The movie industry hasn’t had much to be grateful for in recent years, but that all changes this holiday week, with three splashy new releases bringing audiences back to theaters in a big way.
The biggest draw is undoubtedly Disney Animation’s “Moana 2,” which grossed a whopping $57.5 million on Wednesday and is expected to dominate the Thanksgiving holiday box office with a historic performance. “Moana 2,” which was originally developed as a TV show for Disney+ and later adapted into a theatrical version, is expected to collect at least $175 million in box office revenue in its first five days in theaters (Rivals The studio estimates box office revenue will reach $200 million.) If it hits these lofty estimates, Moana 2 would easily break the record for the biggest Thanksgiving box office in history, surpassing only Frozen 2 ($125 million in five days) and 2013’s It will surpass the previous record set by The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. ” ($109 million in 5 days). “Moana 2”’s opening day box office revenue has already ranked third among animated films, behind “Incredibles 2” ($71.2 million) and “Inside Head 2” ($63.6 million). The film grossed $66.3 million worldwide.
But Moana 2 isn’t the only movie experiencing a revival in movie theaters. “Wicked,” Universal’s big-budget film adaptation of the Broadway musical sensation, grossed $20.4 million on Wednesday, and is expected to bring in more than $63 million over the traditional weekend and $97 million over five days. are. That means the film, the first in a two-part journey through Oz, will have grossed more than $240 million domestically by the end of this week. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande star as Elphaba (later Wicked Witch of the West) and Galinda (eventually renamed Glinda the Good) in this critically acclaimed musical. The two films — Part 2 will be released in theaters next fall — cost a combined $300 million to make, but that doesn’t include the tens of millions of dollars spent on overall marketing. “Wicked” is an advertising campaign promoting everything from Starbucks drinks to nail polish to Lego sets.
And then there’s “Gladiator II,” the big-ticket sequel to Paramount’s 2000 blockbuster, which brought in $6.6 million on Wednesday. The film, starring Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Denzel Washington, is expected to gross $28 million in North American theaters over a traditional weekend and $40 million from Wednesday through Sunday. It will end the holiday season with more than $107 million in U.S. box office revenue. But the return to the Colosseum didn’t come cheap, especially after last year’s Hollywood strike shut down production for several months. Gladiator II had a huge budget of $250 million.
While critics have been lukewarm on Moana 2, giving it a middling rating of 67% on Rotten Tomatoes, the first film had a passionate fan base and, thanks to streaming, it received a middling 67% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It has increased significantly since its release. It is one of the most popular movies on Disney+, with more than 80 billion minutes logged by viewers, according to Bloomberg. Moana 2’s voice cast includes Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson, who reprise their roles as the daughter of a Polynesian chief and demigod. However, Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote such popular songs as “How Far I’ll Go” for the first film, did not provide any new music for the sequel. Instead, Disney has tapped Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, the creative team behind the “unofficial Bridgerton Musical,” to craft enough new songs to make the soundtrack a must-buy for families this holiday season. Ta.
Johnson is pulling double duty at the multiplex. He was also the star of Amazon and MGM Studios’ “Red One,” which earned about $2.8 million on Wednesday. Domestic sales after the holidays should hover around $75 million. If the movie didn’t cost $250 million to make, those numbers wouldn’t be so terrible and it would be one of the biggest box office flops of the year. However, like “Moana 2,” “Red One” was originally conceived as a streaming-only debut before media companies began changing their distribution strategies to prioritize theatrical releases.
The strong performance of “Moana 2,” “Gladiator II” and “Wicked” is welcome news for the exhibition industry, which is just beginning to recover from pandemic-era shutdowns that saw their releases postponed due to actors and writers’ strikes in 2023. is. And fewer big movies will be shown to customers. But the trio of blockbuster hopefuls is changing the game, setting a new milestone with more than $315 million in holiday weekend box office receipts. Is this a sign that things are finally looking up?
