The body horror film “Clayface” received an A− grade based on CinemaScore audience polling. For DC, this is already a familiar result: Matt Reeves’ “The Batman”, James Gunn’s “Superman”, “Aquaman”, and “Man of Steel” earned the same score in their time. However, this is far less common among horror films. Since the pandemic, only a few films have reached an A−, including “A Quiet Place Part II”, “Five Nights at Freddy’s”, “Weapons”, and “Obsession”.
James Gunn did not let the achievement go unnoticed and congratulated the “Clayface” team:
“Very proud of this. […] Over the past couple of years, only three horrors have received an A−: ‘Obsession’, ‘Weapons’, and now ‘Clayface’. As always, all credit belongs to James, Mike, Hossein, Tom, Naomi, and the entire team.”
CinemaScore grades are particularly interesting because the company polls audiences directly after screenings in the US and Canada. Unlike typical online ratings, such a result is much harder to ruin with review bombing. Hollywood studios keep a close eye on CinemaScore, as a high score can indicate good word of mouth and help a film retain audiences after its opening weekend.
Over its debut weekend, “Clayface” grossed $43 million worldwide, including $24 million in the US and Canada, where it topped the box office. Now, strong word of mouth ahead of Halloween could help the horror film maintain its momentum in the coming weekend.