On This Day in Horror History: ‘The Lost Boys’, ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ and ‘The Collector’ Hit Theaters

It’s another one of those big days, historically speaking… if you’re a horror nerd, of course. On July 31 a trio of killer flicks opened: The Lost Boys, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Collector all descended on consumers, and you know what? They didn’t fair too terribly.

The Lost Boys opened 30 years ago today. The film debuted in the #2 slot and would eventually gross more than $32 million. It’s been an even greater success on home video.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, who turns 25 today, didn’t win the crowds over in masses. It opened in the fifth box office slot, and only took home $16 million. But fear not, like The Lost Boys, Buffy’s stock skyrocketed thanks to a successful small screen spin-off and strong initial home video sales.

And finally we have The Collector (8), which earned a very limited theatrical push (I drove nearly three hours to see it). It opened at number 11 and earned just $9 million. And, what do you know – just like the other two films celebrating anniversaries today, The Collector would also go on to become an enormous success on home video.