When the horror specialists at Blumhouse Productions found themselves floundering at the box office, it looked like the golden era of lean, high-return fright flicks might be sputtering out. But with the release of The Black Phone 2, they’ve managed to turn this around, in just three days.
After a string of underwhelming openings, The Black Phone 2 arrived with perfect timing. It opened to a global weekend of roughly $42 million, including a domestic haul of about $26.5 million per Variety. That kind of number isn’t monumental by blockbuster standards, but for Blumhouse, given the recent slump, it’s exactly the jolt the studio needed.
Let’s be honest, Blumhouse has had it rough lately. Their once-steady model of “small budget, big fright, big return” hasn’t been firing on all cylinders. None of their 2025 releases had cracked the $40 million global mark before this one. So when The Black Phone 2 hits $42 million globally in its opening weekend, it signalled that the brand still has pull, the audience still cares, and horror still has a lane, even in a crowded marketplace.
There are a few reasons The Black Phone 2 connected. It’s a sequel to a film that already made an impact. The original The Black Phone opened with around $23.6 million domestically and built to about $161 million globally. That’s a solid foundation for any follow-up. The “lean model” still works. Reports show The Black Phone 2 had a modest budget of around $30 million and opened strong relative to that spend. The timing and genre are on its side. Horror remains a reliable draw when done right, and this release lands at a moment when other films are struggling to grab attention.
Of course, this success isn’t a cure-all. A strong opening weekend is only the first step. Maintaining momentum in the coming weeks will be key. The bigger question is whether Blumhouse can rebuild its rhythm of consistent hits or if this will be a one-time surge.If The Black Phone 2 holds steady, this could mark the start of a new chapter for Blumhouse, one that leans into sequels to well-loved horror originals, keeps budgets tight, and times releases strategically. It shows that the studio isn’t down for the count, it’s recalibrating.
In short, The Black Phone 2 revived a studio that needed a win. For horror fans and box-office watchers alike, that’s a comeback worth celebrating.
