Ay Dios Mio! “Mama” Success Credited to Latino Moviegoers

“Mama is appealing to Latinos both because of its storyline (horror is a huge draw for this demo) and del Toro.”[THR]

Mama is by most accounts a pretty tepid and fairly unremarkable horror movie. It does star the latest box office queen Jessica Chastain, but more importantly in explaining its success at the box office is the fact that it is a horror movie (which is a huge draw for Latinos at the marquee - who knew?) and also that it is produced by Guillermo del Toro.

According to the latest box office analysis, “The strength of the $15 million Mama caught Hollywood off guard when it opened to $32.1 million over the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. weekend. Latino moviegoers made up 47 percent of Mama’s audience, a greater percentage than usual for a horror film and helping to explain why the movie overperformed. And it has continued to over-index in Hispanic markets.”

Latinos traditionally make up about 35 percent of the audience for any horror movie. Which begs the question: Is there a “Frederico Cougar” movie on the way?!