Universal’s WICKED opened this weekend with an inspiring $114M in ticket sales, followed by Paramount’s GLADIATOR II with a strong $55.5M second-place finish. The combined total for all movies this weekend was $208.0M. This compares very favorably to last year’s weekend, which generated only $116M, led by THE HUNGER GAMES: THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS & SNAKES with $29M in its second weekend.
This is the highest-grossing pre-Thanksgiving weekend since 2013, when November 22-24 brought in $226.5M led by $158.1M from the opening of THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE. It is the fifth highest pre-Thanksgiving weekend in history, with the record held by November 20-22 in 2009 when THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON opened with $142.8M and the total box office was $258.6M.
Exceptional performances had been expected for WICKED and GLADIATOR II, with many hoping the two films together could rival last summer’s dual openings of BARBIE and OPPENHEIMER from July 21-23. In the end, this weekend came in as the third highest of the year, after $284.9M from July 26-28 when DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE opened and $213.9M from June 14-16 when INSIDE OUT 2 arrived.
The total for WICKED and GLADIATOR II together was $169.5M, 69% of the $244.5M taken in by BARBIE and OPPENHEIMER in their debut. Here is a comparison of each of these four movies individually, and the totals for the WICKEDIATOR and BARBENHEIMER pairs.
- WICKED (11/22/2024) – Opening Domestic $114.0M, Budget $150M, RT Critics/Audience 90%/97%
- BARBIE (7/21/2023)- Opening Domestic $162.0M, Total Domestic $636.2M, Total Worldwide $1.447B, Budget $145M, RT Critics/Audience 88%/83%
- GLADIATOR II (11/22/2024)- Opening Domestic $55.5M, Budget $250M, RT Critics/Audience 71%/85%
- OPPENHEIMER (7/21/2023)- Opening Domestic $82.5M, Total Domestic $329.9M, Total Worldwide $975.6M, Budget $100M, RT Critics/Audience 93%/91%
- WICKEDIATOR – Opening Domestic $169.5M, Total Budget $400M
- BARBENHEIMER – Opening Domestic $244.5M, Total Domestic $966.1M, Total Worldwide $2.4226B, Total Budget $245M
As expected, WICKED finished first with a soaring $114.0M weekend. The storyline of the movie takes place before the events depicted in the classic movie THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939), though this story is technically a reimagining rather than a prequel. It explores the backstory of Elphaba, who will become The Wicked Witch of the West, and Glinda, who turns into The Good Witch. The screenplay is based on Gregory Maguire’s novel “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” published in 1995.
The novel explores their personalities, struggles, and the complex political and social landscape of Oz approximately 15-20 years before Dorothy’s arrival. The book explains how Elphaba turned “wicked” and how her rivalry with Glinda developed. However, because WICKED reinterprets characters and events in a way that sometimes diverges from the original Oz narrative, it functions more as a parallel story that deepens the worldview rather than following precisely the storyline of the 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum and the 1939 film version. Interestingly, THE WIZARD OF OZ had a lifetime gross of $29.7M from its original theatrical release and subsequent re-releases. Adjusted for inflation, this amounts to roughly $588M in today’s dollars.
In 2003, Maguire’s novel was adapted to become the Tony Award-winning musical “Wicked”, one of the most successful stage plays in history. 21 years later, the musical is still going strong on Broadway where it has earned an impressive $1.4B, the second highest-earning musical in history after “The Lion King” which has earned $1.9B. Wicked the musical has been staged in 16 countries and 100 cities, generating $5B in worldwide ticket sales.
With such a rich history, it is only natural that Universal would want to use its IP to create a new movie extravaganza. Directed by Jon M. Chu (IN THE HEIGHTS from 2021 and CRAZY RICH ASIANS from 2018) the film features a cast led by Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba), Ariana Grande (Glinda), and Jeff Goldblum (The Wizard). Both critics and audiences love it, awarding 90% and 97% scores respectively on Rotten Tomatoes.
After its exceptional opening, WICKED is certain to become one of the top-grossing movies of the year. While INSIDE OUT 2 ($653.0M) and DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE ($636.7M) are probably safe at numbers 1 and 2, the third-place status of Universal’s DESPICABLE ME 4 at $361.0M could be in jeopardy. With a production budget of $145M, WICKED is almost certain to make a profit, needing $365M in worldwide gross to move into the black. The worldwide exposure of the play should lead to strong international interest.
The decision to divide the story into two theatrical releases makes the financial outlook for the project even brighter, as the two chapters were shot at the same time, holding down the total production cost for both releases to $310M. WICKED was not always envisioned as a two-part release. Initially, Universal and director Jon M. Chu were planning on making a single film. However, in April 2022, Chu announced that his movie would be split into two chapters to avoid cutting essential material from the Broadway musical and make it so that the full story could be told.
Chu explained that the intricate narrative, beloved songs, and emotional journey would be compromised by packing everything into a single film. The two movies allow for a more faithful and expansive adaptation of the Broadway production. This weekend’s WICKED has a running time of 2 hours and 40 minutes while WICKED: PART 2 is likely to have a similar runtime when it opens next year at this time. Occasionally, an artistic decision is also a sound financial choice.
Paramount’s GLADIATOR II opened in second place with $55.5M. This is the long-awaited sequel to the 2000 movie GLADIATOR, which received 12 Academy Award nominations and won five including Best Picture and Best Actor (Russell Crowe) at the 73rd Academy Awards on Sunday, March 25, 2001. Not only was the original film a critical success but it was also a financial winner, the third highest-grossing movie of its year.
GLADIATOR had a domestic box office of $187.6M and a worldwide gross of $465.5M, the equivalent of $343.9M and $853.3M in 2024 dollars. Even after a 24-year gap, Ridley Scott came back to direct the sequel, which is no small feat given that the famous director will turn 87 on November 30th. The movie also reunites much of the creative team from the first movie, including cinematographer John Mathieson, production designer Arthur Max, and costume designer Janty Yates.
The events in GLADIATOR II take place 20-25 years after those depicted in GLADIATOR, mirroring the real-world time difference between the two movies. The main character of GLADIATOR II is Lucius, who appeared as a young boy in the original when he was inspired by Maximus, the movie’s protagonist played by Russell Crowe. Now as an adult, Lucius finds himself pulled back into the violent world of Roman politics and gladiatorial combat.
Because Maximus died in the original, Russell Crowe couldn’t return in the sequel but the actor is reported to be very positive about the new movie, and recognizes the impact that his role in GLADIATOR had on his career. The new cast is led by Paul Mescal who plays Lucas and Denzel Washington who plays Macrinus, a powerful figure seeking to overthrow the current Roman emperors played by Joseph Quinn as Emperor Geta and Fred Hechinger as Emperor Caracalla.
Their rule is shown as being excessively cruel and despotic, with the muscle provided by General Marcus Acacius, played by Pedro Pascal. Both Connie Nielsen as Lucilla, Lucius’s mother, and Derek Jacobi as Gracchus, an ally of Maximus, return to their roles in the original film.
GLADIATOR set a high bar for critical praise, with its pedigree of winning multiple Oscars. The new movie has done OK in that regard, with a 71% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and praise for Ridley Scott for having produced a muscular spectacle with impressive visuals and epic battle sequences. Denzel Washington is cited for his part as the Machiavellian character Marcrinus, with some suggesting that his performance may be Oscar-worthy.
On the other hand, some critics complain that II does not capture the emotional depth of the original, saying that Mescal’s performance lacks the gravitas that Crowe brought to the screen. Audiences are weighing in with a just-fine 87% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Here is a breakdown of the two GLADIATOR films and how they compare in several important categories.
- GLADIATOR (5/5/2000) – Opening Domestic $34.8M, Total Domestic $187.6M, Total Worldwide $460.6M, Budget $103M, RT Critics/Audience 80%/87%
- GLADIATOR II (11/22/24) – Opening Domestic $55.5M, Budget $210M, RT Critics/Audience 71%/85%
With GLADIATOR II’s opening outperforming the original’s by a healthy 59%, the sequel is off to a positive start. The $55.5M it earned is the second-highest opening ever for a Ridley Scott-directed movie falling just short of HANNIBAL which earned $58.0M in 2001. Not surprisingly, the budget for the new movie has ballooned by comparison, coming in at $250M compared to $100M for GLADIATOR. This will make it more difficult for GLADIATOR II to be as profitable as the original, which earned a worldwide gross that was 4.5 times its production budget.
RED ONE from Amazon/MGM finished third with $13.3M and a drop of 59%. The 10-day domestic total is $52.9M, with a 17-day worldwide gross of $115.8M. The 59% decline in its second weekend is a sign that the movie could hold up over the weeks ahead. A drop of anything less than 60% is an achievement, especially when considering that it has a lowly critic’s score of 31% and is going up against the blockbuster openings of WICKED and GLADIATOR II.
Beginning Wednesday, RED ONE will face another stiff challenge when Disney’s MOANA 2 opens, drawing the attention of most family audiences. Its 91% audience score and Christmas theme should help RED ONE to hang around through December, with some moviegoers looking for seasonal fare. The real test will be how many of its initial 4,000+ locations continue to play it through the holidays. Amazon/MGM will be pleased if it is still playing at 2,000 locations in the final week of the year.
BONHOEFFER: PASTOR, SPY, ASSASSIN from Angel Studios finished in fourth place by taking in $5.1M on its opening weekend. Todd Komarnicki (SULLY from 2016) directed and wrote this screenplay telling the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian and dissident who participated in the plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944. As is often the case with an Angel Studios movie, the film focuses on issues of moral complexity. The movie’s focus is on Bonhoeffer’s internal conflict as a pacifist who is motivated to join a plot to kill Hitler after seeing the atrocities of the Nazi regime.
Critics have been mixed with only a 59% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with some saying that the cinematography was impressive but that they were unconvinced by how Bonhoeffer’s pacifist ideals were represented. Historians are arguing that Bonhoffer’s participation in the assassination plot is oversold for dramatic effect, and is inconsistent with his pacifist ideals. Angel Studios has built a loyal fan following for its pictures and the audience score on this film is very high at 91%. Angel has once again used crowdfunding to finance its production, and a unique “Pay It Forward” campaign to boost ticket sales.
Sony and Marvel’s VENOM: THE LAST DANCE finished in fifth place by adding $4.0M to its total, a drop of 45% from last weekend. After 31 days, the superhero sequel has amassed $133.8M domestically and $450.5M worldwide. The third chapter in the trilogy is on target to earn $145M domestically and $480M worldwide. Despite being short of the original VENOM’s box office total of $213.5M domestic and $856.1M worldwide, THE LAST DANCE will still wind up being profitable with a 4X ratio comparing its worldwide box office to its $120M production budget.