Ethan Hawke’s Chilling New R-Rated Thriller Is Killing It As No. 1 Movie In The US On Streaming

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The horror sequel, Black Phone 2, is currently the most popular movie in the U.S. on streaming platforms. Following the 2022 film The Black Phone, it once again stars Ethan Hawke as The Grabber, a terrifying child abductor and murderer. Released in cinemas on October 17th, it became available to stream on Peacock starting January 16th.

Currently, Black Phone 2 is the most popular movie on Peacock in the United States. It’s held the top spot for nine days straight, according to FlixPatrol. The film is performing better than The Hunger Games (at number two), as well as Gabby Dollhouse: The Movie, Bugonia, the other Hunger Games films, Shrek Forever After, and Despicable Me, which rounds out the top ten.

Scott Derrickson, who also co-wrote the screenplay, returns to direct Black Phone 2. The film picks up with siblings Finney and Gwen, along with their friend Ernesto, as they head to a winter camp. There, they investigate a puzzling mystery connected to the Grabber’s first victims, whose spirits now linger at the camp.

I’m really excited about the cast for Black Phone 2! Of course, Ethan Hawke is back as the terrifying Grabber, but it’s great to see Jeremy Davies and James Ransone returning as their characters from the first movie. They’re adding some familiar faces, and we’ve also got some fantastic new additions like Demián Bichir, Arianna Rivas, Graham Abbey, Anna Lore, Simon Webster, Shepherd Munroe, and Chase B. Robertson. A cool bit of casting is Miguel Mora – he played Robin in the first Black Phone, and now he’s playing Robin’s brother, Ernesto, which should be interesting!

Credit: Robin Cymbaly / © Universal Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

Critics generally liked Black Phone 2, praising how it thoughtfully explored the consequences of the first movie. The sequel delivers genuinely frightening moments and explores themes of trauma, earning a 72% score on Rotten Tomatoes. While positive, this is slightly lower than the 81% score the original Black Phone received.

Viewers generally liked Black Phone 2, finding its spooky story and themes continued from the first movie. Many called it a scary but satisfying sequel, especially for fans of the original, and it currently has an 83% audience approval rating. While positive, this is a bit lower than the 88% score the first film received.

The sequel, Black Phone 2, performed well in theaters, earning $132 million with a $30 million production cost. While this was lower than the original Black Phone, which grossed over $161 million from a $16–18 million budget, Black Phone 2 has proven popular on streaming services. Other successful streaming titles include Ethan Hawke’s The Lowdown on Disney+/Hulu and the 2017 film The Magnificent Seven on Netflix.

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2026-01-26 23:40