Universal and Blumhouse’s horror film “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” based on the popular video game, is poised to have a strong debut at the box office. Industry experts anticipate the film to gross at least $50 million during its opening weekend, although some analysts believe it could exceed this projection.
What makes this forecast even more remarkable is that “Five Nights at Freddy’s” will simultaneously premiere on Peacock, making it one of the most significant horror film openings of the year. As of now, the top horror debuts in 2023 include “Scream VI” ($44.4 million), “The Nun II” ($32 million), “M3GAN” ($30 million), and “The Exorcist: Believer” ($26.4 million).
In a shift away from hybrid releases, studios are increasingly opting for exclusive theatrical windows, as it has proven to be more financially rewarding. Despite its $20 million production budget, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is positioned to achieve profitability without the need for exceptionally high box office earnings.
While Peacock may not boast as many subscribers as Disney+ or Netflix, the simultaneous release of “Five Nights” could provide a temporary boost to its box office performance, much like Universal’s “Halloween Ends” did in 2022. “Halloween Ends” opened with a solid $40 million during its concurrent Peacock release, but its box office sales declined significantly in the following weeks, resulting in a total of $64 million in North America and $104 million globally. “Halloween Kills” in 2021, which had a simultaneous streaming release, also witnessed a similar pattern with an opening of $49 million but eventually reached $92 million domestically and $133 million worldwide. Neither of these sequels matched the success of the 2018 “Halloween” reboot, which was exclusively shown in theaters and began with $76 million, concluding with $159 million in North America and $259 million globally.
With minimal competition in October, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is expected to dominate the domestic box office, giving a much-needed boost to the fall movie season. In the second and third positions, Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” and Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” will vie for audience attention. “The Eras Tour” is projected to earn $13 million to $15 million, while “Killers of the Flower Moon” is expected to add $11 million to $13 million to its opening weekend revenue.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s,” directed by Emma Tammi and starring Josh Hutcherson as a security guard, follows the story of a night-time job at an abandoned family entertainment center. However, what initially appears to be a harmless job takes a dark turn when the animatronic mascots reveal their sinister side, leading to deadly consequences for those present after midnight.