Although the impact of the global pandemic continued to haunt movie theaters in 2021, as more people were vaccinated, so too did the box office strengthen, with North American receipts nearly double those of 2020.
Did 2021 mark your return to seeing movies in an actual theater? If so, which one was your first? (Mine was Halloween Kills.) And which was your favourite? (For me, that distinction goes to A Quiet Place Part II.) Scroll down for my year end reveal of the Top 10 horror champions at the 2021 box office, as determined by North American, Overseas and Worldwide audiences.
As you will soon discover, an almost overwhelming number of these films is either a sequel or remake/reboot. Do you share my hope that 2022 rewards horror movie goers with more original films, or are you good with a flurry of sequels and remakes/reboots being churned out just so long as they don’t suck? (Yes, I’m talking to you, Scream and Halloween Ends. Lol)
NORTH AMERICAN BOX OFFICE (U.S. DOLLARS)
- A QUIET PLACE PART II – $160,072,261 (#8 among all movies for the year)
- HALLOWEEN KILLS – $92,002,155 (#14)
- THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT – $65,513,102 (#19)
- CANDYMAN – $61,186,570 (#20)
- OLD – $48,242,510 (#26)
- THE FOREVER PURGE – $44,539,245 (#29)
- DON’T BREATHE 2 – $32,638,038 (#35)
- ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS – $25,188,958 (#43)
- SPIRAL – $23,216,862 (#46)
- RESIDENT EVIL: WELCOME TO RACCOON CITY – $16,890,005 (#50)
OVERSEAS BOX OFFICE (U.S. DOLLARS)
- A QUIET PLACE PART II – $137,300,000
- THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT -$136,400,000
- OLD – $41,870,000
- HALLOWEEN KILLS – $39,645,000
- THE FOREVER PURGE – $32,455,000
- ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS – $26,600,000
- MALIGNANT – $20,600,000
- SPIRAL – $17,402,058
- CANDYMAN – $16,225,000
- THE UNHOLY – $15,300,000
WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE (U.S. DOLLARS)
- A QUIET PLACE PART II – $297,372,261 (#14 among all films for the year)
- THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT – $201,965,074 (#19)
- HALLOWEEN KILLS – $131,647,155 (#31)
- OLD – $90,112,510 (#43)
- CANDYMAN – $77,411,570 (#46)
- THE FOREVER PURGE – $76,994,245 (#47)
- ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS – $51,788,958 (#61)
- DON’T BREATHE 2 – $47,238,038 (#64)
- SPIRAL – $40,618,920 (#71)
- MALIGNANT – $33,974,014 (#79)