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 In the coronavirus era, when
nearly every movie scheduled for theatrical
release has been postponed, those ticket sales
were easily enough to nab first place on U.S.
charts. The film played on 2,472 screens in
North America. Overseas, "Freaky" grossed $1.9
million from 20 international markets for a
global haul of $5.6 million.
"Freaky" stars Vince Vaughn as a savage serial
killer and Kathryn Newton as an under-the-radar
high school teen, who inadvertently switch
bodies on Friday the 13th. Christopher Landon,
who wrote "Disturbia," three "Paranormal
Activity" sequels and directed "Happy Death
Day," directed the R-rated thriller. The movie,
which received overwhelmingly positive reviews,
cost $6 million to make.
"It's going to be very profitable," said analyst
David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting
firm Franchise Entertainment Research. "With the
pandemic surging and additional U.S. theaters
closing, this is a good opening."
Jim Orr, Universal's president of domestic
distribution, said "Freaky" should have a long
life in theaters since it won't have much
competition. That's been the case with many
pandemic-era releases.
"It'll have much longer legs than the horror
genre might normally produce," Orr said. He
praised the studio's collaboration Blumhouse,
known for making thrillers with responsible
budgets. "Christopher Landon has an amazing
touch for these films," Orr adds. "He can blend
horror and comedy like no other."
Compared to rival studios, Universal has been
active in releasing movies during the pandemic,
largely because of a deal it forged with AMC
Theatres. Typically, movies play on the big
screen for 75 to 90 days before they move to
digital rental services. But under Universal and
AMC's new agreement, the studio can put new
films on premium video-on-demand within 17 days
of their theatrical debuts. In return, AMC,
which is the biggest cinema chain in the world,
promises not to boycott Universal's movies and
also gets a cut of the digital profits.
Of course, Universal has kept to opening smaller
and less financially risky titles given the
unstable movie market and plans to save its
biggest tentpoles -- like "Fast and Furious"
sequel "F9" and "Jurassic World: Dominion" --
until moviegoing returns to a more significant
degree and coronavirus cases are better under
control. In any case, the recent crop of
Universal movies provides movie theater owners,
many of whom are desperate for fresh product to
offer, something new to populate their marquees.
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 In the next few weeks,
Universal is unveiling the animated adventure
"The Croods: A New Age" on Nov. 25 and the Tom
Hanks-led Western "News of the World" on Dec.
25. And Focus Features, Universal's specialty
label, is offering "Promising Young Woman" on
Christmas Day. "New content
drives the theatrical experience," Universal's
Orr said. "We're pleased we've been able to
support exhibition the way we have."
Many industry observers have been curious as to
how the pact would benefit theater operators.
Universal and AMC have yet to share any specific
numbers. However, AMC said recently that unlike
other struggling theater chains, it would not
have to close back down amid the coronavirus
crisis due to the Universal deal.
Focus Features' "Let Him Go," a suspense
thriller with Kevin Costner and Diane Lane,
landed in second place on box office charts. The
movie generated $1.8 million in its sophomore
outing, bringing its domestic tally to $7
million. Another Focus title, the horror movie
"Come Play," came in fourth place with $1.1
million. After three weeks in theaters, the film
has made $7.4 million.
New to theaters this weekend is "Ammonite," a
well-reviewed romantic drama starring Kate
Winslet and Saoirse Ronan. The Neon movie, which
played on 280 screens, collected $85,000 over
the weekend -- averaging to $305 per location.
 Beleaguered movie theaters saw what many
considered a glimmer of hope last week after the
drug company Pfizer announced the development of
a potential coronavirus vaccine. But it will
take time before the vaccine is approved and
distributed to the general public, meaning the
movie business is facing a rough winter -- one
that might be devoid of any potential
blockbusters that could generate significant
ticket sales and keep theaters afloat. Though
cinemas in 48 states have reopened, numerous
venues have closed down again because there
aren't many new movies to show. With theaters in
New York City and Los Angeles still out of
operation and parts of Europe shuttering due to
new lockdown measures, it's looking increasingly
unlikely that any major movie will release in
2020. ("Wonder Woman 1984," we're looking at
you...).
"Can the market support a blockbuster? Not yet,"
Goss predicts.
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