Indian Horror Comedy Movie Passes Rare Global Box Office Milestone As It Climbs All-Time Bollywood Record

Stree 2 continues to blow away box office expectations, reaching a major global milestone in just 12 days. After Vicky (Rajkumar Rao) and his friends scare away the titular spirit that haunted the town of Chanderi, they face a new supernatural threat — a headless ghost who abducts women. The Indian horror-comedy sequel comes six years after the original movie, which also launched the franchise Maddock Supernatural Universe. Following Stree 2‘s release during India’s Independence Day, the horror comedy had an exceptional box office debut weekend, even cracking the United States domestic top 10 chart with $2.57 million and a global total of $9.1 million.

Now, according to Forbes, Stree 2 is dominating the Bollywood box office as the movie has now crossed $70.1 million globally. Of that total, $59.3 million comes from India. With this box office update, the movie has set many records, including the highest-grossing Hindi-language movie of 2024 (surpassing Fighter), the second-highest-grossing Indian movie of 2024 (only behind Kalki 2898 AD), and the ninth-highest-grossing Hindi-language movie of all-time. In addition, the horror comedy also ranks no. 19 as the highest-grossing Indian movie of all time.

How Is Stree 2 Dominating The Box Office & Breaking Records?

There Has Been A Growing Interest In Supernatural Bollywood Movies.

Stree 2‘s box office success comes at a unique time, with a growing interest in Indian supernatural/horror movies. While Bollywood has seen successes in the supernatural-horror genre, including Bhool Bhulaiyaa and Ram Gopal Varma’s Bhoot, it has been tough to find a consistent general crowd. That narrative has since changed, as evident with Bhool Bhulaiyaa expanding into a franchise 15 years after the original movie and Ajay Devgn’s Shaitaan finding similar success, with a sequel now in development. However, even Stree 2‘s box office run is unprecedented for a horror/supernatural movie, when record-breaking Bollywood movies typically fall under romances, historical epics, or action blockbusters.

However, many factors contributed to Stree 2‘s incredible commercial success. The original 2018 movie was a surprise hit and garnered generally positive reviews, with praise including the balance between the scare and humor and Rao’s performance. The movie also made roughly $21.7 million at the global box office, encouraging a franchise that consists of four more movies with two more in development. Aside from one horror movie, three are part of the expanded universe — Bhediya, Munjya, and Stree 2. However, except for Munjya, those movies have not found similar box office achievements as Stree and its sequel.

Ultimately, the sequel’s success came down to its release strategy and the star power of Shraddha Kapoor. Stree 2 was released during the holiday period of India’s Independence Day and the festivities of Rakshabandhan, giving the advantage of the five-day extended weekend. With it also being a sequel, there was strong familiarity with the movie’s content, premise, and cast. In addition, the sequel also honed in on Kapoor’s popularity with audiences, with marketing even putting her front and center. This is an interesting detail, as Kapoor doesn’t have a huge screen time in the sequel compared to her co-stars Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, and Aparshakti Khurana.

As Stree 2 continues to win at the box office, it makes the development of another sequel inevitable. Producer Dinesh Vijan has already confirmed that Stree 3 is in development, with its release expected in 2026. The movie also opens the door for more storytelling, with Kapoor’s She still wondering around in the universe. Even with that, this would hopefully expand interest in the Maddock Supernatural Universe, with Vampires of Vijaynagar and Bhediya 2 slated for next year.

Source: Forbes