The first time I saw Damien Leone‘s slasher epic Terrifier 2 it was like a bolt of lightning shooting through my body – in fact, I felt exactly like good ol’ Stoney here. It’s hard to describe that kind of excitement, but horror fans know exactly what I’m talking about.
Anyways, I was excited, extremely excited, and I had nobody to share it with. The first thing I did was send it to our Editor-in-Chief John Squires to see if I had lost my mind. When he returned the same enthusiasm, I knew Terrifier 2 was something special. Still, none of us anticipated this.
When Cinedigm and Bloody Disgusting acquired Terrifier 2, the plan was for a brief theatrical stint before sending it to SCREAMBOX and digital/VOD platforms. Damien insisted that the film be released completely uncut and in its true form, the way he intended and the way fans deserve their horror delivered. The conversation started with 30 theaters and that turned into 60… then all of sudden it was 150, 300, 500, and by the time it was released last weekend we had topped 900. Uncut. Uncompromised.
Early projections were in the $250k range for the weekend and as we got closer to that Thursday, it was leaning into the $600k-$700k range, which was beyond our expectations. As you now know from our various reports, it opened to a shocking $1.2M in an obscenely overcrowded box office with over 20 films playing, including revivals of Trick ‘r Treat and Scream 2, not to mention Smile‘s outstanding release.
And then the reports from theaters started to hit socials… I swear on everyone I love’s lives that the fainting and vomiting are not a publicity stunt. The word of mouth has been off the charts and theaters booked Terrifier 2 for another weekend, even if in fewer locations.
For those of you who follow our box office reporting, typically a movie drops in the 50% range week by week. Not Terrifier 2. In 200 fewer theaters, the film jumped a shocking +6%, adding $850,000+ (the actuals are going to come in even higher) for a two-weekend total of $2.3M-$2.4M. That’s nearly $1200 per theater.
I know some of you might be sick of hearing about it, but this honestly is unprecedented. This is a moment that we’re all sharing together. A movie like Terrifier 2 is not supposed to celebrate this kind of success in a system dominated by studios. This is truly an independent film success that you’re all a part of, and we love you for it.
Thank you from all of the filmmakers, and everyone at Bloody Disgusting, Cinedigm, and SCREAMBOX for your continued support!
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