It’s been almost a decade in the making, butFive Nights at Freddy’sis finally able to watch both in cinemas and on the Peacock streaming service. Despite the long wait, the film is already proving itself to be a strong contender for those sweet box office numbers.According to Variety, the film has already nabbed a whopping $39.4 million in ticket sales from 3,675 locations on its opening day.
What makes this especially impressive is the fact that Blumhouse and Universal released the film to streaming same-day. This isn’t a new tactic. The studio previously used this strategy with films such asHalloween KillsandHalloween Ends.Five Nights at Freddy’swas not only another success for the studio, but it also outshined the previously mentioned titles.
Currently, the film is aiming to earn $78 million this weekend. This will have Freddy muscle pastTaylor Swift: The Eras Tour’s top spot. The concert movie only earned $4.8 million on Friday but is still looking to bring in $150 million domestically. Coming in third is Scorsese’sKillers of the Flower Moon, which is hoping to come home with $10 million on its second weekend.
Five Nights at Freddy’sis based on the monumental horror videogame franchise by developer Scott Cawthon. The film follows a security guard (played by Josh Hutcherson) as he takes on a new job at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. But at night, the famous animatronic band starts to get especially active and bloodthirsty.Five Nights at Freddy’salso stars Elizabeth Lail, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Matthew Lillard.
Another element that makesFive Nights at Freddy’ssuccess is the notoriously long development. The firstFive Nights at Freddy’sgame premiered in 2014, inspired by a negative review of a previous game by Cawthon. The game was a simple point-and-click style survival horror but became a surprise hit with the “Let’s Play” community on YouTube. The game’s success led Scott to develop seven official sequels in the main series (withHelp WantedandSecurity Breachbeing co-developed by Steel Wool). The game also spawned a book series, three spinoff games, comics, merchandise, and much more!
News of a film adaptation of Freddy’s datesall the way back to 2015, when the hype for the game was still very fresh. Warner Bros. Pictures initially bought the rights to the film, setting Roy Lee, David Katzenberg, and Seth Grahame-Smith to produce. Gil Kenan was also signed in to direct. But Warner Bros. Pictured put the project on turnaround, allowing Blumhouse Productions to sweep in as the new production company, with Jason Blum as the new producer and Kenan stepping down as director.
In 2018, a first draft of the script was completed, with a goal of a 2020 release. But months later, Cawthon announced that he scrapped the script. Since then, everything was silent over with Blum and Cawthon, with only a script that needed to be re-tooled and many promises that the film wasstill in production.
New development didn’t come to light until 2022 when it was announced that Jim Henson’s Creature Shop was to bring the infamous animatronics to life. Soon after, it was announced that Emma Tammi was picking up the directing role, as well as the various casting announcements.
It’s been a long and bumpy road for the millions of Freddy fans out there. But after so long, the wait is finally over. Already, the film is drumming up both infamy and excitement of its own. Social media platforms like TikTok are littered with footage of fans stealing displays, rowdy behavior, and lots of appreciation. The wait for Freddy was as powerful as a springlock suit, and it’s finally set off.
