‘Halloween’ Opens to $77.5 Million at the Box Office

Halloween will open at the top of this weekend’s box office, though it will come just shy of slashing through Venom‘s October opening record.

Halloween is set for a $77.5 million opening weekend from 3,928 locations. it had been projected to earn around $80 million and challenge the October opening record set by Venom at $80,255 just weeks ago, but the film couldn’t quite get there.

Halloween still set a new opening weekend record for the series. Rob Zombie’s Halloween remake in 2007 was the franchise’s previous top opener with just $26 million. The film made $80 million in its entire box office run.

The new Halloween is a direct sequel to John Carpenter’s original slasher classic, jettisoning the continuity of the nine other sequels. Jamie Lee Curtis reprises her role as Laurie Strode, who is now a grandmother and still living with the traumatic aftereffects of her encounter with Michael Myers. David Gordon Green directs the film from a script he wrote with Jeff Fradley and Danny McBride.

Venom will fall into third place at the box office, behind A Star Is Born. The latter film earned $19.3 million in its third weekend while Venom took in another $18.1 million, bringing its box office total to $171.1 million.

Venom stars Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock, the journalist who bonds to an alien symbiote to become the Spider-Man villain and then antihero called Venom. Though Venom’s origin is tied tightly to Spider-Man in the Marvel Comics universe, Sony is using Venom as a launchpad for its own universe of films focused on Spider-Man supporting characters such as Morbius, Black Cat, Silver Sable, and Nightwatch.

Venom was directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland) and was made with a $100 million budget.

Venom has received mostly negative reviews from critics, managing only a 32 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, but fans have been much more positive on the film, awarding it an 88 percent audience score.

Keep reading to see the top films at the box office this weekend.

1. Halloween

Opening Weekend
Friday: $33.2 million
Weekend: $80.5 million

It’s been 40 years since Laurie Strode survived a vicious attack from crazed killer Michael Myers on Halloween night. Locked up in an institution, Myers manages to escape when his bus transfer goes horribly wrong. Laurie now faces a terrifying showdown when the masked madman returns to Haddonfield, Ill. — but this time, she’s ready for him.

Halloween is directed by David Gordon Green from a script by Green, Jeff Fradley, and Danny McBride. The film stars Jamie Lee Curtis, Nick Castle, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Will Patton, and Virginia Gardner.

2. A Star Is Born

Week Three
Friday: $5.6 million
Weekend: $19.3 million
Total: $126.4 million

Seasoned musician Jackson Maine discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally. She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer until Jackson coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jackson fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.

A Star is Born is a remake of the 1937 film of the same name that is produced, directed by, and stars Bradley Cooper. Cooper also co-wrote the film’s screenplay with Eric Roth and Will Fetters. The film also stars Lady Gaga, Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chappelle, and Sam Elliott, 

3. Venom

Week Three
Friday: $5.1 million
Weekend: $18.1 million
Total: $171.1 million

Journalist Eddie Brock is trying to take down Carlton Drake, the notorious and brilliant founder of the Life Foundation. While investigating one of Drake’s experiments, Eddie’s body merges with the alien Venom — leaving him with superhuman strength and power. Twisted, dark and fueled by rage, Venom tries to control the new and dangerous abilities that Eddie finds so intoxicating.

Venom is directed by Ruben Fleischer, written by Scott Rosenberg, Jeff Pinkner, and Kelly Marcel, and stars Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Scott Haze, and Reid Scott.

4. Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween

Week Two
Friday: $2.6 million
Weekend: $9.7 million
Total: $28.8 million

While collecting junk one day, best friends Sonny and Sam meet Slappy, a mischievous talking dummy from an unpublished “Goosebumps” book by R.L. Stine. Hoping to start his own family, Slappy kidnaps Sonny’s mother and brings all of his ghoulish friends back to life — just in time for Halloween. As the sleepy town becomes overrun with monsters, witches and other mysterious creatures, Sonny joins forces with his sister, Sam and a kindly neighbor to save Sonny’s mom and foil Slappy’s plan.

Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween is directed by Ari Sandel and written by Rob Lieber from a story by Lieber and Darren Lemke. The film stars Wendi McLendon-Covey, Madison Iseman, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Caleel Harris, Chris Parnell, Ken Jeong, and Jack Black.

5. First Man

Week Two
Friday: $2.5 million
Weekend: $8.6 million
Total: $30 million

On the heels of their six-time Academy Award-winning smash, La La Land, Oscar-winning director Damien Chazelle and star Ryan Gosling reteam for Universal Pictures’ First Man, the riveting story of NASA’s mission to land a man on the moon, focusing on Neil Armstrong and the years 1961-1969. A visceral, first-person account, based on the book by James R. Hansen, the movie will explore the sacrifices and the cost—on Armstrong and on the nation—of one of the most dangerous missions in history. Written by Academy Award winner Josh Singer (Spotlight), the drama is produced by Wyck Godfrey & Marty Bowen (The Twilight Saga, The Fault in Our Stars) through their Temple Hill Entertainment banner, alongside Chazelle and Gosling. Isaac Klausner (The Fault in Our Stars) executive produces. DreamWorks Pictures co-finances the film.

6. The Hate U Give

Week Three
Friday: $2.6 million
Weekend: $7.5 million
Total: $10.7 million

Starr Carter is constantly switching between two worlds — the poor, mostly black neighborhood where she lives and the wealthy, mostly white prep school that she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is soon shattered when she witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend at the hands of a police officer. Facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and decide to stand up for what’s right.

The Hate You Give is directed by George Tillman Jr. and written by Audrey Wells, based on the novel of the same name by Angie Thomas. The film stars Amandla Stenberg, Regina Hall, Russell Hornsby, KJ Apa, Algee Smith, Lamar Johnson, Issa Rae, Sabrina Carpenter, Common, and Anthony Mackie.

7. Smallfoot

Week Four
Friday: $1.7 million
Weekend: $6.7 million
Total: $66.4 million

Migo is a friendly Yeti whose world gets turned upside down when he discovers something that he didn’t know existed — a human. He soon faces banishment from his snowy home when the rest of the villagers refuse to believe his fantastic tale. Hoping to prove them wrong, Migo embarks on an epic journey to find the mysterious creature that can put him back in good graces with his simple community.

Smallfoot is based on the book Yeti Tracks by Sergio Pablos. The film is co-written and directed by Karey Kirkpatrick, and stars the voices of Channing Tatum, James Corden, Zendaya, Common, LeBron James, Gina Rodriguez, Danny DeVito, Yara Shahidi, Ely Henry, and Jimmy Tatro

8. Night School

Week Four
Friday: $1.4 million
Weekend: $4.9 million
Total: $15 million

Teddy Walker is a successful salesman whose life takes an unexpected turn when he accidentally blows up his place of employment. Forced to attend night school to get his GED, Teddy soon finds himself dealing with a group of misfit students, his former high school nemesis and a feisty teacher who doesn’t think he’s too bright.

Night School is directed by Malcolm D. Lee and stars Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish, Rob Riggle, Taran Killam, Romany Malco, Keith David, and Loretta Devine.

9. Bad Times at the El Royale

Week Two
Friday: $1 million
Weekend: $3.5 million
Total: 13.5 million

The El Royale is run-down hotel that sits on the border between California and Nevada. It soon becomes a seedy battleground when seven strangers — a cleric, a soul singer, a traveling salesman, two sisters, the manager and the mysterious Billy Lee — converge on a fateful night for one last shot at redemption before everything goes wrong.

Bad Times at the El Royale is written, directed, and produced by Drew Goddard. The film stars Jeff Bridges, Cynthia Erivo, Dakota Johnson, Jon Hamm, Cailee Spaeny, Lewis Pullman, Nick Offerman and Chris Hemsworth.

10. The Old Man & the Gun

Week Four
Friday: $690,000
Weekend: $2.3 million
Total: $4.4 million

At the age of 70, Forrest Tucker makes an audacious escape from San Quentin, conducting an unprecedented string of heists that confound authorities and enchant the public. Wrapped up in the pursuit are detective John Hunt, who becomes captivated with Forrest’s commitment to his craft, and a woman who loves him in spite of his chosen profession.

The Old Man & the Gun is written and directed by David Lowery, based on the New Yorker article by David Grann about the true story of Forrest Tucker. The film stars Robert Redford, Casey Affleck, Danny Glover, Tika Sumpter, Tom Waits, and Sissy Spacek.