Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Pushes Franchise Past $1 Billion at the Box Office

The latest sequel's debut pushed the franchise past a major milestone.

By Patrick Cavanaugh

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is the fifth entry into the Ghostbusters franchise, which kicked off back in 1984, and its opening weekend total of $61.6 million worldwide has pushed the series past a significant milestone as the franchise has now crossed $1 billion globally. Frozen Empire took in $45 million domestically this weekend, putting it slightly ahead of the domestic opening of Ghostbusters: Afterlife's $44 million in 2021 and just behind the domestic opening of 2016's Ghostbusters, which took in $46 million domestically. Afterlife would go on to take in $203 million worldwide, though with its opening also taking place during the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, movie theaters hadn't yet bounced back from initial closures, which understandably throttled its box-office potential.

Like with many franchises, the debut film still remains the top earner at the box office, as it has taken in $295.6 million globally. Compared to other long-running franchises, however, Ghostbusters is less of a property that is known to break records at the box office and is more known for its passion following among fans. Ghostbusters II, which hit theaters in 1989, went on to take in $215.5 million worldwide, followed by 2016's Ghostbusters taking in $229 million globally. 

While Afterlife faced some understandable struggles at the box office, it's possible that Frozen Empire could see some similar setbacks, despite opening up on pace with its predecessors. There has been a steady decline in critical reactions to the franchise, with 2016's Ghostbusters earning 74% positive reviews according to aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, while Afterlife sits at only 64% positive. Frozen Empire suffered a major drop, as it currently sits at only 43% positive reviews on the site.

Frozen Empire and Afterlife share a lot of common DNA in regards to the cast and crew involved in each picture, so it's likely no surprise that they opened to such similar numbers. While Afterlife was released at a time in which there weren't as many theatrical releases, allowing it to earn more attention for a longer period of time, its revenue was impacted by the fact that audiences weren't as comfortable leaving their homes. Conversely, Frozen Empire comes more than two years later and at a time when movie theaters have made a major comeback, but this also means it will soon have more competition, such as this weekend's opening of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. It's still early in Frozen Empire's run, but it's possible the project could fall short of many of its predecessors. 

In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the Spengler family returns to where it all started – the iconic New York City firehouse – to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who've developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age.

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Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is in theaters now. 

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