Horror movie “Ready or Not” scared up a $2 million opening day at 2,244 North American locations as Fox Searchlight got a two-day jump on the weekend.
The figure includes $730,000 from Tuesday night previews. “Ready or Not” centers on a bride’s wedding night turning deadly when her new in-laws force her into a strange game of hide and seek. Samara Weaving stars as the bride who marries into a rich family.
Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, “Ready or Not” has scored well with critics with a 91% “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes. Audience have given the movie a CinemaScore grade of B+. Forecasts for the low-budget film had been in the $8 million to $12 million range for its first five days of release. Mark O’Brien, Adam Brody, Henry Czerny and Andie MacDowell also star.
Fox Searchlight will increase the “Ready or Not” print count to about 2,840 on Friday. “Ready or Not” will face competition starting Thursday evening when Lionsgate’s actioner “Angel Has Fallen” begins preview showings. “Angel” has been tracking for a debut in the $12 million to $16 million range. Gerard Butler and Morgan Freeman are joined by Nick Nolte in the third installment of the Millennium-Lionsgate action franchise.
Also opening this weekend is Christian drama “Overcomer” from the creators of “War Room.” Alex Kendrick stars and directs from a script he co-wrote with sibling Stephen Kendrick about a high school coach whose faith is tested. The film is expected to make around $6 million from 1,500 locations.
The newcomers will be battling a pair of Universal holdovers — the second weekend of raunchy comedy “Good Boys,” which has topped $26 million in its first five days, and the fourth frame of “Hobbs and Shaw,” which has gone past $137 million in its first three weeks.