October Opens With Horror Film on Top

Moviegoing audiences chose the horror movie over the romantic comedy to kick off the month of October. Paramount's Smile topped the North American charts with $22 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday, leaving Billy Eichner's rom-com Bros in the dust. Universal's Bros launched with an estimated $4.8 million to take fourth place. But opening weekends likely aren't the final word on either film. Horror movie audiences are generally front-loaded, dropping off steeply after the first weekend, while something like Bros, which got great reviews and an A CinemaScore, suggesting strong word-of-mouth potential, could continue finding audiences through the fall. It is not unusual for R-rated comedies to open modestly and catch on later, the AP reports.

Bros is significant for being the first gay rom-com given a wide theatrical release by a major studio, as well as the first studio movie starring and co-written by an openly gay man. Since premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival last month, the film has gotten stellar reviews from critics and also been the target of "review bombs" on IMDB. The site last week removed removed hundreds of one-star reviews for Bros that were logged before the film was released. It's also hard to compete with a new horror movie in October. Playing in 3,645 locations, Smile started strong with $2 million from Thursday night previews, too, and had a 4% uptick Saturday, which is almost unheard of for genres that usually decline after the first night. The film cost only $17 million to produce.

Below are estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. Smile, $22 million.
2. Don't Worry Darling, $7.3 million.
3. The Woman King, $7 million.
4. Bros, $4.8 million.
5. Avatar (rerelease), $4.7 million.
6. Ponniyin Selvan: I, $4.1 million.
7. Barbarian, $2.8 million.
8. Bullet Train, $1.4 million.
9. DC League of Super-Pets, $1.3 million.
10. Top Gun: Maverick, $1.2 million.

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