Last year, after being the dominant horror franchise for four consecutive years, “Saw” was upended by “Paranormal Activity.”
Coming off four previous openings of more than $30 million, 2009’s “Saw VI” was caught off-guard by the surprise success of “Paranormal,” debuting in second place to a weak $14.1 million.
This weekend, Saw’s serial-killer character Jigsaw is looking for some vengeance.
“Saw 3D,” the seventh and promised final entry in the annual series, is the only new movie opening nationwide this weekend. It comes one week after “Paranormal Activity 2” launched to strong ticket sales of $40.7 million.
Though it’s highly unlikely that the new “Saw” would reach those heights, people who have seen pre-release surveys say it has a good chance of beating the second weekend of Paramount Pictures’ “Paranormal 2.” The film is expected to sell $20 million to $25 million worth of tickets, while “Paranormal” will probably drop to $20 million or less.
Full story: Movie Projector: ‘Saw 3D’ seeking revenge on ‘Paranormal Activity 2’ | Company Town | Los Angeles Times