Us gets the biggest opening for an original horror film

Jordan Peele's second directorial, Us, has received a historic opening in the US for an original horror movie. Topping $70 million domestically, the film eclipsed the previous record held by John Krasinski's A Quiet Place.

Starring Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o, Us is about an upper-middle-class American family stalked and terrorised by their doppelgängers. The film joins the list of recent releases like Get Out (also directed by Peele) and Black Panther with a predominantly black cast and crew, that have performed exceptionally well at the box office. The continued success of these films has also opened up the discussion in Hollywood about the need for greater representation.

Us also garnered the biggest domestic opening weekend for an original R-rated film. The only other R-rated horror movies to surpass it have been It (a remake) and Halloween (a sequel). Incidentally, the Peele-directorial also had the second-highest opening for a live-action original film, after Avatar in 2009.

Us is set to be released in India this Friday.