“Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death” isn’t likely to go into the annals of film history, but it can likely earn this footnote: the first newcomer of what will likely be the most lucrative year in box-office history.
To that end, the cheapie horror film earned a solid, if unspectacular, $1.5 million in Thursday sneaks. The haul suggests Relativity’s film will collect $9-$11 million for the weekend, traditionally one of the slowest at the box office as Christmas films dominate the slate.
Still, considering that the studio plunked down just $1 million for the movie shortly before The International Toronto Film Festival, “Woman” turned a profit on its first night out of the gate. And with no horror competition until Feb. 27’s “The Lazarus Effect” (another Relativity release), “Woman” should enjoy an uninterrupted horror run for weeks, although the genre typically fades fast after opening weekend.
And “Woman” still likely won’t unseat last week’s tent-pole releases. “Into the Woods,” “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” and Angelina Jolie‘s World War II film “Unbroken” are all expected to repeat this weekend atop the box office, which, with sequels of “Star Wars” and “The Avengers” on the way, could eclipse $11 billion this year, which would be a record.