Movie

While the horror sequel manages to hold off Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel from taking the first place after a tight race, the rankings could chance when the final figures are revealed on Monday.

• Sep 18, 2023

AceShowbiz - The post-summer box office sees a close race between "The Nun II" and "A Haunting in Venice". The horror sequel manages to hold off the newcomer from taking over the first spot with a slight edge of less than a million dollars.

In its sophomore outing, the ninth installment in "The Conjuring" franchise beats expectations with its 55% decline. It bagged an estimated $14.7 million for a ten-day gross of $56 million domestically and $102.3 million internationally.

Horror movies tend to have bigger week-to-week drops. In comparison, 2018's "The Nun" slid by 66% in its second weekend.

Meanwhile, "A Haunting in Venice" debuts to an estimated $14.5 million. An adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel starring and directed by Kenneth Branagh, it is the third film in which Branagh portrays the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot and received generally positive reviews from critics.

The murder mystery film has grossed $22.7 million internationally for a worldwide total of $37.2 million. David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research, predicts the movie will make up ground at the international box office. "At a cost of around $60 million, the movie isn't going to lose money after it finishes playing in the foreign markets," he says.

It should be noted that when the final figures are revealed on Monday, the two movies may switch places. "Sunday estimates are estimates for a reason, and whenever two films are in this close of proximity, it becomes more a matter of semantics as to whether to call it a tie or a tight race," says Comscore chief box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian.

He goes on gushing, "Either way, the horror genre has become de rigueur with studios and, hopefully, that trend will continue with audiences as still many more scary movies are set to arrive on the big screen in the coming weeks."

"The Equalizer 3" drops another place to No. 3 with approximately $7.2 million, followed by "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3" which also falls one rung to No. 4 with an estimated $4.7 million. "Barbie", meanwhile, holds on to the fifth position with approximately $3.96 million.

With a total of $626 million at the domestic box office, the live-action fantasy comedy movie reached another impressive milestone as it has now become the the 11th-highest grossing release in history, overtaking Marvel's 2012 blockbuster "The Avengers" ($623 million).

Meanwhile, as the nights get colder, overall ticket sales topped out at just $62 million, according to Comscore, resulting in the second-worst weekend of the year. "Nothing says 'normal' like a post-summer slowdown at the box office, and this year is no exception," Dergarabedian comments on the overall number.

Top 10 of North America Box Office (Sep. 15-18, 2023):

1. "The Nun II" - $14.7 million
2. "A Haunting in Venice" - $14.5 million
3. "The Equalizer 3" - $7.2 million
4. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3" - $4.7 million
5. "Barbie" - $3.96 million
6. "Jawan" - $2.5 million
7. "Blue Beetle" - $2.5 million
8. "Gran Turismo" - $2.4 million
9. "Oppenheimer" - $2.1 million
10. "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" - $2 million