Tyler Perry’s A Madea Halloween is a box office hit

“Boo! A Madea Halloween” hijacked the competition during its debut weekend to claim first place at the North American box office, industry data showed on Monday.

The latest instalment of Tyler Perry’s Madea comedy franchise — in which Perry reprises his role as a tough-talking black mama — raked up $27.6 million, beating the latest Jack Reacher sequel.

“Jack Reacher: Never Go Back” took second place with $22.9 million.

Of all the new releases, audiences liked “Boo!” the best.

It received an “A” grade, according to CinemaScore, while “Jack Reacher” got a “B+” and “Joneses” a “B-.”

“This isn’t the end of the series, it’s just the beginning,” said Jeff Bock, box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations, who noted that Perry also scored with 2013’s “A Madea Christmas.”

“There are so many holidays left. There’s Easter, St. Patrick’s Day, and he hasn’t even done a Thanksgiving one yet!”

Don’t look for “Boo!” to end up in the Oscar race or on many reviewers’ “Top Ten ” lists, but the Halloween comedy is a hit for distributor Lionsgate and reaffirms Perry’s star power.

Despite being routinely derided by critics, the film series has an extremely loyal fan base. Collectively they’ve earned nearly $380 million, enjoying capacious profit margins for movies that costs so low to produce.
 
To the cinemas all ye Madea lovers!