Smile Wins The Weekend Box Office With $22 Million Opening

gamerant.com:

The month of October may only just be beginning, but it’s already looking like a good one for horror fans. Paramount's horror original Smile has claimed the number one spot at the box office in its first weekend with an impressive haul.

Paramount's Smile follows the story of Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon), a doctor working in a psychiatric ward. When one of her patients (Caitlin Stasey) explains that she is being haunted and hunted down by a smiling entity that assumes the form of other people, Cotter is skeptical. But Cotter soon finds herself in her patient’s shoes and must find a way to fight off the supernatural entity. The film deals with themes of mental health and suicide.

Smile Featurette Teases Paramount's New Psychological Horror Film

Variety now reports that Smile has won the box office with a $22 million intake. For comparison, other horror releases of the year such as 20th Century Studio's Barbarian and Sony's The Invitation made $10 million and $7 million in their debut weekends, though The Invitation won one of the worst box office weekends of the year. Smile, which was originally slated for a streaming release, has managed to recoup its initial budget of $17 million in its first weekend.

Chris Aronson, Paramount's distribution chief, is quoted as saying, “It’s honestly sensational. I don’t like to use hyperbole, but this exceeded our wildest expectations.” Smile's performance has been outstanding throughout its production. Its early performance during its first screenings is what led it to receive a theatrical release, and viral stunts such as the studio hiring creepy actors to smile for the camera during baseball games have resulted in the film having an aura of mystery about it. Audiences obviously responded