KPop Demon Hunters Set to Top Halloween Box Office with $14.7M

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Halloween is here, and while scary movies usually do well in theaters this time of year, there aren’t many spooky options playing right now. Overall, not much is being released in cinemas, especially since Halloween falls on a Friday. One new film, Bugonia from Focus Features, is getting a wider release, and Back to the Future is back in theaters to celebrate its 40th anniversary.

This Halloween weekend, the biggest movie success will likely be KPop Demon Hunters: A Singalong Event, the popular animated film coming back to theaters thanks to high demand. It originally premiered on Netflix in June and had a brief theatrical release to qualify for Oscar consideration.

Netflix then released the film in theaters for a special singalong event in late August. It quickly became the number one movie, surpassing Weapons after two weeks, and earned an impressive $18 million from only 1,700 theaters – averaging $10,588 per theater.

With few other Halloween releases performing well, Netflix is bringing back its popular animated movie for a special one-weekend showing, and it’s expected to be the highest-grossing film with around $14.7 million in earnings.

KPop Demon Hunters Returns To Top The Box Office

It’s still unclear how many theaters will show KPop Demon Hunters when it returns, but after doing well in both cinemas and on streaming, and with few competing films releasing, it could appear in even more than the 1,700 theaters it was in during August. The film will be available in AMC, Regal, and Cinemark theaters across the US (according to Tudum).

The animated film quickly became a huge hit on Netflix, consistently ranking as the most-watched animated movie. Earlier this month, Netflix announced it had become their most popular movie ever, racking up 325.1 million views – surpassing even Red Notice (230.9 million views). Now, Netflix is looking to capitalize on its success again during the upcoming Halloween weekend.

I’m hearing Netflix is really leaning into the spirit of things, encouraging everyone to cosplay as characters from the movie. It’s a smart move – they’re predicting it’ll do really well, potentially around $14.7 million, which should put it right up there with films like The Holdovers and the new Back to the Future release in terms of box office numbers.

That estimate doesn’t include numbers from a wide theatrical release. If the movie opens in 2,000 or 3,000 theaters, it could potentially earn between $28 million and $30 million.

Bugonia Goes Wide And Cracks The Top 10

Emma Stone and director Yorgos Lanthimos have teamed up again for their new film, Bugonia, which had a strong opening weekend in a limited release. The film made $709,848 from only 17 theaters, averaging $41,755 per theater – one of the highest averages of the year so far. This performance likely positions Stone as a contender for the Best Actress Oscar.

Similar to KPop Demon Hunters, we don’t yet know how many theaters will show the film across the country. However, the recent release of After The Hunt offers a possible comparison. It started in only six theaters the weekend of October 10-12, then quickly expanded to 1,238 theaters the following week.

While not officially confirmed, early estimates suggest Bugonia may open in around 1,200 to 1,500 theaters. With positive reviews (currently 89% on Rotten Tomatoes) and a potential awards campaign for Emma Stone and director Yorgos Lanthimos, the film is expected to land in the top 10, though likely won’t be a blockbuster. Current projections show a debut of $3.2 million, placing it in seventh place.

Back To The Future Returns Along With The Rest of the Top 10

© Universal Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

As a huge fan, I’m thrilled to hear that Universal Pictures is celebrating the 40th anniversary of Back to the Future! They’re bringing the 1985 classic back to theaters on Halloween, which is amazing. Plus, they’re releasing a new version for home viewing and some cool merchandise. From what I understand, it won’t be every theater, but it’s expected to be shown in around 1,000 locations – similar to how other anniversary re-releases have been handled.

If the movie opens in around 1,000 to 1,200 theaters, it’s expected to earn about $3 million, which would put it slightly below Bugonia‘s opening weekend performance. With few competing films, it might expand to even more theaters and climb higher in the top 10, but it probably won’t finish much better than eighth place during its initial release.

The movie Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc was a big success last weekend, earning $18 million – much more than expected. It opened in 3,003 theaters, averaging $6,004 per location. While it’s expected to fall to second place this week, it’s still projected to earn $9.8 million, which is a typical drop of around 50% for most popular films.

The romance film Regretting You had a surprisingly good weekend, coming in second place with $13.6 million in ticket sales. It averaged a solid $4,034 per theater across 3,393 locations. While critics haven’t been kind to the movie (it currently has a 29% rating on Rotten Tomatoes), its initial success might not last in the coming weeks.

The film fell to fourth place, earning $6.8 million. This allowed Black Phone 2 to hold onto third with $7.2 million, while Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere dropped to fifth with $4.2 million. Here’s a look at our projected top 10 films for the weekend of October 31st to November 2nd.

Box Office Predictions For October 31-November 2
Movie Title Projected Domestic Gross
KPop Demon Hunters $14.7 million
Chainsaw Man: The Movie – Reze Arc $9.8 million
Black Phone 2 $7.2 million
Regretting You $6.8 million
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere $4.2 million
Tron: Ares $3.3 million
Bugonia $3.1 million
Back to the Future (40th Anniversry Re-release) $3 million
Good Fortune $1.6 million
One Battle After Another $1.5 million

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2025-10-29 22:31