Both top films this weekend are not the first of their kind: The Nun 2 is a sequel to The Nun and a spin-off of The Conjuring, and A Haunting in Venice is the third movie in Kenneth Branagh’s series of Christie inspired films, the last of which was Death on the Nile.
This weekend was notably slower than past weekends at the box office, finishing with a gross total of just over $62 million, according to Box Office Mojo, making it the second-slowest weekend of the year—a sign of summer’s end.
Tangent
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer became the highest-grossing biopic, beating the record held by the 2018 film Bohemian Rhapsody, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Data from Box Office Mojo shows that Bohemian Rhapsody—which told the story of Queen’s Freddie Mercury— brought in just over $910 million worldwide, while Oppenheimer’s estimated worldwide total through Sunday is $912.7 million
Big Number
36%. That’s how much of A Haunting in Venice’s debut weekend total came from premium large format or Imax viewing, Deadline reported.
Surprising Fact
The Nun 2 saw its sales drop 55% from its first to second weekend, which is actually strong for a horror movie. Deadline reported that horror films usually drop 60% or worse in their second weekend. The Nun 2‘s opening weekend last week was the second-best for horror films this year, topping M3GAN‘s $30.2 million premiere in January, but not strong enough to beat Scream VI‘s $44.5 million debut in March.
Further Reading
The Hollywood ReporterBox Office: ‘Haunting in Venice’ and ‘Nun II’ Tie for No. 1 as Moviegoing Slows Post-SummerDeadline‘Nun 2’ Scares Off Poirot To Become Mother Superior Of Box Office With $14.7M Second WeekendMORE FROM FORBES‘The Nun 2’ Wins Box Office With $32.4 Million Opening Weekend As ‘Barbie’ Drops To Fifth PlaceBy Mary Whitfill Roeloffs
