Black Phone 2 Fails to Match Predecessor's Box Office Debut

The Black Phone 2, the sequel to the 2022 horror hit, has not managed to replicate the strong box office performance of the first film. According to the latest reports, the movie earned $2.6 million in Thursday previews, which is less than the $3 million the original Black Phone collected during its preview screenings.

Despite the lower preview numbers, Black Phone 2 has received generally positive reviews, with a 74% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have praised the film for taking the consequences of the first movie seriously and delivering chilling scares and thought-provoking themes.

The sequel is now tracking to earn between $18 million and $23 million during its three-day opening weekend at the North American box office. This is lower than the $23.63 million the original Black Phone collected on its debut weekend. The first film went on to gross $91.1 million domestically and $161.4 million worldwide.

While the sequel's performance is not as strong as its predecessor, the filmmakers and studio are still hopeful that positive word-of-mouth and the increased star power of lead actor Mason Thames, thanks to his role in the live-action How to Train Your Dragon movie, will help the film flourish in the coming weeks.