Proving again the lure of a good scare, the Stephen King-inspired film "IT Chapter Two" took in 91 million U.S. dollars this weekend to top the North American box office, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported on Sunday.

The three-day estimate fell below the first installment, with its frighteningly impressive 123 million U.S. dollars opening in 2017. But the two films now rank as the top two horror openings ever, according to Variety.

"IT Chapter Two" stars Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Isaiah Mustafa and Bill Hader as the grown-up versions of the kids who battled the terrifying, shape-shifting clown Pennywise 27 years earlier — and now must do it again.

Overseas, "IT Chapter Two" scared up a solid 94 million U.S. dollars for a global debut of 185 million dollars.

"We're absolutely thrilled with our result," Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution, said on a Sunday morning call. "Andy Muschietti and New Line, as well as the marketing team led by Blair Rich, created one of those moments where it all works. We're proud of it. "

The R-rated horror sequel didn't receive the same critical love as the first. "IT Chapter Two" carries a 64 percent on Rotten Tomatoes compared to an 87 percent for the original. However, audiences were more favorable, giving the same B+ CinemaScore as "IT."

Younger moviegoers appeared to be even more enthusiastic: Ticket buyers younger than 25 awarded the film an A- CinemaScore and those under the age of 18 gave it an A.

"The Pennywise character really speaks to [younger audiences] in a big way," Goldstein said. "We have such a strong millennial audience, which tells us we should have a long play in front of us."

Since "IT Chapter Two" was the only newcomer to movie theater marquees, popcorn season leftovers filled out box office charts. In a very distant second place, Lionsgate and Millennium's "Angel Has Fallen" collected six million dollars. After three weeks of release, the Gerard Butler-led action threequel has generated 53.46 million dollars.

Despite the success of "IT Chapter Two," the domestic box office is still down over six percent from last year, according to Comscore. But the last four months of 2019 looks to have some hits in store, including "Hustlers," "Joker," "Frozen 2" and "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker."

(With input from Reuters, AFP)