IT Chapter Two will SMASH box office records: How much money will Pennywise horror make?

The first IT movie scared up a whopping $700million at the worldwide box office. This is even more incredible since the horror blockbuster did not play in China at all. The success of the movie took even Hollywood by surprise but this time Warner Bros is more than ready and perfectly positioned to clean up over the opening weekend. Pennywise will be counting his pennies with glee as the Stephen King sequel floats into cinemas.

In the US, the movie will open on a record-breaking 4, 570 screens, compared to 3,700 for its predecessor. This is the most ever for any film in the US in September.

As well as the extraordinary anticipation for the film, another reason for the increase is the longer running time of the movie, which clocks in at 30 minutes longer than the first.

It opened worldwide in 2017 to a staggering $179million. 

Chapter Two predictions aren’t clowning about with Deadline reporting estimates of $200million or more.

This would obviously be the biggest opening weekend for any horror movie in history.

Strangely, the film is expected to take slightly less than the first in the US but more overseas. This is partly due to the enormous excitement over the original, but also because the first film had a staggered release worldwide. This time around Warner Bros is hitting most markets simultaneously.

Advance reviews and word of mouth is also not as strong for the sequel.

IT has a strong 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes but the sequel lags behind on 68%, with many critics saying it is more bloody and violent but somehow less scary and few convinced the longer running time is a benefit.

It Chapter Two sees the entire young cast of the Losers Club return but the film focusses on their adult selves when the main action picks up 27 years after the first film.

James MacAvoy, Jessica Chastain and Bill Hader headline, with Bill Skarsgard back as Pennywise. 

Horror fans have plenty more Stephen King to look forward to this year, with Dr Sleep opening in November. The sequel to The Shining stars Ewan McGregor as the grown-up Dan Torrance.

IT CHAPTER 2 IS OUT NOW