The North American box office is in dire need of a major hit, having gone months without one. Despite Captain America: Brave New World becoming this year’s highest-grossing film, it falls short of being a blockbuster. As anticipation builds, Jenna Ortega‘s latest film, “Death of a Unicorn,” faces a lukewarm debut in the United States.
Jenna Ortega, an emerging talent in the horror-comedy genre, gained widespread acclaim with the Netflix series Wednesday. Her previous collaboration with Tim Burton on “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” proved a financial success, but her current horror comedy seems to struggle to replicate that charm. The film managed to earn less than $1 million during Thursday previews and only secured a spot in the top 5 of the domestic box office by Friday.
A Death of a Unicorn managed to garner a respectable figure on its release day. According to trade analyst Luiz Fernando, Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd‘s film earned $2.3 million on its opening Friday in North American theaters. This performance almost doubles the debut of “The Substance’s” $1.3 million, surpasses “The Crow’s” $2 million, yet falls short of “Blick Twice’s” $2.9 million and “The First Omen’s” $3.3 million.
Projected to earn between $5 million and $6.5 million in its opening weekend, the film’s performance is lower than Jenna Ortega’s previous successes with “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” and the Scream movies. Specifically, “Beetlejuice 2” amassed $111.00 million, while the 2022 and 2023 Scream installments collected $30.01 million and $44.44 million, respectively, on their debut weekends.
The film narrates the eerie journey of a father-daughter duo, Elliott and Ridley, who accidentally hit a unicorn with their car, triggering a series of terrifying events as they become the prey of the unicorn’s vengeful parents. Featuring Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, and Will Poulter, “Death of a Unicorn” was released in theaters on March 28.
The box office performance of Jenna Ortega’s latest project draws attention to its potential impact on the industry. With a production budget of under $20 million, achieving the projected opening weekend earnings might not set records but could still validate the film’s viability. While the performance is notably less robust compared to her previous projects, it highlights evolving trends in audience preferences and box-office dynamics. Only time will tell whether “Death of a Unicorn” can capture audiences’ attention, pushing its box-office returns beyond current predictions. As the film steadily advances, industry observers are keenly watching to see how it fares in upcoming weeks.
