Halloween Weekend Box Office: A Tight Race and Halloween Challenges

Originally posted on Total Apex Entertainment
By Matt Brown | Last updated Nov 3, 2025 12:54 PM ET

This past weekend was a quiet one at the box office, with overall ticket sales hitting near-historic lows for the year. The combination of Halloween falling on a Friday and a decisive Game 7 of the World Series kept many potential moviegoers at home, resulting in a sluggish frame for nearly every film in the top 10. The weekend’s total gross hovered around $53.5 million, making it one of the slowest of 2025.

Halloween Weekend Box Office Results

Ethan Hawke in The Black Phone (2021), Courtesy of Universal Pictures & Blumhouse Productions

A “Death Match” for the Top Spot

The battle for the No. 1 position was a nail-biter between two very different films: Paramount’s romantic drama Regretting You and Universal/Blumhouse’s horror sequel Black Phone 2. In the end, it was a photo finish. Paramount is projecting an $8.1 million weekend for Regretting You, which would give it the narrow victory. This total represents a 41% drop from its opening weekend, bringing its cumulative gross to $27.5 million.

Hot on its heels, Black Phone 2 is estimated to have earned $8.0 million in its third weekend. The horror flick saw a modest 38% decline and has now amassed a strong $61.4 million domestically. While Paramount is claiming the top spot based on its Sunday projections, some industry rivals see the horror sequel as the actual winner, highlighting how close the race truly was.

Notable Performances and Newcomers

Several other films vied for audience attention with mixed results. The anime feature Chainsaw Man took a steep 66% drop in its second weekend, earning $6 million for a total of $30.7 million. Meanwhile, Netflix’s Kpop Demon Hunters, which returned to theaters with availability at AMC, pulled in an estimated $5.3 million. Despite being one of the streamer’s most-watched titles, the theatrical re-release didn’t generate significant new buzz.

Focus Features’ quirky drama Bugonia expanded into wide release, earning $4.8 million. This figure marks the largest wide-weekend opening for director Yorgos Lanthimos, suggesting a solid start for the awards contender. In a nostalgic turn, the 40th-anniversary re-release of Back to the Future also made the top ten, grossing an impressive $4.7 million, with a significant boost from IMAX screenings.

The overall quiet Halloween weekend underscores the industry’s reliance on a steady stream of major event films. With October posting its lowest numbers in decades, all eyes are now on the upcoming holiday season to bring audiences back to theaters in force.

This article first appeared on Total Apex Entertainment and was syndicated with permission.

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