Although Heart Eyes has a pretty perfect self-contained storyline, the slasher movie’s box office success means a sequel is almost inevitable. Heart Eyes’ killer reveal is a stellar twist ending that even the most seasoned genre fan would struggle to predict. The twist ending is a satisfying one and, in an impressive genre mashup, Heart Eyes manages to succeed as both a sweet romcom and a gory slasher in its closing act.
Admittedly, it is hard to work out how Heart Eyes 2 could follow up on Ally and Jay’s story. If there is any issue with the slasher, it is that the genre hybrid is too tidily self-contained and doesn’t necessarily lend itself to a spinoff, sequel, or prequel. However, the box office impact of Heart Eyes means that the filmmakers may need to find a way to expand the world of the standalone slasher. Like star Olivia Holt’s earlier slasher Totally Killer, Heart Eyes is a critical success, but the Valentine’s Day themed horror is also a box office smash.
Heart Eyes Joined An Elite Slasher Club With Its Week 2 Box Office
Heart Eyes’ Second Week Increase Almost Matches A Slasher Box Office Record
Heart Eyes earned more at the box office in its second week than its opening weekend, making it one of only three slasher movies to pull off this rare feat. 2022’s indie hit Terrifier 2 and 1996’s iconic franchise-spawning meta-slasher Scream both had stronger second weeks than opening weekends. Heart Eyes joined this exclusive club when the slasher made $10 million in its second week, out-earning its week 1 takings by 20%.
For comparison, it is not unusual for a second week of release to see a new movie’s performance drop by up to 50%. For Heart Eyes to earn more, and by such a wide margin, is an undeniably impressive achievement alone. When paired with the movie’s low budget and its critical success, it is a huge win. Heart Eyes’s fusion of slasher and murder mystery tropes follows in the footsteps of its screenwriter Christopher Landon’s earlier hit Happy Death Day, which made over $125 million on a budget of only $5 million in 2017.
The box office success of Heart Eyes stands out.
Since Happy Death Day’s success, there has been an influx of slashers that combine self-aware comedy, murder mystery plotting, and slasher kills including Happy Death Day 2 U, There’s Someone Inside Your House, Bodies Bodies Bodies, Thanksgiving, Totally Killer, Scream 2022, Scream VI, It’s A Wonderful Knife, and Heart Eyes. While many of these were financial and critical successes, the box office success of Heart Eyes stands out.
Heart Eyes’ Box Office Drop Increases The Odds Of A Sequel
Heart Eyes Is Almost Certain To Get A Follow-up Now
Not only did Scream get a sequel after the original movie’s second week outperformed its opening, but director Wes Craven’s movie went on to spawn a franchise that remains one of the most celebrated and financially successful slasher series in history. Meanwhile, Terrifier 2 spawned 2024’s Terrifier 3, a gorier, wilder sequel that managed to out-earn its predecessor to become the most financially successful unrated movie of all time. Heart Eyes has a mainstream appeal that Terrifier 2 seemingly lacked and a genre-mashing premise that even Scream couldn’t boast.
As such, Heart Eyes is almost certain to receive a sequel, prequel, or spinoff after the original movie’s box-office success. Heart Eyes’ nods to the Scream series, along with its many borrows from iconic romcoms, prove that the movie is simultaneously fresh and steeped in film history. This makes a sequel all the more appealing since Heart Eyes can borrow from both classic romcoms and slashers alike to create a whole unique hybrid genre.
What Heart Eyes’ Director Has Said About Making A Sequel
Heart Eyes’ Director Discussed Dropping The Killer Into More Classic Rom-Coms
In an interview with Variety, Heart Eyes director Josh Ruben admitted that he did have an idea for a follow-up. The director’s pitch takes the most original idea from the movie and expands on it, asking what classic romcoms would look and feel like with a serial killer stalking around in the background. Per Ruben, “There’s an opportunity that we could have whoever the filmmaker was… genuinely trying to create or replicate that rom-com, or the feeling of a Bridget Jones or a Love Actually or what have you, but actually have those people terrified by this psychopathic killer.”
Much like Happy Death Day could be described as “Scream meets Groundhog Day” or It’s A Wonderful Knife could be called “It’s A Wonderful Life crossed with Friday the 13th,” Heart Eyes has a perfect elevator pitch at its core. The original movie’s stars wouldn’t necessarily need to return for a sequel, since the next Heart Eyes installment could be another romcom riff with a new couple that gradually reveals itself to be a self-aware slasher. The possibilities are endless for the Heart Eyes franchise, so viewers should expect more from the series in the future.
Source: Variety
