Aside from superheroes, horror has been the most reliable at the box office since the pandemic completely upended the movie business about two and a half years ago. Everything else feels like a big fat coin flip, if not worse. Case in point, despite being available to stream from the comfort of home on Peacock, Halloween Ends has just crossed a significant milestone.
As per The Numbers, with the money it earned on Thursday, November 3, the final entry in director David Gordon Green’s Halloween trilogy has earned $100.1 million at the global box office. That includes $62 million domestically and $38 million from overseas ticket sales. Historically, this series has always weighed pretty heavily on the domestic side of things. Regardless, against a reported $20 million budget, that makes this a winner for Universal Pictures and Blumhouse.
2018’s Halloween set a high watermark for the slasher genre, taking in an astounding $255 million globally, setting the stage for this new trilogy. Last year’s Halloween Kills was released when theaters were still in more firm recovery mode in the wake of the pandemic and, as a result, it was also released on Peacock to hedge the studio’s bets. Still, it earned $130 million worldwide. It is unlikely Ends will top its predecessor, though it does appear likely to make more internationally, which is interesting, as Kills topped out at just shy of $39 million internationally.
One thing that Ends has been contending with, outside of people being content to watch the movie at home, is a heavily mixed response. Critics and audiences alike were divided on the film, which takes some big swings creatively, and mileage has varied for viewers on how well those swings worked. Though it did, as the title promised, provide a definitive end to the saga of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode. The synopsis for the movie reads as follows:
“Four years after the events of last year’s Halloween Kills, Laurie is living with her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) and is finishing writing her memoir. Michael Myers hasn’t been seen since. Laurie, after allowing the specter of Michael to determine and drive her reality for decades, has decided to liberate herself from fear and rage and embrace life. But when a young man, Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell), is accused of killing a boy he was babysitting, it ignites a cascade of violence and terror that will force Laurie to finally confront the evil she can’t control, once and for all.”
The cast includes Jamie Lee Curtis, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Will Patton, Rohan Campbell and Kyle Richards. Green, in addition to directing, wrote the screenplay with Paul Brad Logan, Chris Bernier and Danny McBride. Green will be staying in the horror franchise world, as he’s set to direct a new sequel to The Exorcist that is, similarly, looking to start a new trilogy in that universe.
Halloween Ends is in theaters and streaming on Peacock now.
