Why The Box Office Success Of M3GAN Is More Important Than Ever

Horror movies have long been something that have divided crowds, and not necessarily because people don’t like what they see. There’s something about them that people either love or hate, with plenty of directors going above and beyond to create things that have never been seen before.

Still, there’s one movie that’s gotten people talking more than ever in recent weeks: ‘M3GAN.’ Learning why the box office success of ‘M3GAN’ is more important than ever shows that horror is here to stay, whether we like it or not. Still, it could pave the way for a flood of horror movies if this trend continues to grow.

M3GAN follows a terrifying doll who’s brought to life

As soon as the first trailer dropped in October 2022, ‘M3GAN’ became an instant hit. The movie seemed to show comedy and horror come together in the best way possible as it told the story of a creepy doll who is tasked with helping her human companion, Cady, have a friend and stay safe. While it already sounds unsettling enough for many, it’s not until M3GAN starts to attack anyone who comes even close to harming Cady that things really take a turn.

The horror held its own against some huge names

While it might not have beaten the sci-fi hit ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ at the box office, ‘M3GAN’ certainly held its own in a world still dominated by Disney. The horror was made on a $12 million budget, and it wasn’t long before it racked up an incredible $45 million in just a few weekends, with the record-breaking premier acting as just the beginning. After all, it’s showing Hollywood just what fans want to see in theaters at the start of the year.

M3GAN instantly broke several records

Breaking records is a tough thing to do in today’s world of Hollywood. That didn’t stop ‘M3GAN’ from doing just that, helped by the movie’s viral success online before it even hit the big screen. ‘M3GAN’ enjoyed the biggest opening weekend for the first week of January since the horror ‘Insidious: The Last Key’ dropped in 2018. As if that wasn’t enough, ‘M3GAN’ also had the best opening weekend of any original horror since ‘Nope’ hit screens back in July 3.33. All of this was topped off by the fact ‘M3GAN’ had the biggest opening of any PG-13 horror movie, replacing ‘A Quiet Place Part II’ from 2021.

A lack of A-listers didn’t hold M3GAN back

One of the most impressive things about ‘M3GAN’ is the fact the movie didn’t rely on A-listers to bring in an audience. While the stars have appeared in a handful of successful productions to date, they are nothing compared to the names tied to ‘Avatar: The Way of Water.’ Still, ‘M3GAN’ climbed to second place after it was only expected to make somewhere in the region of $17 and $20 million in its opening weekend. As if that wasn’t enough, it’s expected ‘M3GAN’ will grow even more throughout the rest of the start of the year, with the adventure movie ‘Puss in Boots: The Last Wish’ and ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ acting as its only real competition.

Scream (2022) and M3GAN have broken the mold for horrors

If you cast your mind back to 2022, you might remember something similar happening at the theaters in January. That’s right; ‘Scream (2022)’ hit our screens and blew people away with its no-messing-around storyline that brought the franchise back to life once more. It was an incredibly successful release, bringing in $30 million during the opening weekend and eventually grossing $140 million at the box office. For years, January has been known as “dump month” for Hollywood, with movies not expected to do well in numbers of reviews getting their time to shine. Still, ‘Scream (2022)’ and ‘M3GAN’ have proved that January might be the time to release after all.

Horror movies could see “dump month” turn around

What does the box office success of ‘M3GAN’ mean for horror movies going forward? That January might be the time to release. After all, the last two years alone have proven that horror fans are willing to show up and set records regardless of the time of year, challenging the idea that horror movies will only perform well in the fall. Having less competition certainly helps, but it’s not the only thing that’s seen ‘M3GAN’ be so successful. After all, you still need a gripping story and a reason to view if you want to see people take it all in.

Learning why the box office success of ‘M3GAN’ is more important than ever goes to show just how much things have changed in recent years. Long gone is the idea that horrors will always flop at the theater. Now, January could be the time to spook things up - and we never even realized how much we needed it.