News culture After just a few days, this scary film surpasses Joker 2 with Joaquin Phoenix at the US box office: the return of this saga will make cinemas scream in 2024
Despite being promised to a niche audience, this horror film is about to explode around the world.
The clown fight
This weekend saw the low-budget horror film Terrifier 3 largely beat out the highly anticipated but disappointing sequel to Joker at the American box office. The former was a huge hit with horror fans, grossing $18.3 million from just 2,514 theatrical releases, while Warner Bros’ Joker: Folie a Deux saw one of its steepest declines in its second weekend of operation. The Todd Phillips-directed $190 million blockbuster dropped 81% from its $37.8 million opening and grossed just $7 million this weekend
However, revenue from the gore film is estimated to decline in the coming weeks, even though it’s still only aimed at a very niche audience and a few curious thrill-seekers. The provocative marketing and press articles still gave the feature a big boost, which had a claim to more productive openings than certain Blumhouse films, such as “Speak No Evil” and “Night Swim,” which also came out that year.
It is also a great success for the killer clown in France: released in cinemas on October 9, 2024, the film got off to a brilliant start, On the first day of the show, the theater attracted 45,000 spectators in just 126 halls, which clearly shows the enthusiasm of the local audience. It came in second place at the French box office, just ahead of the animated film Le Robot Sauvage, which benefited from a much wider distribution. A truly incredible success considering that the second part attracted just 4,234 spectators on the first day in France.
A film that is forbidden for under 18s
Even before its theatrical release, Terrifier 3 sparked heated controversy. The third work in the terrible saga, known for its graphic violence, has been classified as prohibited for those under 18, a decision that is considered harsh by some players in the industry. « The change from 16 years for “Terrifier 2” to 18 years for the third part seems terribly strict to us », confided Victor Lamoussière, DVD publisher and distributor of horror films, who spoke in the columns of 20 Minutes.
The film features Art the Clown, a particularly sadistic character, and features extremely explicit scenes of violence. The summary is as follows: “After surviving the Halloween massacre perpetrated by Art the Clown, Sienna and her brother attempt to rebuild their lives. As the holidays approach, they try to leave the horrors of the past behind them. Just when they thought they were finally safe, Art reappears determined to make Christmas a real nightmare.“