DC’s New Horror Movie Officially Goes Head-to-Head With Two Major Releases

4 days ago 21

Jenna Ortega looking confused in Klara and the Sun

Published Oct 25, 2026, 8:30 AM EDT

Ryan O'Rourke is a Senior News Writer at Collider with a specific interest in all things adult animation, video game adaptations, and the work of Mike Flanagan. He is also an experienced baseball writer with over six years of articles between multiple outlets, most notably FanSided's CubbiesCrib. Whether it's taking in a baseball game, a new season of Futurama or Castlevania: Nocturne, or playing the latest From Software title, he is always finding ways to show his fandom. When it comes to gaming and anything that takes inspiration from it, he is deeply opinionated on what's going on. Outside of entertainment, he's a graduate of Eureka College with a Bachelor's in Communication where he honed his craft as a writer. Between The IV Leader at Illinois Valley Community College and The Pegasus at Eureka, he spent the majority of his college career publishing articles on everything from politics to campus happenings and, of course, entertainment for the student body. Those principles he learned covering the 2020 election, Palestine, and so much more are brought here to Collider, where he has gleefully written on everything from the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes to Nathan Lane baby-birding sewer boys.

Summer may be blockbuster season, but this weekend features a surprisingly heavyweight showdown between three massive and very different titles from across the industry. Three years after teaming up with Michael Fassbender for the sports comedy Next Goal Wins, Taika Waititi has officially returned to theaters with his adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's acclaimed novel, Klara and the Sun, starring Jenna Ortega. It's not the only take on a beloved work of literature hitting the big screen, though, as stop-motion giant Laika finally unleashes its long-gestating film, Wildwood, based on Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis' 2011 children's fantasy novel. Together, they face down the latest from DC seeking to capitalize on the spooky season — James Watkins' Clayface.

Heading into the weekend, the odds have been in the Batman villain's favor. Between its buzzy and creepy promotion, Halloween nearing, and the promise of a tragic and horrifying Mike Flanagan-penned take on the shape-shifting Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries), it got off to a solid start with $3.5 million in Thursday previews. Projections have the film taking home $45 million to $55 million globally in its opening, which should be more than enough to put a smile on that experimentally altered face given its leaner budget. Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella, and Eddie Marsan also star in the supervillain origin story. Its competitors, however, aren't quite expected to go toe-to-toe with that effort.

Despite plenty of star power and Laika's track record of creating breathtaking stop-motion magic from Coraline to Kubo and the Two Strings, Wildwood is expected to fall closer to the $6-to-8 million mark domestically. That would be a massively disappointing start for the fantasy, given it boasted a reported budget of $100 million. Word of mouth has been remarkably positive so far, too, with critics giving it a Certified Fresh 100% on Rotten Tomatoes through 99 reviews, while audiences sit at an equally fantastic 98%. There's been less positivity, however, surrounding Klara, which sits at a 24% score from reviewers and is only projected to make around $2 million this weekend. Both are instead expected to be overtaken by a surprise contender in its second weekend — the Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim team-up Elizabeth Holmes documentary You Can See Everything. After a head-turning $15.6 million debut last weekend, it's projecting in the $20-to-25 million range domestically as it opens in more theaters, putting it in position to go blow-for-blow with Clayface.

What Are 'Klara and the Sun' and 'Wildwood' About?

In Klara and the Sun, Ortega plays the titular Artificial Friend who is designed to help combat loneliness in a sci-fi dystopia where genetic enhancement has divided people more than ever. She finds her perfect home upon meeting Josie (Mia Tharia), a kindred spirit who sees something special in her, even if she is an older, outdated model. Although Josie and her mother (Amy Adams) share a difficult relationship racked by tragedy, their new companion's innocent, optimistic approach to the world slowly begins to break through and bring much-needed light into their lives. Waititi both wrote and directed, with Natasha Lyonne, Steve Buscemi, and Aran Murphy among the supporting cast.

The Travis Knight-directed Wildwood, meanwhile, follows teenager Prue McKeel (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) into the dangerous, breathtaking, and fantastically alive woods just outside of Portland to find her baby brother after he's kidnapped by crows. Joined by her classmate Curtis (Jacob Tremblay), she finds an entire other world waiting within the trees, one that's on the brink of war among its many fantastical inhabitants. At the center is Alexandra (Carey Mulligan), a mysterious woman haunted by the death of her son who would go to dangerous lengths to bring him back. A proudly handmade feature down to the finest details, it also stars, among many others, Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Amandla Stenberg, Richard E. Grant, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Maya Erskine, and Charlie Day.