The well-received new horror movie Abigail is positioned to take down A24’s political thriller hit Civil War, which debuted last weekend on April 12.
Summary
-
Abigail
could potentially surpass
Civil War
at the box office this weekend, with projected earnings between $12-15 million. - Civil War set a record for A24 with a $25.7 million debut, but
Abigail
‘s positive reviews may help it become a horror hit. - The buzz around
Abigail
is strong, with a positive critical reception and high box office predictions for the horror film.
Abigail is positioned to potentially overtake Civil War at the box office this weekend. Civil War is a political thriller from writer-director Alex Garland that hit theaters on April 12. Abigail is a soon-to-be released horror film about a group of killers who kidnaps a young ballerina girl only to discover that she is secretly a murderous vampire.
As per Variety, new box office predictions for this weekend say that Abigail could beat out Civil War at the box office. The source predicts that Abigail will take in between $12 million and $15 million at the domestic box office during its debut this weekend. Civil War is looking at between $10 to $15 million. If these projections turn out to be true, Abigail would top the box office domestically this weekend, with Civil War coming in second. Fellow new releases The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare and Spy x Family Code: White are both looking at roughly $5-6 million.
Will Abigail Be a 2024 Horror Hit?
Civil War has had an impressive box office run since opening last weekend. It brought in an impressive $25.7 million domestically during its debut weekend, setting a record for the largest debut for A24 in their history. This record is notable because Civil War’s budget of $50 million also made the film the highest budget in their history. Because of these huge records, Abigail beating Civil War would be even more notable for the horror film.
Civil War’s reviews have been as positive as its box office. The film has a universally positive 82% on Rotten Tomatoes for its critics score, and a 77% audience approval rating. While these scores make Civil War an additional force to be reckoned with, Abigail’s early reviews are also positive. At the time of writing, Abigail holds an 85% on Rotten Tomatoes with 41 critics. Abigail does not yet have an audience score, but this positive critical reception is a great sign.
Civil War
nearly doubled
Hereditary
‘s opening weekend box office.
Abigail’s reviews and buzz are just positive enough that the film could manage to follow through on their high box office predictions. After all, the spring has started off well for horror, with The First Omen bringing in a respectable $8.3 million during opening weekend, with a $36.2 million worldwide gross to date. If Abigail does end up bringing in the higher end of its estimated range, the film could be on its way to becoming the biggest horror debut of 2024 so far.
Source: Variety
Abigail (2024)
Abigail is a 2024 horror thriller directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. The plot follows a group of people who kidnap the daughter of a dangerous crime lord only to discover that the little girl is actually a vicious vampire out for blood. Alisha Weir stars as the titular character alongside Kathryn Newton, Melissa Barrera, and Dan Stevens.
- Director
- Matt Bettinelli-Olpin , Tyler Gillett
- Release Date
- April 19, 2024
- Distributor(s)
- Universal Pictures
- Writers
- Guy Busick , Stephen Shields
- Cast
- Kathryn Newton , Dan Stevens , Giancarlo Esposito , Kevin Durand , Melissa Barrera , Alisha Weir , Angus Cloud , William Catlett