This past weekend at the box office once again belonged to Spider-Man: Brand New Day, with Marvel’s latest on a record-setting tear adding another $145 million to its ever-growing total in its second weekend. But much further down on the chart was something rather encouraging for fans of original horror movies, particularly slashers. That’s because Director Jane Schoenbrun’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma had a very solid start in limited release.
See also: 6 Slasher Movies That Subvert The Final Girl Rules
Schoenbrun’s follow-up to I Saw the TV Glow opened on just five screens in limited release over the weekend, with Mubi opening the slasher in key markets. The strategy is working in the early going as it pulled in an excellent $251,500, making for a stellar $50,300 per-screen average. The trick with these things is always managing to build on that success as the movie expands, but indie horror rarely achieves those results in limited release. These are grosses often reserved for prestige filmmaking and awards season contenders. Again, it’s a good sign.
In the movie, after years of slapdash sequels and waning fandom, the Camp Miasma slasher franchise is handed over to an enthusiastic young director for resurrection. But when she visits the original’s star, a now-reclusive actress shrouded in mystery, the two women fall into a blood-soaked world of desire, fear, and delirium. The cast is led by Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) and Gillian Anderson (The X-Files).
Camp Miasma is positioning itself as a meta “new kind of remake.” Part of the reason why it did so well on its opening weekend is because it’s been met with near-universal praise thus far. The movie currently holds a 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. If general audiences agree, this one could break out as it expands in the coming weeks.
Elsewhere, Eli Roth’s controversial Ice Cream Man also opened wide, taking in $2 million. In light of its poor reception, it’s likely going to fall off a cliff in weekend two. It’s a so-so result for an indie release but Roth is going to have to hope this one finds its audience on VOD and streaming.
Looking ahead, this upcoming weekend brings with it Warner Bros.’ new dinosaur movie The End of Oak Street, which is oddly facing off with another very different dinosaur movie, Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie. Let them fight, as it were. After that, we’ve got Insidious: Out of the Further to look forward to as the summer movie season winds down.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is in select theaters now.
