Five Nights at Freddy’s is smashing a 2023 horror movie record in its opening weekend. The movie, which is based on the video game franchise of the same name, stars Josh Hutcherson as the down-on-his-luck Mike, who gets a job as a nighttime security guard at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. However, he soon learns that the restaurant’s creepy animatronics come to life at night and he must protect his little sister Abby (Piper Rubio) from their murderous intentions. The cast of the movie also includes Elizabeth Lail, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Matthew Lillard.
Per Deadline, the Five Nights at Freddy’s box office is turning out an enormous gross in its opening weekend. On Friday, the movie took in $39.4 million (including Thursday night previews), with adjusted projections showing that the movie is on its way toward a 3-day opening of $78 million or more. That will give it the best opening weekend for any horror movie of 2023 so far, but as of Friday it has already outgrossed the opening weekends of every 2023 horror movie other than Scream VI, which had a 3-day total of $44.4 million.
How High Could Five Nights at Freddy’s Climb?
This opening weekend is astonishing and could mean that the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie is on its way toward becoming the No. 1 horror movie of the year. If it keeps its relative pace ahead of Scream VI, the movie’s gross could potentially climb as high as $300 million by the end of its theatrical run. However, there are quite a few stumbling blocks coming up that could prevent the movie from raking in the box office.
Perhaps the biggest stumbling block is its second weekend. Horror movie second weekends typically drop around 60% or more, but the fact that Halloween will be over, potentially reducing audience interest in horror movies, could lead to an even more severe plummet for Freddy’s. The movie’s theatrical prospects have also been diminished by the fact that it is already available to stream at home on Peacock. The Five Nights at Freddy’s cast is also refraining from promotion during the ongoing 2023 actors strike, and either factor could come into play even more strongly in the next week.
While its eventual overall No. 1 status is in question, Five Nights at Freddy’s will most likely maintain its current opening weekend record. Although there are still two months left in 2023, there aren’t any wide-release horror movies that are likely to compete with that $78 million total. It remains to be seen how Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving performs, but it seems unlikely to outperform franchise outings like Scream VI, and the only other competition for the rest of the year would be the Christmas slasher It’s a Wonderful Knife, an original movie that doesn’t have the built-in fanbase of Freddy’s.
