Black Phone 2 Opens at No. 1 with $26.5M Domestic, $42M Global

Black Phone 2 opened at No. 1 at the North American box office this weekend, earning an estimated $26.5 million domestically and $42 million worldwide in its first three days, studio estimates and box office trackers said. The supernatural horror sequel from Universal and Blumhouse, directed by Scott Derrickson and starring Ethan Hawke, played in 3,411 theaters and carried a reported production budget of about $30 million.

The sequel surpassed the opening of the original film, which debuted to $23.6 million in 2021, and added roughly $15.5 million from 71 international markets. Top overseas openings included Mexico with about $4.3 million, the United Kingdom and Ireland with $1.4 million, and Brazil with $1.2 million. Exit polls showed 63 percent of the U.S. audience was between 18 and 34, and Hispanic moviegoers made up roughly 39 percent of ticket buyers. The film received a B CinemaScore from audiences.

Industry executives framed the weekend as a timely boost for Blumhouse after several underperforming releases earlier in the year. "It's a fantastic opening," said Jim Orr, head of Universal's domestic distribution, praising the filmmakers and studio partners. Analysts...