AT&T Inc.'s Warner Bros. film studio is looking for a win after a bloody 2019, and it looks like horror blockbuster "It: Chapter Two" will put some stitches on the wound.
The cantankerous evil clown Pennywise will terrorize screens again in this sequel, and while it does not look like "Chapter Two" will reach the lofty heights of its rebooted predecessor in the U.S., forecasters still think it will float. Variety reports the title could open in the $85 million to $90 million range. BoxOffice.com is more bullish, suggesting the film could open to as much as $115 million on the high end. Deadline agrees the title could crack the nine-figure mark, but projects it will at least open north of $90 million.
"It: Chapter Two" Source: Warner Bros. |
While "It: Chapter Two" may not open stateside to the $123.4 million hit by its 2017 predecessor hit — a horror-genre record — Deadline believes it will scare up over $200 million internationally, which would outdo the international opening of the last Pennywise. With a stronger international performance, the "It" sequel could slash its way toward a similar finish as its predecessor, which bled $728.1 million out of audiences over its lifetime, according to Kagan, a media research group within S&P Global Market Intelligence. That floated net profits of $476.7 million, or a 65.5% margin.
Comparatively, 2018's "The Nun," one of Warner Bros.' other horror hits, opened to $53.8 million and went on to collect $370.0 million in total revenue and $189.6 million in net profits.
However, critics may drag the "It" title down a little, as the sequel was running a middling 67% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, as of 10 a.m. ET, Sept. 6, not bad but not as spectacular as the 86% "Certified Fresh" rating scored by 2017's "It."
A nine-figure opening, or near that, for Warner Bros. would be a boon for the studio after a mediocre reception to its 2018 slate. The studio saw big-budget titles like "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" perform well short of expectations considering their costs. Several middle-budget titles like "Shaft" and "The Kitchen" also underperformed. While the studio had some success with a new Annabelle title in its Conjuring universe and "Pokémon: Detective Pikachu," it will want to see a solid run from "It: Chapter Two."

