With the movie already proving to be one of the best-reviewed of the year, Strange Darling is about to cross an important box office milestone. The thriller revolves around two people, simply dubbed The Lady and The Demon, as their one-night stand begins to devolve into a game of mental chess as they begin to suspect one may be a serial killer who has been active in the area. Led by Kyle Gallner and Willa Fitzgerald, Strange Darling has garnered near universal acclaim from critics, having held a rare 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes for some time before dipping slightly to 96% at the time of writing.
Now, with the movie in its second weekend of release, Collider is reporting that Strange Darling is gearing up to cross a box office milestone. Having currently grossed $1.9 million domestically, the thriller is set to close out the weekend surpassing $2 million, even in spite of such competition as Deadpool & Wolverine, Reagan and Alien: Romulus. Though a smaller figure compared to bigger releases, this would put the movie halfway to earning back its $4 million production budget.
Strange Darling Continues A Great 2024 Indie Box Office Trend
While 2024’s highest-grossing movies may still be dominated by franchise titles, Strange Darling‘s steady run at the box office marks a continuation of the great trend of indie genre movies finding success in theaters. Whether it was MaXXXine becoming the highest-grossing installment of the horror trilogy, or the Maika Monroe and Nicolas Cage-led Longlegs becoming Neon’s highest-grossing title to date, audiences have clearly been more open to original fare. See how Strange Darling has compared to some other major 2024 indie releases on Rotten Tomatoes and at the box office below:
|
Title |
RT Critics Score |
RT Audience Score |
Box Office |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Love Lies Bleeding |
94% |
82% |
$12.5 Million |
|
Immaculate |
71% |
59% |
$28.4 Million |
|
Late Night with the Devil |
97% |
81% |
$12.7 Million |
|
Civil War |
81% |
70% |
$122.5 Million |
|
Boy Kills World |
59% |
72% |
$3.3 Million |
|
I Saw the TV Glow |
84% |
72% |
$5.1 Million |
|
Thelma |
99% |
83% |
$9.8 Million |
|
MaXXXine |
73% |
78% |
$21.2 Million |
|
Longlegs |
86% |
60% |
$102.5 Million |
|
Strange Darling |
96% |
83% |
$2 Million |
In looking at why Strange Darling has been staying steady at the box office, there are a variety of reasons for the thriller’s early success. One of the biggest is that author Stephen King expressed his approval for the movie from the trailer alone, with many audiences trusting his reviews and turning out to watch what he recommends. Another is the sheer amount of critical acclaim Strange Darling has garnered since making its Fantastic Fest debut in 2023, with a movie holding a 100% on RT being a rarity, and pointing towards something unique when it does happen.
Ultimately, one of the biggest reasons why Strange Darling may have performed solidly thus far, and could grow further in the coming weeks, is the reaction to other recent blockbuster efforts. Both Borderlands and The Crow found themselves ravaged by critics and underperforming at the box office, leaving audiences to turn back to Deadpool & Wolverine and Alien: Romulus, in spite of their having already been in theaters for weeks. While the upcoming Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will certainly pose a threat to its longevity, positive word of mouth could see Strange Darling steadily climb the box office charts.
Source: Collider
