Now that the horrifyingly violent Terrifier 3 was finally released in U.S. theaters on October 11. In its opening weekend alone, the slasher threequel has become the highest-grossing entry in the cult horror franchise. And not only that; it took the number-one spot at the domestic box office, outgrossing Joker: Folie à Deux in its second weekend and The Wild Robot in its third.
Both Terrifier 3 and Joker: Folie à Deux are highly anticipated sequels about killer clowns. But where the former is breaking box office records in a good way, the latter is breaking records in a bad way. Terrifier 3 has been a massive box office success, while Joker 2 is performing well below expectations for the long-awaited follow-up to a $1 billion blockbuster. So, how exactly did Art manage to beat the Joker at the box office? Why is an ultraviolent slasher that’s making audiences throw up grossing more than a big-budget comic book sequel?
How Much More Terrifier 3's Opening Weekend Made Than Joker 2's Second Weekend
Terrifier 3 Made $18.3 Million Domestically; Joker: Folie à Deux Made Just $7 Million
In this past weekend, Terrifier 3 grossed over 2.5 times more than Joker: Folie à Deux. Terrifier 3 made an impressive $18.3 million at the domestic box office, while Joker: Folie à Deux only brought in around $7 million. Even with Joker 2 being in its second weekend, it’s still wild to see Terrifier 3 not only beat it, but do so by such a wide margin. In its opening weekend, Joker 2 made $37.7 million, which was far below expectations. The DC sequel’s worldwide opening came in more than $100 million less than its sleeper-hit predecessor.
Terrifier 3 topped the domestic box office this weekend, with The Wild Robot in second place, Joker: Folie à Deux in third place, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice in fourth place, and Piece by Piece in fifth place.
Terrifier started off as a microbudget slasher that earned a cult following due to its boundary-pushing portrayal of bloodshed, and it has blossomed into one of the most iconic horror franchises around. Joker promised a fresh origin story for one of the most beloved supervillains ever created, and garnered unexpected interest when the morality of its depiction of vigilante justice was questioned. The popularity of both the Terrifier and Joker franchises was born out of controversy, but where Terrifier has maintained its fervent fan base, Joker lost the goodwill of its fan base almost overnight.
Why Terrifier 3's Box Office Is So Good
Unlike Joker 2, Terrifier 3 Has Been Well-Received
One of the main reasons why Terrifier 3 is succeeding where Joker 2 is failing is that, unlike Joker 2, Terrifier 3 has been well-received. Terrifier 3 has a good Rotten Tomatoes score promising a frightful time at the movies. Its “fresh” critics’ score of 76% isn’t quite as high as Terrifier 2’s 87%, but it is higher than the first film’s 60%. The threequel’s audience score is even better, at 89%. That, paired with a B CinemaScore, indicates a solid audience reception — especially for a movie so disgusting that it’s prompted walkouts and vomiting.
Terrifier 3 Cliffhanger Ending Explained
Damien Leone's Terrifier franchise continues with the gruesome Terrifier 3, and while the universe expanded, it ended on a shocking cliffhanger.
The Terrifier franchise has gotten more and more hype with each movie. Terrifier 2 had a lot riding on it after the first film’s word-of-mouth had turned it into a cult phenomenon, and Terrifier 3 promised to push the envelope even further. All the reports of people throwing up in the theater or walking out because they couldn’t handle the gore are just free publicity for a movie like this. It made it feel like a challenge just to get through it, which created the impression that it needed to be seen with an audience, not streamed at home.
It might’ve made sense to release this Christmas-themed entry around Christmas, but the producers were right to take advantage of the spooky Halloween season when audiences are looking for a good fright.
On top of that, the threequel’s October release was very well-timed. It might’ve made sense to release this Christmas-themed entry around Christmas, but the producers were right to take advantage of the spooky Halloween season when audiences are looking for a good fright. There’s not much competition right now in the way of horror movies. The Substance has been out for a while now, and Smile 2 isn’t arriving in theaters until October 18. This presented Terrifier 3 with the perfect opportunity to corner the market. Horror fans looking for something new to watch had just one option.
Joker: Folie à Deux Had A Huge 2nd Weekend Drop: What Happened?!
Joker 2 Had An 81% Drop In Its Second Weekend
Of course, Terrifier 3 outgrossing Joker 2 isn’t just about Terrifier 3’s success; it has just as much to do with Joker 2’s resounding failure. The Joker sequel had a record-breakingly bad 81% second weekend drop. That’s the worst second-week drop for any movie in the comic book genre, outdoing other notorious superhero bombs like The Marvels (78.1%) and Shazam! Fury of the Gods (69%). And the opening weekend it’s dropping down from wasn’t all that impressive to begin with — it was over $100 million short of the first movie’s opening weekend performance.
10 Reasons Joker: Folie a Deux's Box Office Is Such A Disaster
Joker: Folie a Deux has fallen short of box office expectations, with a variety of factors contributing to its poor commercial performance.
This can all be attributed to Fans of the first Joker film felt personally attacked by the sequel’s bitter critique of the Joker’s followers and advised their fellow fans against seeing it.
What Terrifier 3's Box Office Success Means
It's Very Good News For Terrifier 4 & Beyond
Terrifier 3’s box office is very good news for the franchise. Terrifier 4 has already been confirmed, and Terrifier 3’s chart-topping success surely means that Art will continue terrorizing audiences for many more movies after that. Terrifier 3 is likely the catalyst that will turn Terrifier into a new long-running slasher franchise like Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. The threequel’s success also shows the continued power of horror movies with lower budgets, which have been doing very well in recent years and will presumably continue at pace in the future.
What Joker: Folie à Deux's Second-Weekend Box Office Means
It's Not Good For The Already Tainted DC Brand
Joker: Folie à Deux isn’t just underperforming; it’s a certifiable box office disaster. It’ll probably mean the end of Todd Phillips’ Joker franchise, despite the potential setup for a third film with the revelation of a new Joker who would presumably become Batman’s arch-nemesis. DC, of course, has its own franchise reboot on the way under James Gunn’s direction, but Joker 2 flopping is still not good for the overall brand, which has already been tainted with a series of flops. No one could’ve predicted that Terrifier 3 would outgross Joker: Folie à Deux, but it’s been fascinating to see.
Terrifier 3
- Release Date
- October 11, 2024
- Runtime
- 125 Minutes
- Director
- Damien Leone
Cast
Lauren LaVeraSienna
David Howard ThorntonArt the Clown
WHERE TO WATCH
Terrifier 3 follows Sienna and her brother as they attempt to move past the traumatic events of Art the Clown's Halloween massacre. As they embrace the Christmas season, Art reemerges, intent on turning their holiday into a nightmare, continuing his reign of terror.
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Joker: Folie a Deux
- Release Date
- October 4, 2024
- Runtime
- 138 Minutes
- Director
- Todd Phillips
Cast
Arthur Fleck
Lee Quinzel
WHERE TO WATCH
Joker: Folie à Deux is the sequel to Todd Phillips' critically acclaimed comic book thriller Joker. Reprising his Academy Award-winning performance as the failed comedian Arthur Fleck, Joaquin Phoenix revisits the iconic DC character alongside Lady Gaga, who makes her debut as Joker's lover Harley Quinn in this standalone continuity of the DC Universe.
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