Horror sequel ‘Black Phone 2’ dials up a No. 1 opening
[October 20, 2025]
By LINDSEY BAHR
The horror sequel “Black Phone 2” topped the North American box office
charts this weekend with $26.5 million in ticket sales, according to
studio estimates Sunday. Not only did it surpass the original's $23.6
million debut, it's a much-needed win for Blumhouse after a string of
disappointments this year like “M3GAN 2.0.”
Though “Black Phone 2” opened in line with expectations, moviegoing in
October continues to be slow — down about 11% from last year, according
to Comscore. The overall box office is still up about 4% compared with
last year, but a big blockbuster hit that could spark more momentum
might not arrive until late November or December.
Universal Pictures released “Black Phone 2” in 3,411 theaters in North
America on a wave of good reviews. Coming four years after the original,
the sequel sees the return of filmmaker Scott Derrickson, as well as
stars Ethan Hawke and Mason Thames. Opening weekend audiences were 63%
between the ages of 18 and 34, according to exit polls, and the biggest
demographic was Hispanics, making up 39% of ticket buyers while
Caucasians accounted for 35%.
With an additional $15.5 million from 71 international territories,
“Black Phone 2” had a $42 million worldwide launch against a reported
$30 million production budget.
“It’s a fantastic opening,” said Jim Orr, who heads Universal’s domestic
distribution. “Our great partners in Scott Derrickson and Blumhouse once
again took this property and crafted an unbelievably haunting, chilling
story that audiences just simply couldn’t get enough of.”
The first “Black Phone” was a bit of a sleeper hit for Universal and
Blumhouse in 2021 as cinemas were beginning to come back to life after
COVID shutdowns. By the end of its run, it had earned more than $161
million worldwide against an $18 million budget.
Blumhouse has had a rocky 2025, with a handful of duds including “Wolf
Man” and “The Woman in the Yard.” But the once impenetrable horror
hitmaker could be on the upswing again with a “Five Nights at Freddy’s”
sequel coming in December. The first movie earned nearly $300 million
worldwide.
The horror genre in general has soared to record-breaking heights this
year, with hits like “Weapons” and the multi-genre “Sinners," generating
over $1.2 billion for the industry, noted Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore’s
head of marketplace trends.
“Black Phone 2” was also the only film to really break through this
weekend, despite a slew of options playing in wide release including the
R-rated Seth Rogen, Aziz Ansari and Keanu Reeves comedy “Good Fortune,”
which opened in 2,990 locations to $6.2 million, and the expansion of
the Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield drama “After the Hunt,” which made
$1.6 million from 1,238 theaters. Also new in theaters is Guillermo del
Toro’s “Frankenstein,” although Netflix does not report box office
grosses.
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Ethan Hawke arrives at a special screening of "Black Phone 2" on
Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, at TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.
(Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
 “Tron: Ares” fell about 67% to $11.1
million in its second weekend in theaters, which was enough to snag
second place on the charts. Globally it has now earned $103 million.
“Good Fortune,” which opened in third place, had mostly positive
reviews on its side, but Ansari's comedy with a side of social
commentary did not drum up a lot of enthusiasm in its first weekend.
With a B+ CinemaScore, though, it likely has a better chance in the
coming weeks than the campus drama “After the Hunt,” which got a
very poor C- score.
“This is a quintessential October for movies, meaning this is not a
hotbed of box office blockbusters,” said Dergarabedian. “But the
marketplace is flush with titles. This is awards season; this is
where you have a lot of auteur driven films, edgier films.
Collectively these don’t generate a ton of box office, but there’s
the currency of goodwill created with movie fans.”
Next weekend audiences will get another batch of awards-hopefuls,
including Yorgos Lanthimos’s latest Emma Stone collaboration
“Bugonia” and the Bruce Springsteen biopic “Springsteen: Deliver Me
from Nowhere,” starring “The Bear’s” Jeremy Allen White.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors
in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and
Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “Black Phone 2,” $26.5 million.
2. “Tron: Ares,” $11.1 million.
3. “Good Fortune,” $6.2 million.
4. “One Battle After Another,” $4 million.
5. “Roofman,” $3.7 million.
6. “Truth & Treason,” $2.7 million.
7. “Gabby’s Dollhouse,” $1.7 million.
8. “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” $1.6 million.
9. “After the Hunt,” $1.6 million.
10. “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle,” $1.3 million.
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