Box Office Gets Glicked: ‘Wicked’ Opens to $114M, ‘Gladiator II’ Conquers $55.5M

As Thanksgiving approaches in the US, the two movies did incredibly well. The films have brought in $164.2 million and $221 million worldwide, respectively.

Although it's not as good as Barbenheimer's, the combination of Paramount's Gladiator II (also known as Glicked, Wikiator, or whatever you want) and Universal's musical Wicked produced the best pre-Thanksgiving weekend at the box office in more than ten years.

With an estimated $114 million in revenue, Wicked topped the domestic charts. Even if it's less than Friday's projected $120, it's still a record-breaking amount for a Broadway-based movie and one of the highest openings ever for a big-screen musical. It's also one of the year's top beginnings. The film has made a total of $164.2 million worldwide.

Gladiator II is expected to open with $55.5 million domestically, which is a good start for a movie that skews toward men and features swords and sandals (the estimate was $60 million on Saturday). It is anticipated to attract large audiences abroad, where it has already made $165.5 million, for a total of $221 million worldwide.

When compared to the same weekend last year, when holiday entries Napoleon and Wish debuted, the total domestic income for all films in North America this weekend was close to $200 million, a 70 percent increase.

The idea that Gladiator II and Wicked will duplicate the Barbenheimer effect this weekend and be the ideal combination to draw both men and women to the cinema has been rife on social media. Even though the domestic openers of Barbie ($162 million) and Oppenheimer ($82.5 million) will be far exceeded, the films do appeal to almost every demographic, including a diverse audience.

When Walt Disney Animation's Moana 2 releases on November 27, the Thanksgiving marquee will become much more intriguing. The term "Moanapocalypse" comes from the fact that, according to the Disney flic, the three movies are expected to generate the most American box office receipts for the entire Thanksgiving holiday, which runs from Wednesday through Sunday.

As anticipated, fueled primarily by women, the well-reviewed Wicked received a stellar A CinemaScore from viewers.

The well-known cast of Jon M. Chu's film adaptation of the well-known Broadway musical includes Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. Since part two of Wicked will be released in theaters in a year, Universal is taking a significant risk by producing two films. Prior to being on sale, the first one cost $150 million to produce.

Erivo plays Elphaba and Grande plays Glinda in Wicked, which is based on Gregory Maguire's best-selling book and portrays the untold tale of the witches of Oz. The screenplay for Chu's movie was written by Dana Fox and Winnie Holzman, who authored the book for the stage performance. The musical was adapted for the cinema by Academy Award-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz.

The $250 million Gladiator sequel, which was directed by Ridley Scott, received a B CinemaScore and is the most popular choice for men of all ages. Starring Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, and Fred Hechinger, among others, it opens in theaters 24 years after the original movie.

According to projections, Gladiator II will be Washington's biggest debut since American Gangster, which was also directed by Scott.

Mescal portrays an adult Lucius Verus II, the nephew of Emperor Commodus, played by Joaquin Phoenix in the first movie. After being enslaved, Lucius returns to Rome to fight as a gladiator seeking power and vengeance in an effort to restore Rome's grandeur to her citizens.

Red One, a Christmas movie from Amazon MGM Studios, dropped to No. 4 in its third weekend with $13.3 million, bringing its domestic total to $52.1 million and its worldwide total to $117.1 million, despite having a costly $250 million budget.