Box Office: A Haunting In Venice Summons The Ghost Of A $15 Million Opening Weekend
Just when you thought it was safe to commit elaborate crimes, Kenneth Branagh's Hercule Poirot has returned. With his sharp mind and even sharper mustache, Branagh's take on Agatha Christie's famous detective first appeared in 2017's "Murder on the Orient Express" and returned last year in "Death on the Nile." Both were directed by Branagh and written by Michael Green, and that creative team reunited for "A Haunting in Venice," which is based on Christie's novel "The Hallowe'en Party."
This time around, Hercule Poirot is retired and living in self-imposed exile in Venice, when a séance and a murder pull him back into his old ways — though this time with a potentially supernatural twist. Audiences seem intrigued by this horror-tinged departure from the two previous movies, with Deadline reporting that "A Haunting in Venice" grossed $5.3 million on Friday (including Thursday previews) and is expected to gross around $14 million over its opening weekend.
That should be enough to scare last week's horror release, "The Nun II," away from the No. 1 spot. The Conjuring Universe sequel is currently looking at an estimated $12.8 million second weekend according to Deadline, though The Wrap forecasts a tighter race with both movies heading for $13-14 million. But how does it compare to Branagh's last two Poirot films, and will "A Haunting in Venice" be a box office success story, or a box office horror story?
The story so far...
Branagh's "Murder on the Orient Express" was a significant reminder that opening weekends aren't everything. The classic whodunit tale grossed a modest $28.6 million in its debut, but between a decent hold at the domestic box office and strong performance overseas, it ultimately grossed $352.7 million worldwide against a production budget of $55 million — an outstanding success. Less than three weeks after "Murder on the Orient Express" hit theaters, Fox had already greenlit the sequel, "Death on the Nile."
In an apparent bout of over-confidence after the success of the first movie, "Death on the Nile" was given a budget boost to $100 million and featured a star-studded cast that included Armie Hammer and Gal Gadot. Unfortunately for Poirot's second investigation, both of those actors may have been more of a curse than a boon. Beginning in January 2021, Hammer faced allegations of sexual assault and coercion from multiple women and by February 2022 — the month "Death on the Nile" released — he was the main suspect in an investigation by the LAPD.
Meanwhile, on a less serious note, Gadot's awkward delivery of the line, "...enough champagne to fill the Nile!" in the movie's trailer became the subject of mockery. Between that, the Hammer scandal, the mixed reviews, and a reluctance from older audiences to return to theaters amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, "Death on the Nile" bombed with a total global take of $137.3 million.
Enough champagne to fill the Grand Canal?
The projected $14 million opening weekend for "A Haunting in Venice" isn't much higher than the $12.8 million debut of "Death on the Nile," but there are a lot of factors here that could lead to a different outcome. For starters, the budget was scaled back again for this third outing to a much more sensible $60 million, similar to "Murder on the Orient Express." Then there's the fact that "A Haunting in Venice" has the best reviews of all three movies so far. It received the same CinemaScore from audience exit polling as the last two films (B), but has a rating of 78 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. (You can read /Film's review here.)
Audience demographics for "The Equalizer 3" recently demonstrated that older audiences have returned to theaters. 26 percent of ticket-buyers on the opening weekend of the Denzel Washington-led sequel were 55 or older, and half the audience was made up of people over the age of 45. And while "A Haunting in Venice" leans into horror elements, it's still rated PG-13, avoiding the excessive gore that can be a turn-off for mature moviegoers.
Speaking of the horror elements, one of the smartest things both Branagh and the marketing department have done with "A Haunting in Venice" is to really sell it as a horror movie. The trailer even hides the presence of Poirot up to the midway point, the sudden appearance of that trademark mustache providing a "this is actually an Agatha Christie story!" twist. Horror is one of the most consistently successful genres at the box office, and we're heading into the darkest days of the spooky season. "A Haunting in Venice" is in for a fight against competition from "The Nun II," "Saw X," and "The Exorcist: Believer," but it does have a shot at box office success.