Once David Gordon Green’s Halloween legacy-quel reestablished the franchise with a resounding success, the 2018 film spawned two sequels that were to follow close after. Though delays pushed the final film into the new movie releases of 2022, we’ve finally arrived at the end of this new trilogy. Hotly anticipated, despite the response to its predecessor, Halloween Ends has already brought in a killer haul through its opening night box office.
The receipts have been counted, and Jamie Lee Curtis’ final face off with Michael Myers has raked in $5.4 million in Thursday night ticket sales. This is with theatrical showings running as early as 5 PM, as well as a simultaneous streaming release on Peacock, as noted by Deadline.
Reporting also highlighted the killer aspect of this result, as Halloween Ends has bested Halloween Kills’ Thursday night numbers from last year, which saw $4.85 million earned under the same conditions. Looking a little further into the box office picture, it’s noted that director David Gordon Green’s big Halloween trilogy ender is on track for an estimated opening weekend total of $55 million.
By the numbers, that too is a triumph over Halloween Kills’ opening weekend, as the 2021 sequel’s opening weekend haul came to $49.4 million, adjusted from a previous estimate of $50.3 million. It’s news that fans of the franchise might have mixed feelings about, and for several different reasons.
Already people were skeptical about the surprise decision to continue the simultaneous streaming model, announced by Jamie Lee Curtis herself in a fitting video promoting Halloween Ends’ release. And then the critical reaction to the film hit the internet, which only muddied the waters as it indicated a very wide range of feelings towards Halloween’s trilogy ender.
Early reactions paint a picture of a movie that could be even more divisive than Halloween Kills, which is a pretty amazing feat. That particular sequel caught heat for a very controversial ending which inspired some heated reactions itself. When hyped expectations collide with an already riled up fandom, it can be the recipe for either a box office hit or a disastrous stumbling block.
Judging by Thursday night’s box office take, Halloween Ends looks to fall into the former camp. Of course, it’s early days for the movie, and word of mouth could swing the final weekend numbers in either direction. Just as no one knows where Michael Myers will strike next, the fate of the Halloween series could be decided by what’s yet to be revealed.
Halloween Ends is currently in theaters, as well as available to stream with a paid Peacock subscription. You can also catch Halloween Kills on that same platform, in case you need a refresher before digging into the epic conclusion.
