Box Office Report: Horror Dominates on the Big Screen

It feels as though it has been forever since three genre films occupied space in the box office top 10, which is precisely why this weekend feels a bit more intriguing than most. It isn’t the Super Bowl, for folks like us, it’s the dark side of cinema, and today there’s good reason to celebrate.

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, Split and Rings are all top 10 viewed films this weekend.

Split is holding on to the top slot for a three-week run of dominance. M. Night Shyamalan’s latest has already racked up an impressive $98 million in domestic ticket sales while foreign markets have amassed an additional $44 million, pushing the pic’s worldwide total up to $142 million.

Rings opened in the number two position with an underwhelming $13 million domestically, but it’s working at making up for sales on the foreign circuits, having already pulled down an additional $15.2 million.

And finally, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter… no doubt leaving Sony a little disappointed, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter hasn’t performed too well here in America. The film currently sits in the sixth position of the top 10, and has thus far only sold $21 million in tickets, but the foreign field is hosting an entirely different game: RE6 has already come close to toppling $100 million; $95 million is the official haul.

It’s a good week for horror. Even for a film like Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, which isn’t living up to lofty expectations. There’s still very clearly big interest in high caliber commercial genre releases, and that’s a win, no matter how you look at it. Horror isn’t going anywhere, any time soon.