With the movie already proving to be one of the best-reviewed of the year, Strange Darling is about to cross an important box office milestone. The thriller revolves around two people, simply dubbed The Lady and The Demon, as their one-night stand begins to devolve into a game of mental chess as they begin to suspect one may be a serial killer who has been active in the area. Led by Kyle Gallner and Willa Fitzgerald, Strange Darling has garnered near universal acclaim from critics, having held a rare 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes for some time before dipping slightly to 96% at the time of writing.
Now, with the movie in its second weekend of release, Collider is reporting that Strange Darling is gearing up to cross a box office milestone. Having currently grossed $1.9 million domestically, the thriller is set to close out the weekend surpassing $2 million, even in spite of such competition as Deadpool & Wolverine, Reagan and Alien: Romulus. Though a smaller figure compared to bigger releases, this would put the movie halfway to earning back its $4 million production budget.
Strange Darling Continues A Great 2024 Indie Box Office Trend
While 2024’s highest-grossing movies may still be dominated by franchise titles, Strange Darling‘s steady run at the box office marks a continuation of the great trend of indie genre movies finding success in theaters. Whether it was MaXXXine becoming the highest-grossing installment of the horror trilogy, or the Maika Monroe and Nicolas Cage-led Longlegs becoming Neon’s highest-grossing title to date, audiences have clearly been more open to original fare. See how Strange Darling has compared to some other major 2024 indie releases on Rotten Tomatoes and at the box office below:
|
Title |
RT Critics Score |
RT Audience Score |
Box Office |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Love Lies Bleeding |
94% |
82% |
$12.5 Million |
|
Immaculate |
71% |
59% |
$28.4 Million |
|
Late Night with the Devil |
97% |
81% |
$12.7 Million |
|
Civil War |
81% |
70% |
$122.5 Million |
|
Boy Kills World |
59% |
72% |
$3.3 Million |
|
I Saw the TV Glow |
84% |
72% |
$5.1 Million |
|
Thelma |
99% |
83% |
$9.8 Million |
|
MaXXXine |
73% |
78% |
$21.2 Million |
|
Longlegs |
86% |
60% |
$102.5 Million |
|
Strange Darling |
96% |
83% |
$2 Million |
In looking at why Strange Darling has been staying steady at the box office, there are a variety of reasons for the thriller’s early success. One of the biggest is that author Stephen King expressed his approval for the movie from the trailer alone, with many audiences trusting his reviews and turning out to watch what he recommends. Another is the sheer amount of critical acclaim Strange Darling has garnered since making its Fantastic Fest debut in 2023, with a movie holding a 100% on RT being a rarity, and pointing towards something unique when it does happen.
Ultimately, one of the biggest reasons why Strange Darling may have performed solidly thus far, and could grow further in the coming weeks, is the reaction to other recent blockbuster efforts. Both Borderlands and The Crow found themselves ravaged by critics and underperforming at the box office, leaving audiences to turn back to Deadpool & Wolverine and Alien: Romulus, in spite of their having already been in theaters for weeks. While the upcoming Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will certainly pose a threat to its longevity, positive word of mouth could see Strange Darling steadily climb the box office charts.
2024’s Horror Box Office Run Is Nowhere Near Over
With the genre having already had a solid box office run, horror still has an exciting road ahead in theaters for the rest of 2024, particularly heading into the Halloween season. The month of September is starting off with the Brandy-led The Front Room before continuing with everything from the James McAvoy-starring English-language remake of Speak No Evil to the body horror-comedy Booger, which currently holds a rare 100% approval from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, to Halle Berry’s Never Let Go and the horror-driven Hellboy: The Crooked Man reboot, though only in the United Kingdom.
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Every Horror Movie Releasing In 2024
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As expected, October looks to be the month for the biggest remaining horror releases of 2024. Arguably the two most-anticipated of the month are Terrifier 3 and Smile 2, both of which are looking to recapture the viral successes of their predecessors. Though November and December will see a dip in overall output, they will look to close out the year strong with the Hugh Grant-starring Heretic, Kyle Mooney’s Y2K and Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu remake. Check out the full theatrical calendar of remaining 2024 horror movies in the chart below:
|
Title |
Release Date |
|---|---|
|
The Front Room |
September 6 |
|
Speak No Evil |
September 13 |
|
Booger |
September 13 |
|
The Substance |
September 20 |
|
Hellboy: The Crooked Man |
September 27 (UK only) |
|
Azrael |
September 27 |
|
Abruptio |
September 27 |
|
Terrifier 3 |
October 11 |
|
Smile 2 |
October 18 |
|
Heretic |
November 15 |
|
Nightbitch |
December 6 |
|
Y2K |
December 6 |
|
Nosferatu |
December 25 |
While the year has delivered a handful of critical and commercial misses in the genre, 2024 has proven to be another major win for indie horror-thrillers, and Strange Darling‘s early success at the box office marks an exciting assurance that such films will continue to find strong returns at the box office. Whether the Stephen King-approved thriller can reach the heights of its genre companions remains to be seen, but in a time in which the box office is often dominated by franchise fare, seeing original titles such as it enjoy some semblance of success in theaters is a great sign for other filmmakers.
Source: Collider
