Audiences screamed their way through another trip to The Further this weekend as Insidious: The Red Door landed in theatres, making a much bigger splash than initially projected.
Being the fifth entry in the franchise and factoring in a five-year series break, the Patrick Wilson directed flick was initially projected to gross $18-23 million from 3200 screens on a budget of $16 million. Pre-sales were described as “sluggish,” with interest expected to be lessened following the July 4th holiday fatigue.
However, The Red Door pulled in a franchise high of $5 million during Thursday night previews, leaving the estimates in tatters. Previously Insidious: The Last Key held the series’ Thursday night record with $1.98 million, a total shattered by The Red Door.
Ultimately, Patrick Wilson’s directorial debut went on to top the box-office with a final domestic weekend tally of $32 million, surpassing even the revised estimates. An additional $32 million was netted from international business, for a grand total of $64.2 million, the second best opening of the Insidious franchise behind 2013’s Chapter 2.
Although critical reception has been mixed, the surprising box-office victory proves just how much public interest the Insidious series still generates. Undoubtedly the studio will be taking notice and the numbers will ensure that plenty more Insidious content comes our way soon.
