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It: Chapter Two already shattering ticket pre-sale records for horror genre
We're a little over a week away from the theatrical release of It: Chapter Two, and the Stephen King-inspired sequel already has a box office record to its name. According to Atom Tickets, the film is now the site's highest pre-selling horror film, knocking 2018's sequel/soft reboot of Halloween down to second place with three times more ticket sales. Us and and Annabelle Comes Home round out the third and fourth slots for Atom's biggest horror pre-seller movies.
“IT is one of the rare horror stories that appeals to everyone because of how it taps into childhood fears and adult nostalgia," said Alisha Grauso, Editorial Lead for Atom Tickets, in a statement obtained by SYFY WIRE. "The first movie was a global hit and audiences are wildly curious to see how the story ends. It's the sort of cultural phenomenon that creates huge buzz and anticipation heading into a sequel's release. Because of that, IT: Chapter Two has become the rare ‘event movie,’ a must-see film that is akin to audiences rushing to see Marvel or Star Wars. They just want to know how the story evolves for these characters they love.”
Per the ticket vending website, Chapter Two also happens to be "the #3 most anticipated movie women want to see this fall." That most likely has something to do with the strong female character of Beverly Marsh, who is played by Jessica Chastain in the new film.
This news comes on the heels of recent box office estimates that place the feature's weekend debut between $95 - $110 million, a figure that tracks a tad lower than Chapter One's $123 million opening.
Directed by the returning Andy Muschietti, It: Chapter Two is also based on the 1,138-page 1986 tome by King. Twenty-seven years after the Losers' Club seemingly vanquished Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård), the Lovecraftian clown awakens and begins a fresh killing spree. Making good on a blood pact they made as kids, the adult Losers return home to Derry in the hopes of killing the entity once and for all. Not willing to go down without a fight, Pennywise elists the help of the committed Henry Bowers (Teach Grant), whom It instructs to kill the Losers.
James McAvoy (Bill Denbrough), Bill Hader (Richie Tozier), James Ransone (Eddie Kaspbrak), Andy Bean (Stan Uris), and Jay Ryan (Ben Hanscom) co-star as the rest of the adult Losers. In particular, Hader's performance has been generally praised in early reactions to the movie on Twitter.
Nearly three hours long, It: Chapter Two floats into theaters everywhere next Friday, Sep. 6.
