‘The Accountant 2’ Has Grossed Eight Times As Much as Ben Affleck’s Forgotten 32% Rotten Tomatoes Mind-Bender

Having completed two full weeks of release, Amazon MGM’s The Accountant 2 is on track to hit the coveted $100 million mark at the global box office. The action sequel passed an important milestone domestically, but it still trails its predecessor, The Accountant. Also directed by Gavin O’Connor and starring Ben Affleck, The Accountant was released nearly a decade ago by Warner Bros. It emerged as a surprise box office hit and developed an even bigger fanbase on streaming and transactional platforms.
The first film’s success on home video is probably what prompted a sequel. Affleck certainly needs a more grown-up franchise at this stage in his career, after having tried and failed twice in the superhero genre. He also played the fan-favorite Jack Ryan in The Sum of All Fears in 2002. In the last few years, Affleck has mainly starred in streaming releases. The handful of theatrical movies that he has appeared in have either bombed (Hypnotic) or performed modestly (AIR). In fact, The Accountant 2 has now grossed around eight times as much as Hypnotic, which made around $11 million worldwide a couple of years ago.
With almost $51 million domestically and another $25 million from overseas markets, The Accountant 2’s cumulative global haul currently stands at $76 million. This is around half as much as what the first film concluded its run with in 2016. The Accountant was produced on a reported budget of $45 million, while the sequel comes with a reported price tag of $80 million. Going by the rule of thumb, it would need to out-gross its predecessor to break even, considering the costs involved. But The Accountant 2, being an Amazon MGM release, makes a difference.
‘The Accountant 2’ Is Destined to Become a Home Video Hit

What this means is that it was primarily designed as a streaming project; anything that it makes theatrically is a bonus, and extra marketing for its eventual digital debut. Last year, the Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans vehicle Red One underperformed at the box office, but was a huge hit on Prime Video. Like that film, The Accountant 2 has been embraced by audiences, who’ve awarded it an excellent 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Even the critics seem to have preferred the sequel to the original, giving it a 76% score, as compared to the first film’s 53% score.
You can watch The Accountant 2 in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

The Accountant 2