'Five Nights at Freddy's' movie pulls off a Halloween surprise: $130.6 million worldwide

It hardly mattered that "Five Nights at Freddy's" was released simultaneously in movie theaters and on streaming this weekend. Fans flocked to cinemas across the country to see the scary video-game adaptation on the big screen, which earned $78 million to top the North American box office, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Universal Pictures bet on a so-called "day-and-date" release the weekend before Halloween, sending the movie to 3,675 theaters in the U.S. and Canada while also making it available for Peacock subscribers. The film also opened in 64 markets internationally, where it's expected to gross $52.6 million, giving the film a $130.6 million global launch – the biggest of any horror movie this year.

"It was an extraordinary debut," says Jim Orr, the president of domestic distribution for Universal, who praised Blumhouse, the filmmakers and the marketing department for the campaign.

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Blumhouse, the company behind "Get Out" and recent horror hits like "M3GAN," produced "Five Nights at Freddy's," which stars Josh Hutcherson, Mary Stuart Masterson and Matthew Lillard. The popular video-game series, in which a security guard has to fend off murderous animatronic characters at a rundown pizza restaurant, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, was released in 2014.

While the game's fanbase is strong and passionate, the movie took many years to make.

"Everyone said we could never get the movie done," producer Jason Blum told IGN in an interview earlier this year. The film was shot on a reporter $20 million budget.

And it paid off: "Five Nights at Freddy's" is his company's biggest opening of all time, surpassing the debut of "Halloween." It's also Blumhouse's 19th No. 1 debut, which Orr notes is an "amazing accomplishment."

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The audience was predominately male (58%) and overwhelmingly young, with an estimated 80% under the age of 25 and 38% between 13 and 17.

Audiences gave the film an A- on CinemaScore, which could be promising for future weekends, too.

The numbers are notable for a generation not known for making theatrical moviegoing a priority. "It's a very young demographic," says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore. "Clearly, audiences wanted that communal experience."

"Five Nights at Freddy's" did not score well with critics, however. It has a dismal 25% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. USA TODAY's Brian Truitt wrote, "Chuck E. Cheese and his pizza-party posse were a lot freakier back in the day than the villains of this low-scare horror flick." But like many other horror movies, it appears to be critic-proof.

In second place, "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour" is expected to cross $200 million globally by the end of Sunday, having added $14.7 million domestically and $6.7 million internationally this weekend. The concert film, distributed by AMC Theatres, is in its third weekend and playing only Thursday through Sunday, though there will be "special Halloween showtimes" on Tuesday at a discounted price of $13.13.

Third place went to Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon," which added $9 million in its second weekend, bringing its domestic total to $40.7 million. With an additional $14.1 million from international showings, the film's global total now tops $88 million.

"After Death," a Christian documentary film about people who have had near death experiences, opened in fourth place to $5.1 million.

And "The Exorcist: Believer" rounded out the top five with $3.1 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its domestic earnings to just shy of $60 million.

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Several high-profile fall films also launched in limited release, including Alexander Payne's "The Holdovers" and Sofia Coppola's "Priscilla." Both opened exclusively in New York and Los Angeles.

"The Holdovers," starring Paul Giamatti as a curmudgeonly ancient history teacher at a New England prep school, debuted in six theaters, where it earned an estimated $200,000.

Coppola's "Priscilla," about Priscilla Presley's life with Elvis, also opened on four screens in New York and Los Angeles, where it averaged $33,035 per screen. With a cumulative gross of $132,139, the release starring Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi expands nationwide next weekend.

"It was an eclectic and exciting weekend for moviegoers," Dergarabedian says. "If you couldn't find a film to your liking, you're not looking hard enough."

Final numbers are expected Monday.

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