Halloween sequel slashes franchise record with $106 million
Sequel earns $107m, slashing franchise record
Halloween made a killing in North America, earning US$77.5 million (S$106.7 million).
David Gordon Green's slasher flick, a direct sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 classic, obliterated the franchise record opening of US$26 million, previously held by the 2007 Rob Zombie reboot.
It also notched the second-best start for an R-rated horror film following It's US$123 million launch last year, and landed the second-highest debut for an October release, set earlier this month by Venom with US$80 million.
Overseas, Halloween generated US$14.3 million for a global start of US$91.8 million. It cost just US$10 million, marking another win for Jason Blum and Blumhouse Productions, which co-financed it with Miramax.
It is the 11th instalment in the series, five of which have starred Jamie Lee Curtis as iconic avenging babysitter Laurie Strode, who is now a grandmother in the newest take.
Carpenter returned to executive produce and compose the score, and while the last few iterations have been panned, Halloween holds an 80 per cent average on Rotten Tomatoes and a B+ CinemaScore.
After Venom's two-week reign atop domestic box office charts, Sunday estimates show the Tom Hardy superhero movie was narrowly defeated by the Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper musical romance A Star Is Born.
A Star Is Born pocketed another US$19.3 million, while Venom follows close behind with US$18.1 million for solid domestic totals of US$126 million and US$171 million, respectively. - REUTERS
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