IT CHAPTER TWO Tracking for $100 Million Plus Opening Weekend

IT CHAPTER TWO is on track to scare up an estimated $100-$102 million opening weekend, giving the Andy Muschietti-directed sequel to his 2017 horror blockbuster the second-best horror and September opening of all time, Deadline reports. Down from the first chapter’s $123.4m record in both categories two years earlier, CHAPTER TWO still looks to win a fourth-best R-rated opening behind 2016’s Deadpool ($132.4m), 2018 sequel Deadpool 2 ($125.5m) and IT, which remains the highest-grossing horror film with $700 million worldwide won when the Stephen King-inspired horror hit opened almost exactly two years ago.

In a midday Friday update, Deadline reports New Line will collect an opening day of $44m when counting Thursday’s $10.5m opening night previews, putting it fourth in R-rated opening days behind DP2 ($53m), It ($50.4m) and DP ($47.3m).

Deadline notes Thursday previews for CHAPTER TWO started earlier with 5 pm showings, compared to the 7 pm start for its predecessor. IT played on 3,500 screens on its opening night versus the 3,700+ for CHAPTER TWO, which ups its theater count to 4,570 starting Saturday for the widest September release; this tops Warner Bros.’ own animated Smallfoot, which played on 4,131 screens when it opened in late September 2018.

CHAPTER TWO currently stands at 67% on Rotten Tomatoes with 163 critics’ reviews counted; its audience score from members is 86% with 924 verified ratings. IT was certified fresh at 86% with 359 critics’ reviews and an 84% audience score with 65,823 counted user reviews. A consensus from critics says the second chapter benefits from strong performances by its young and adult casts, but suffers from an overlong runtime: CHAPTER TWO clocks in just shy of three hours.

The sequel follows a now grown-up Losers Club — Bill (James McAvoy), Beverly (Jessica Chastain), Richie (Bill Hader), Mike (Isaiah Mustafa), Ben (Jay Ryan) and Eddie (James Ransone) — returning home to the cursed town of Derry, Maine 27 years after first banding together to defeat Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård). There the Losers have to confront their hazy and traumatic pasts to kill It once and for all.

Both Chastain and Sophia Lillis, who plays the younger Beverly, are on record confirming there won’t be a third film.

“Or if there is, it won’t be with me, and it won’t be with Andy,” Chastain told Variety. “Because Stephen King didn’t write an IT 3. The book’s done… If he decides to write another chapter, great. But most likely, it’ll be another 27 years later, so there’ll be another actress.”

IT CHAPTER TWO also stars Jaeden Martell, Finn Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer, Chosen Jacobs, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Wyatt Oleff and Andy Bean.