The Numbers Are In: Top-Grossing Horror Movies of 2009
Posted by About.com Horror & Suspense on January 6, 2010
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Vampires, ghosts and zombies ruled the box office charts in 2009, which turned out to be a robust year for horror and suspense movies. The biggest surprises?
Performed better than expected:
- Paranormal Activity: Came out of nowhere, surprising everyone.
- Obsessed: Who knew a Fatal Attraction ripoff starring Beyonce could do so well?
- The Final Destination: Inflated 3-D ticket prices boosted it to the biggest numbers in the franchise‘s history.
- Underworld: Rise of the Lycans: Kate Beckinsale, no problem. It was the least successful of the series, but not by much.
Performed worse than expected:
- Halloween II: Did a little more than half of the business of Rob Zombie’s first “re-imagining.”
- Saw VI: Did LESS than half of the business of the other five movies in the franchise. Has the series peaked, or did it just run into the Paranormal Activity buzzsaw?
- Jennifer’s Body: A big marketing push failed to capitalize on Megan Fox’s (forced?) stardom.
- The Vampire’s Assistant: Estimated budget of $80 million, potential for a long-running series, built-in fan base from the books, big star power…final total: less than $14 million. Ouch.
(It should be noted that Twilight, which opened in November 2008, earned more in 2009 at the box office than major 2009 releases like A Perfect Getaway, The Box, Sorority Row, Pandorum and Whiteout. Don’t shoot the messenger.)
So, what horror movies will outperform expectations in 2010 and what will disappoint?
The Numbers Are In: Top-Grossing Horror Movies of 2009 originally appeared on About.com Horror & Suspense on Thursday, January 7th, 2010 at 02:17:57.
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