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Together, Moana 2, Wicked and Gladiator II are breaking a cavalcade of box office records over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The Wizard of Oz prequel musical Wicked and the Ridley Scott legacy sequel Gladiator II both opened the weekend before U.S. Thanksgiving, with the former handily claiming the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office. The Moana 2 release debuted the following Wednesday, just one day before the holiday. The new Disney animated movie is a direct sequel to their 2016 hit and was brought to theaters after originally being developed as a Disney+ series.
Per Deadline, as of Saturday morning, Moana 2 is projected to earn a 5-day Thanksgiving gross between $215 and $220 million at the domestic box office. This will break the record for the best 5-day weekend of all time, beating The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which premiered with $204.6 million on the first Wednesday of April in 2023, though its midweek debut was not connected to a holiday weekend. Wicked and Gladiator have also helped bring the overall 5-day weekend to $422 million, the best Thanksgiving ever, beating 2018’s $315.6 million. Below, see a breakdown of every record this weekend:
|
Title(s) |
Record |
Total |
Beating Out… |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Moana 2, Wicked, Gladiator II, more |
Best Thanksgiving Weekend |
$422 million |
2018 ($315.6 million) |
|
Moana 2 |
Best 5-Day Weekend |
$215-$220 million |
The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($204.6 million) |
|
Moana 2 |
2nd Best Dwayne Johnson 3-Day Debut |
$140 million |
behind Furious 7 ($147.1 million) |
|
Moana 2 |
Best Thanksgiving Weekend Debut |
$215-$220 million (5-day) |
Frozen II ($125 million 3-day), Frozen ($93.6 million 5-day) |
|
Wicked |
3rd Best Thanksgiving 5-Day Weekend |
$118 million |
behind Frozen II ($125 million), Moana 2 ($215-$220 million) |
|
Wicked |
Highest-Grossing Broadway Adaptation (Domestic) |
$263 million (by Sunday) |
Grease ($188.2 million) |
While “Glicked” did not prove to have the box office might of “Barbenheimer,” the 2023 weekend when Barbie and Oppenheimer propped one another up for huge double-feature grosses, both Wicked and Gladiator II are still turning out solid 5-day hauls in their second weekends. Wicked is set for a 5-day total of $118 million with a 3-day of $80 million, which is a dazzlingly slim 28% drop. Meanwhile, Gladiator II‘s projections show a $45 million 5-day with a $31.7 million 3-day, marking a decent 42% drop.
More to come…
Source: Deadline
-
Moana 2 is the sequel to the 2016 animated film Moana. Directed by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, the film continues the journey of Moana as she embarks on new adventures, exploring the vast Pacific Ocean while encountering new characters and challenges along the way.
- Director
- David G. Derrick Jr. , Jason Hand , Dana Ledoux Miller
- Release Date
- November 27, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Walt Disney Pictures , Walt Disney Animation Studios
- Distributor(s)
- Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
- Writers
- Dana Ledoux Miller , Jared Bush , Jason Hand , Ron Clements , John Musker
- Cast
- Auli’i Cravalho , Dwayne Johnson , Alan Tudyk , Rachel House , Temuera Morrison , Nicole Scherzinger , Hualālai Chung , David Fane , Rose Matafeo , Awhimai Fraser , Gerald Ramsey , Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda
- Character(s)
- Moana , Maui , Hei Hei , Tala , Chief Tui , Sina , Moni , Kele , Loto , Matangi , Tautai Vasa , Simea
- Runtime
- 100 Minutes
-
Wicked adapts the Broadway musical into a two-part film, following the unlikely friendship between Elphaba, born with green skin, and Glinda, a popular aristocrat, in the Land of Oz. As they navigate their contrasting paths, they evolve into Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.
- Director
- Jon M. Chu
- Release Date
- November 22, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Marc Platt Productions
- Distributor(s)
- Universal Pictures
- Writers
- Gregory Maguire , Winnie Holzman , Dana Fox , L. Frank Baum
- Cast
- Cynthia Erivo , Ariana Grande , Michelle Yeoh , Jeff Goldblum , Jonathan Bailey , Ethan Slater , Marissa Bode , Bowen Yang , Bronwyn James , Keala Settle , Peter Dinklage , Aaron Teoh , Grecia De la Paz , Colin Michael Carmichael , Adam James , Andy Nyman , Courtney Mae-Briggs , Sharon D. Clarke , Jenna Boyd
- Character(s)
- Elphaba Thropp , Glinda Upland , Madame Morrible , The Wizard , Fiyero Tigelaar , Boq , Nessarose Thropp , Pfannee , ShenShen , Miss Coddle , Doctor Dillamond (voice) , Avaric Tenmeadows , Gilligan , Professor Nikidik , Glinda’s Father , Governor Frexspar Thropp , Melena Thropp , The Midwife
- Runtime
- 160 Minutes
-
Gladiator 2 is the follow-up to Ridley Scott’s award-winning film Gladiator from 2000. Scott returns to direct the sequel, with Paul Mescal staring as Lucius, alongside Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn as the villain Emperor Geta. Gladiator 2 had been stuck in development hell for years before a script written by David Scarpa finally moved forward.
- Release Date
- November 22, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Paramount Pictures , Universal Pictures , Scott Free Productions , Red Wagon Entertainment
- Distributor(s)
- Paramount Pictures
- Writers
- David Scarpa , Peter Craig , David Franzoni
- Cast
- Paul Mescal , Pedro Pascal , Denzel Washington , Connie Nielsen , Joseph Quinn , Fred Hechinger , Derek Jacobi , May Calamawy , Peter Mensah , Matt Lucas , Alexander Karim , Tim McInnerny , Lee Charles , Chidi Ajufo , Alfie Tempest , Riana Duce , Chi Lewis Parry , Paul Candelent , Hadrian Howard , Alexander Simkin , Mikhail Basmadjian , Matthew Charlery-Smith , Maxime Durand , Lior Raz
- Character(s)
- Lucius Verus , Marcus Acacius , Macrinus , Lucilla , Emperor Caracalla , Emperor Geta , Gracchus
- Runtime
- 148 minutes
- Main Genre
- Adventure
This article covers a developing story. Continue to check back with us as we will be adding more information as it becomes available.
