- Moana 2 £12,021,342 – NE
Took £2.8m 23.39% Friday: £4.93m 41.19% Saturday; £4.21m 35.17% Sunday; £748k Monday
76th biggest opening between Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Spider-Man 3 (close to Fantastic Beasts 2, Jurassic World Dominion, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Star Wars: Attack of the Clones) and the 125th inflated opening between Suicide Squad and Shrek Forever After (close to Night at the Museum, Jurassic Park, Love Actually and The World Is Not Enough).
9th biggest animation opening between Toy Story 4 and Minions (close to The Simpsons, Sing, Minions The Rise of Gru and Ice Age: Continental Drift) and the 18th inflated animation between Ice Age: Continental Drift and Shrek Forever After (close to Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo, Ice Age III and Incredibles 2).
3rd biggest 2024 opening between Wicked and Inside Out 2 (close to Paddington In Peru, Dune: Part 2, Gladiator II and Despicable Me 4)
According to Movio 80% in the UK and 83% in the US were infrequent cinemagoers slightly higher than for Wicked; while the top age group was 2-11-year-olds most of whom would have seen the original film either in the cinema or on streaming.
After taking £2.8m on Friday comparisons were being made with Frozen II taking £3m but it took 23% less on Saturday (£6.41m) and 27% less on Sunday (£4.21m). Moana 2 took similar weekend dailies to Inside Out 2 Fri £2.58m; Sat £4.95m and Sun £3.77m. Frozen 2 took Monday £907k; Tuesday £958k; Weds £903k; Thursday £696k.
In 2016, Moana opened a week after the US as it would have instead faced the second weekend of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, but with Mufasa: The Lion King opening in three weeks, Disney couldn’t delay Moana 2 to distance it from Wicked; in 2017, Disney delayed to January to avoid Coco opening three weeks after Paddington 2.
2016’s Moana opened £2,214,898 #2 556 screens; Moana was never #1 due to Fantastic Beasts #1 for 4 weeks and then Rogue One: A Star Wars Story #1 for 3 weeks but held strongly down 14% in second weekend £1,911,784 #2; 26% in third weekend £1,424,527. Dropped 22% fourth weekend £1,105,469 #3; up 45% in fifth weekend (Christmas) £1,620,268 #5; dropped 28% in sixth weekend £1,179,760 #6; dropped 11% in seventh weekend £1,050,979 #3; playing strongly to February taking £20,041,031.
Moana became a massive hit on home entertainment in 2017 (the fourth biggest of the year between Fantastic Beasts and Bridget Jones’s Baby) and was on Netflix for the next two years before moving to Disney+ in 2020. Moana is one of Disney’s most loved recent animated films, so there were grand expectations for the sequel, but audience reactions have been poor as it was inferior to the original film.
The last two Disney animated sequels 2018’s Ralph Breaks The Internet opened £4,032,775 taking £17,299,915 and 2019’s Frozen 2 opened £15,088,012 taking £53,549,035.
Moana 2 has received a mixed review. Some love it, giving it four and five stars, while others say it’s inferior to the original and feels like it has been joined together as it was previously planned as a TV series on Disney+. The original film was a steady performer but found a wider audience on home entertainment and Disney+.
The 34 Disney animated films have taken £475m and over £735m inflated since 1989’s Oliver & Company.
Moana dropped 13.7% in its second weekend, but Moana 2 will drop much more heavily despite no major films opening down 40%+
November had four weeks of films opening with £9m+ Paddington In Peru (£9.6m); Gladiator II (£9m); Wicked (£13.7m) and Moana 2 (£11.9m). The next weeks will see BO drop off before Mufasa: The Lion King opens in three weeks.
- 2. Wicked Part 1 £8,371,251 – £28,530,258
Dropped 38.8% in its second weekend.
Took £2.2m 26.38% (-42.71% £3.84m) Friday; £3.33m 39.93% (-35.59% £5.17m) Saturday; £2.79m 33.45% (-40.38% £4.68m) Sunday; £924k Monday
The 22nd biggest second weekend between Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (close to Fantastic Beasts, Frozen 2, Dunkirk and Oppenheimer) and the 53rd inflated second weekend between Indiana Jones …The Crystal Skull and Independence Day (close to Titanic, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Mary Poppins Returns and Bridget Jones’s Diary).
Biggest 2024 second weekend ahead of Deadpool & Wolverine £8.02m, Inside Out 2 £7.76m and Paddington In Peru £6.84m
The 7th highest-grossing musical in the UK topping The Little Mermaid (£27.2m), High School Musical 3 (£22.8m) and Moulin Rouge (£18.3m).
Musicals normally hold very strongly in the UK, as did 2019’s Frozen 2, which dropped 42% in its second weekend £8,711,498 #1 674 screens and £27,349,269 51% of £53,549,035. However, as with Frozen, most of the other musicals didn’t face immediate competition opening a week after, as Wicked has done, losing all main auditoriums, PLF, and most IMAX screens.
The difference is Wicked isn’t like all other musicals as it’s a spinoff of L. Frank Baum’s 14-book Oz series and there were another 26 spinoff books written between 1921 and 1951. The 1939 film The Wizard of Oz was based on his first book, the film was a flop when it was first released and didn’t make a profit for MGM until being re-released in 1949.
Over the decades since it has been voted regularly as one of the critics’ greatest films ever. It was surprising MGM didn’t make a sequel, but it was a time when studios didn’t make sequels and then MGM had financial difficulties and then the original novel became in the public domain as did the other books, MGM kept the rights to some elements in the film. 1978’s The Wiz attempted to reimagine the story but was both a critical and box office failure. Disney acquired the live-action film rights to all of Baum’s sequels to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1954 making Return to Oz in 1985 when their rights were close to expiring, the film was a box office hit. In 2013 Disney made Oz the Great and Powerful trying to repeat the success of Pirates of the Caribbean and Alice In Wonderland taking $234.91m in the US, $493.31m worldwide; £15.1m in the UK.
Interestingly, the trailer for Disney’s Snow White reimagination was attached to Wicked as MGM approved making The Wizard of Oz after the huge success of 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
In 1995 Gregory Maguire’s Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West was released; the book wasn’t a hit until the Broadway adaptation opened in 2003.
Wonka last year dropped 20.6% £6,362,786 (£1.31m Friday; £2.69m Saturday; £2.36m Sunday) and £18,487,627 29.22% of £63,277,138
2022’s Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical dropped 39% £2,531,782 (£1.62m Fri-Sat and £911k Sunday) and £7,848,147 28% of £28,040,411
2018’s Mary Poppins Returns dropped 9% £7,441,687 #1 from 740 screens and £23,243,909 52.2% of £44,541,719.
The popularity of the stage show Wicked in the UK is similar to Mamma Mia! In April 2024, the stage musical became the 10th longest-running stage show in London’s West End, seen by over 12 million people, having over 6,500 shows and generating over £2bn in ticket sales since its premiere in 2006.
Cynthia Erivo starred in the 2013 revival of The Color Purple in London, which was moved to Broadway in 2015, starring alongside Jennifer Hudson. Ariana Grande has sold over 90 million albums worldwide and has a huge fanbase in the UK, selling over 31 million units, having 7 UK number 1s, and hosting the One Love Manchester Concert in June 2017 after the terrorist attack at her Manchester Arena concert.
Director Jon Chu posted on Twitter “Tell your movie theatre to turn it up to a 7…. I’ve gone to a couple of screenings, and they are more like a 6.4 if you want it the way it was intended 7 is the way.”
169th biggest between Meet the Fockers and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 (close to A Star Is Born, Life of Pi, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Elvis) and 340th biggest inflated between The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Look Who’s Talking (close to Chicago, Elf, Superman III and Evita).
The soundtrack album is at #1 on the compilations chart, album downloads chart and soundtrack albums chart and three songs are in the singles chart Defying Gravity #7; Popular #13; What Is This Feeling #17.
- 3. Gladiator II £2,533,801 – £23,596,835
Down 38.4% in its third weekend
Took £734k 29.13% (-41.75% £1.26m) Friday; £1.05m 41.67% (-46.15% £1.95m) Saturday; £736k 29.21% (-51.58% £1.526m) Sunday; £321k Monday
150th biggest third weekend between Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows and Men in Black 3 (close to Spider-Man: The Movie, King Kong, Deadpool 2 and The Matrix Reloaded) and 301st inflated between Doctor Strange and The Others (close to The Theory Of Everything, Gone Girl, What Lies Beneath and Prometheus)
Third weekends
2000’s Gladiator dropped 13.6% £2,987,696/£5,602,809 and £12,796,78940.94% of £31,257,293/£58,616,618 inflated; #1 for 7 weeks.
2024’s Dune Part 2 dropped 30.8% £4,046,492 #1 and £26,207,623 66.40% of £39,466,555
2021’s Dune dropped 53% £1,548,306 #3 664 screens and £16,810,576 of £21,947,056; Dune took 3.73x opening if Dune part 2 did similar it will take £34m+
2010’s Inception dropped 22% £3,229,651 #4 459 screens and £20,800,468 of £34,976,999 (£46,851,543 inflated); took 5.92x opening
2013’s Gravity dropped 50% £2,389,193 #2 548 screens and £19,444,886 of £32,756,514; 5.24x opening
2014’s Interstellar dropped 49% £1,895,368 #3 483 screens and £15,866,812 of £21,173,601; 3.73x opening
2015’s The Martian dropped 37% £2,419,958 #4 564 screens and £17,491,033 of £23,589,854; 3.61x opening
2017’s Blade Runner 2049 dropped 42% £1,791,027 #1 617 screens £15,718,087 of £18,918,361; 3.1x opening
2023’s Oppenheimer dropped 33% £5,493,481 #2 738 screens and £39,176,945 of £58.9m; took 5.37x opening
2005’s War of the Worlds dropped 47% £2,223,949 #2 485 screens and £21,900,630 of £30,367,791 (£51,386,687 inflated); 3.43x opening
2017’s Dunkirk down 43% £4,624,570 #1 690 screens and £38,191,064 of £56,797,955; 5.65x opening
4th highest-grossing Ridley Scott-directed film overtaking Hannibal (£21.5m) and will shortly overtake The Martian (£23.6m),
222nd biggest between Wreck-It Ralph and The Bourne Ultimatum (close to Prometheus, Logan, The Martian and Taken 2) and 445th biggest inflated between Saturday Night Fever and 12 Years a Slave (close to The English Patient, Interstellar, The Revenant and Dune).
8th biggest 2024 film between Beetlejuice 2 and Kung Fu Panda 4 (close to Paddington In Peru, It Ends with Us, Bob Marley: One Love and Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes).
- 4. Paddington In Peru £1,808,775 – £27,320,210
Dropped 57.1% in the fourth weekend.
Took 316k 17.65% (-39.11% £519k) Friday; £780k 43.58% (-61.58% £2.03m) Saturday; £688k 38.44% (-58.78% £1.79m) Sunday; £122k Monday
127th biggest fourth weekend between Happy Feet and La La Land (close to Despicable Me 2, Trolls, Johnny English Reborn and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) and the 253rd biggest inflated fourth weekend between Darkest Hour and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (close to Kindergarten Cop, Jumanji, Puss in Boots and The Lego Movie).
Paddington in Peru took 28% less than Paddington (£2,513,675) and 37.3% less than Paddington 2 (£2,883,617) in its fourth weekend. With Wicked and Moana 2 opening within a month, it was surprising Paddington In Peru didn’t open two weeks earlier over half-term.
179th biggest between Elvis and The Little Mermaid (2023) (close to The Pirates of the Caribbean, Four Weddings and a Funeral, The LEGO Batman Movie and Sonic the Hedgehog 2) and 363rd biggest inflated between Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted and How the Grinch Stole Christmas (close to Nanny McPhee, Airplane, Batman Returns and Top Gun).
6th biggest 2024 film between Wicked and Beetlejuice 2 (close to Kung Fu Panda 4 and It Ends with Us)
The first two films were hugely popular in the UK, but they faced lesser competition over the weeks after opening so both had exceedingly long legs which saw them play through to January.
2014’s Paddington dropped 13.6% £2,513,675 and £18,120,879 47.93% of £38,027,750; stayed in top 5 for 8 weeks (£943,320) and top 10 for 12 weeks (£208,857) (mid-February)
2017’s Paddington 2 dropped 37% £2,883,617 #1 652 screens and £26,903,226 63.09% of £42,661,628; stayed in the top 5 for 8 weeks (£1,884,062) and top 10 for 10 weeks (£401,521) in mid-January.
- 5. Conclave – £1,065,847 – NE
Took £264k 24.91% Friday; 340k 31.98% Saturday; £279k 26.32% Sunday; £198k Monday
1,633rd biggest opening between I Love You Phillip Morris and Honey (close to Snakes on a Plane, Invictus, The Naked Gun and Spotlight) and 2,266th inflated opening between Inkheart and Consenting Adults (close to The Nice Guys, From Dusk Till Dawn, The Death of Stalin and The Illusionist).
44th biggest 2024 opening between The Bikeriders and Terrifier 3 (close to Longlegs, Trap, The Beekeeper and Fly Me to the Moon).
It’s the eighth film released by Black Bear since February 2023 and their third biggest opening after Ferrari (£1.9m) and Longlegs (£1.3m).
Directed by Edward Berger previously directed the Oscar-winning All Quiet on the Western Front. His next is The Ballad of a Small Player for Netflix and 20th Century Studios has recently acquired rights to his next film The Barrier starring Austin Bulter, it’s been described as Interstellar meets Top Gun.
Conclave is based on Robert Harris’s novel, previous adaptions include.
2001’s Enigma opened £796,776/£1,533,890 taking £4,647,791/£8,947,559
2010’s The Ghost opened £853,679 taking £4,075,697
The Fear Index was originally planned to be a film made by 20th Century Fox, but it was instead made into a TV mini-series by Sky TV in 2022. An Officer and a Spy premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2019 but hasn’t been released in the UK due to Roman Polanski’s criminal past.
UK box office in detail
The weekend’s top 10 box office took £26,589,338 up 8.8% from last weekend’s £24,448,831: 3,357,240 admissions up 9.1% from 3,078,043 admissions.
Biggest weekend of the last 52 weeks ahead of 22 November 2024 £24,448,831 #1 Wicked Part £13,696,056 (56.02%) and 26 July 2024 £24,448,831 #1 Deadpool and Wolverine £17,276,621 (71.35%)
4th biggest since cinemas reopened out of 21 1 weeks between 01 October 2021 £28,089,047 #1 No Time To Die £25,916,476 (92.27%) and 28 July 2023 £26,586,491 #1 Barbie £13,226,848 (49.75%)
20th biggest top 10 of the last 22 years (out of 1,183) between 26 October 2012 £26,591,268 #1 Skyfall £20,180,369 (75.89%) and 28 July 2023 £26,586,491 #1 Barbie £13,226,848 (49.75%) and 60th inflated between 23 May 2003 £14,900,979 #1 The Matrix Reloaded £12,165,276 (81.64%) and 28 July 2023 £26,586,491 #1 Barbie £13,226,848 (49.75%)
The top 3 took (£22,926,394) 86.2% of the top 10; Moana 2 45.21% (£12,021,342); Wicked Part 1 31.48% (£8,371,251); Gladiator II 9.53% (£2,533,801)
133rd biggest admissions #1 (1,517,846) between 05 August 2016 #1 Suicide Squad (1,518,519) and 02 July 2010 #1 Shrek Forever After (1,505,135)
349th biggest percentage share #1 (45.21%) between 15 March 2013 #1 Oz: The Great and Powerful (45.22%) and 12 April 2013 #1 Oblivion (45.2%)
Up 192% from 2023; (£9,107,292); Renaissance: A Film By Beyonce (£1,082,080); Andre Rieu’s White Christmas (£1,001,095); Elf (20th Anniversary) (£345,365); Fallen Leaves (£107,815); Eileen (£98,449); Saving Private Ryan (25th Anniversary) (£19,832); #1 Napoleon £1,908,971 2nd week 64% drop 739 screens (20.96% of top 10).
Up 326.8% 2022 (£6,230,511); Violent Night (£822,647); Casablanca (Re: 2022) (£25,116); #1 Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical £2,531,782 2nd week 692 screens 38% drop (40.64% of top 10)
Up 335.7% 2021 (£6,103,233); Christmas With Andre (£693,676); Boxing Day (£265,263); Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City (£253,200); The Matrix (Re: 2021) (£128,585); Elf (Re: 2021) (£111,036); C’mon C’mon (£106,680); CBeebies Christmas Show 2021 (£105,864); Love Actually (Re: 2021) (£24,848); It’s A Wonderful Life (1946) (75th Anniversary) (£27,723); Eurydice – Met Opera 2021 (£25,683); Blue Bayou (£8,975); #1 House of Gucci £1,511,982 2nd week 706 screens 38% drop (24.8% of top 10)
2020; COVID Second Lockdown England
Up 66.3% 2019; (£15,983,967); Les Miserables: The Staged Concert (£946,786); Gremlins (4K Restoration) (£162,528); Motherless Brooklyn (£153,821); Elf (Re: 2019) (£148,489); Friends 25th: The One With The Anniversary (£126,302); Ordinary Love (£66,688); Honey Boy (£33,463); Frozen 2 £8,711,498 50% drop 2nd week 676 screens (54.5% of top 10)
Up 72.7% 2018: (£15,392,277); Ralph Breaks the Internet (£4,032,775); Creed 2 (£2,991,509); Disobedience (£193,907); Pokemon the Movie: The Power of Us (£177,750); The Possession of Hannah Grace (£113,537); #1 Ralph Breaks the Internet £4,032,775 1st week 613 screens (26.2% of top 10)
Up 169.6% 2017: (£9,864,139); Wonder (£1,240,245); The Man Who Invented Christmas (£168,137); The Nutcracker – Bolshoi 2017 (£160,421); Happy End (£135,682); The Disaster Artist (£130,238); #1 Paddington 2 £2,883,617 3rd week 2nd #1 37% drop 652 screens (29.2% of top 10)
Up 138.2% 2016: (£11,160,568); Moana (£2,214,898); Sully: Miracle on the Hudson (£1,786,844); The Edge of Seventeen (£273,139); Bleed for This (£250,975); Blue Velvet (Re: 2016) (£16,880); Eat that Question (£1,468); #1 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them £4,494,727 3rd week 649 screens 50% drop (40.3% of the top 10)
Up 192.6% 2015; (£9,087,311); Christmas with the Coopers (£683,217); Victor Frankenstein (£431,125); Krampus (£412,713); The Night Before (£272,930); The Lady of the Camellias – Bolshoi 2015 (£105,300); #1 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 £2,240,723 3rd week 539 screens 51% drop (24.6% of top 10)
Up 132.1% 2014: (£11,455,843); Penguins of Madagascar (£1,575,949); Get Santa (£576,722); St. Vincent (£389,136); Black Sea (£246,309); The Pyramid (£190,049); Men, Women and Children (£73,393); #1 Paddington £3,837,885 2nd week 540 screens 25% drop (33.5% of top 10)
Up 135% 2013: (£11,314,366); Free Birds (£1,044,074); Saving Mr Banks (£795,615); Carrie (£662,625); The Best Man Holiday (£128,503); #1 The Hunger Games: Catching Fire £5,525,476 2nd week 55% drop 557 screens (48.8% of top 10)
Up 160.2% 2012: (£10,220,354); Rise of the Guardians (£1,968,984); Great Expectations (£544,636); Alex Cross (£226,780); Sightseers (£213,066); Trouble with the Curve (£41,391); #1 Skyfall £2,275,469 6th week 4th #1 41% drop 532 screens (22.2% of top 10)
Up 218.9% 2011; (£8,340,633); Happy Feet 2 (£1,686,197); Hugo (£1,225,987); The Thing (£485,534); The Big Year (£122,591); Margaret (£4,595); #1 Arthur Christmas £1,896,595 4th week 1st #1 502 screens 25% drop (22.7% of top 10)
Up 193.4% 2010: (£9,062,260); Megamind (£2,827,502); Monsters (£348,577); The Warrior’s Way (£105,389); Secretariat (£40,941); #1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 1 £3,739,781 3rd week 570 screens 55% drop 41.2% of top 10)
Up 75.4% 2009; (£15,162,202); Paranormal Activity (£3,593,762); Law Abiding Citizen (£1,488,143); Nativity (£794,314); Bunny and the Bull (£40,801); #1 The Twilight Saga: New Moon £4,303,257 2nd week 504 screens 63% drop (28.4% of top 10)
Up 295.1% 2008; (£6,730,148); Four Christmases (£2,275,585); Changeling (£1,225,548); What Just Happened? (£178,818); Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas 3D (£23,640); #1 Four Christmases £2,275,585 1st week 434 screens (33.8% of top 10)
Up 290.3% 2007: (£6,812,364); Fred Claus (£1,937,042); Hitman (£1,240,698); The Assassination of Jesse James (£180,886); This Christmas (£46,820); #1 Fred Claus £1,937,042 1st week 445 screens (28.4% of top 10)
Up 115.3% 2006; (£12,348,508); Flushed Away (£3,106,874); Deck the Halls (£600,047); Stranger than Fiction (£368,627); Big Nothing (£83,829); London to Brighton (£29,153); #1 Casino Royale £5,307,969 3rd week 506 screens 38% drop (43% of top 10)
Up 177.2% 2005: (£9,591,419); Keeping Mum (£645,886); Doom (£612,087); Where the Truth Lies (£67,446); #1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire £4,829,804 3rd week 536 screens 48% drop (50.3% of top 10)
Up 227.1% 2004; (£8,128,185); Christmas with the Kranks (£777,771); Churchill: The Hollywood Years (£148,326); The Merchant of Venice (£147,709); The Polar Express (platform) (£104,632); School for Seduction (£39,213); #1 The Incredibles £4,187,280 3rd week 2nd #1 57% drop 495 screens (51.5% of top 10)
Up 103% 2003 (£13,095,047); Elf (£4,538,440); Master and Commander (£1,845,125); Spin the Bottle (£95,533); #1 Love Actually £4,660,595 2nd week 478 screens 30% drop (35.6% of top 10)
Up 114.1% from 2002: (£12,415,161); The Santa Clause 2 (£951,754); Enough (£340,600); The Quiet American (£240,552); #1 Die Another Day £5,364,433 2nd week 431 screens 41% drop (43.2% of top 10)
Up 188.5% from 2001 (£9,215,665); Zoolander (£676,518); Bandits (£644,271); Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (£381,940); Ghosts of Mars (£104,723); The Devil’s Backbone (£45,145); #1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone £5,809,759 3rd week 508 screens 31% drop (63.1% of top 10).
2023 Next week: (£13,378,556); Wonka (£8,904,750 ); Please Don’t Destroy: The Treasure Of Foggy Mountain (£11,622); #1 Wonka £8,904,750 1st week 699 screens (66.56% of top 10)
US Box Office
- Moana 2 – Disney
Opened $139.78m 3 days/$225.2m 5 days; received mixed reviews (67% Rotten Tomatoes) and A- CinemaScore; Moana A and 88% Rotten Tomatoes.
Took $13.8m from Tuesday previews the highest for Disney animation; Inside Out 2 $13m; ahead of ng $154m opening; 2019’s Toy Story 4 took $12m Thursday previews opening $121m and 2019’s Frozen II $8.5m opening $130m; 2018 Incredibles 2 still has the biggest previews for an animated film $18.5m Thursday opening $183m.
38th biggest open between The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (close to The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Jurassic World Dominion, Finding Dory and Avatar: The Way of Water).
Had the biggest Thanksgiving opening overtaking 2019’s Frozen II ($130.26m taking $477.37m and $1.453bn worldwide)
86% saw it in 2D; 14% in 3D; PLF 2Ds 13%; IMAX 2D 3%; 65% women; 35% male; 25% under 12; 20% 35-44; 16% 25-34; 15% 13-17; 12% 18-24; 9% 45-54; 4% over 55.
67% were family adults and children; 42% saw it in 3D; 60% bought tickets on the same day; 38% were a fan of Moana and 53% were huge fans of Moana; I wonder if they still are after seeing Moana 2.
EntTelligence said 30m saw the top three films: Moana 2 (17.4 m), Wicked (8.7 m), and Gladiator II ($3.3 m). Combined ticket sales for the three films took 75% of showtimes, bringing down the year-to-date drop from 10.6% to 6.4% compared to 2023. BO is still down from 2019 by 24%, dropping 2.5% this week.
2016’s Moana opened $56.63m taking $248.75m and $643.33m worldwide
Wednesday and Sunday took $420m the biggest Thanksgiving in history overtaking the previous record set in 2018 of $315m for Ralph Breaks the Internet, Fantastic Beasts 2 and Creed II.
The 36 Disney animation films since 1988’s Oliver & Company have taken over $5.6bn and $9.6m inflated in the US.
Took $165.8m from 48 territories and $389m worldwide (overtaking The Super Mario Bros Movie $377m second biggest 2024 after Deadpool & Wolverine $438m); France $18.8m; UK $15.5m; Mexico $11.1m; Germany $10.5m; Italy $9.3m; Korea $9.1m; Australia $8.3m; Brazil $7.5m; China $6.5m; Spain $5.5m.
- Wicked Part 1 – Universal Pictures
Dropped 28% in its second weekend $81.17m and $263.19m
EntTelligence said the average price of Wicked ($14.36) and Gladiator II ($14.32) with PLF screens $18.33 Vs $17.72.
15th biggest second weekend between Spider-Man: No Way Home and Incredibles 2 (close to Beauty and the Beast, Frozen II, The Lion King and Finding Dory)
137th biggest between The Amazing Spider-Man and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets; 421st biggest inflated between The Pursuit of Happyness and Mission: Impossible—Fallout; 7th biggest 2024 between Twisters and Moana 2; 6th biggest musical between Sing and Wonka; 20th biggest Universal Pictures between Despicable Me 3 and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
The highest-grossing US Broadway adaptation of all time ahead of 1978’s “Grease” ($188.62m) and the 4th biggest Broadway adaptation in history after 2008’s Mamma Mia ($611m), 2012’s Les Miserables ($442m) and Grease ($396m)
Social media for Wicked 964.3m TikTok, Facebook, X, YouTube and Instagram; had 40.1m video views in the 24 hours after the Super Bowl; viral rate 14:1; Ariana Grande 466.7m; Jeff Goldblum 4.2m; Michelle Yeoh 3.1m; Erivo 1.9m 480.7m total fans across all five major social platforms.
Wicked is a one-off due to the massive fanbase the musical is the second highest-grossing musical on Broadway after The Lion King took $1.25bn and $5bn worldwide, over 65 million have seen the stage show. Add in the massive global fanbase of Ariana Grande, and you’re talking Taylor Swift numbers.
As with Barbie, the industry underestimated its fanbase as it often does with female-targeted films. The question is when will this huge female audience return to cinemas in similar numbers and with the testosterone-heavy 2025 slate it won’t be until Wicked Part 2 next November.
Wicked has more in common with 2023’s Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour opening $93.22m taking $180.75m and $261.65m worldwide as it had a similar sized existing fanbase for the stage show and also the massive popularity of Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.
According to a survey by Fandango, 64% of ticket buyers are interested in a Gladiator II and Wicked double bill. Both films are about 2 hours and 40 minutes long, meaning about 6 hours in the cinema. Both films have budgets of $150m and marketing costs of about $100m, it also had 400 brand partners.
Some cinemagoers were taking pictures while they were watching Wicked and then posting them on an Ariana Grande fan account, the response by many was to kick them out of the cinema. When a film plays on multiple screens it should allow screens to be tailored to different audiences. Several years ago there was talk of texting screens which was met by anger from cinephiles but if doing so will bring audiences who aren’t going to the cinema, then why not have a text-friendly screen, likewise children-friendly and over 18 screens (some cinemas do hold over 18 shows for under 18 films but they are late night.
It is impossible to compare Wicked with recent musicals like Wonka, Bohemian Rhapsody, and Mamma Mia! The Greatest Showman is also impossible to compare with other films based on Broadway musicals.
2014’s Into the Woods dropped 39.7% $18.72m and $90.87m of $128m and $212.9m WW; 2
2012’s Les Miserables dropped 41.3% $16.01m and $80.57m of $149.26m and $442.75m WW.
Comparison films include.
2013’s Oz the Great and Powerful dropped 47.9% $41.25m and $144.05m of $234.91m/$311.48m and $493.31m/$654.1m WW
2017’s Beauty and the Beast dropped 48.3% $90.42m and $319.03m of $504.01m and $1.263bn worldwide
2014’s Maleficent dropped 50.6% $34.32m and $128.17m of $241.41m/$318.53m and $758.41m/$1bn
2023’s Barbie dropped 42.6% $93.01m and $351.41m of $636.23m and $1.446bn worldwide
Jon Chu previously directed.
2018’s Crazy Rich Asians dropped 6.4% $24.8m and $76.61m of $174.83m and $239.34m worldwide
2021’s In the Heights dropped 63.5% $4.2m and $19.65m of $29.97m and $45.17m worldwide
Also directed 2016’s Now You See Me 2; 2015’s Jem and the Holograms; 2013’s G.I. Joe: Retaliation; 2010’s Step Up 3D and 2008’s Step Up 2: The Streets
Took $29m from 61 territories $97m total and $359.3m worldwide; UK $36m; $12.9m; Korea $8.5m; Mexico $6.7m
435th biggest worldwide between The World is Not Enough and Tenet; 16th biggest 2024 between Twisters and Alien: Romulus; 17th biggest musical between Happy Feet and Mary Poppins Returns; 55th biggest Universal Pictures between Notting Hill and Fast & Furious.
- Gladiator II – Paramount Pictures
Dropped 44% in the second weekend $31.03m #3 and $111.49m
224th biggest second weekend between Kung Fu Panda 4 and Batman (close to Bohemian Rhapsody, Pitch Perfect 2, The Karate Kid and Pocahontas).
Had a budget of about $310m and $100m+ marketing.
695th biggest between Mr. Peabody & Sherman and IF; 1,532nd inflated between Tammy and Unstoppable; 18th biggest 2024 between Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire and IF; 55th biggest historical film between Doctor Zhivago and The Last Samurai; 91st biggest Paramount Pictures between Face/Off and IF.
2000’s Gladiator dropped 29.2% $24.64m/$49.29m and $73.66m/$147.32m of $187.7m/$375.41m and $465.51m/$931,03m WW
Similar films include.
2023’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny dropped 54.6% $27.42m and $122.12m of $174.48m and $383.96m WW
2022’s Top Gun: Maverick dropped 28.9% $90.03m and $295.64m of $718.73m and $1.495bn worldwide
2024’s Dune: Part Two dropped 44% $46.21m and $157.24m of $282.14m and $714.44m worldwide
2023’s Oppenheimer dropped 43.4% $46.7m and $174.56m of $329.86m and $975.59m WW
2017’s Dunkirk dropped 47.3% $26.61m and $101.31m of $189.74m/$228.1m and $526.04m/$632.19m WW
2004’s Troy dropped 48.9% $23.92m and $85.96m of $133.37m/$231.53m and $497.4m/$863.45m WW
2015’s The Martian dropped 31.9% $37m and $108.71m of $228.43m and $630.62m worldwide
2001’s Hannibal dropped 48.8% $29.7m/$56.58m and $103.58m/$207.02m of $165.1m/$314.43m and $351.69m/$669.83m WW
2012’s Prometheus dropped 59.4% $20.71m and $89.37m of $126.47m/$171.28m and $403.35m/$546.25m WW
Ridley Scott’s 29 films have taken $2bn in the US and almost $5bn worldwide.
Took $27.2m and $208.8m from 64 territories and $320.29m worldwide; UK $29.7m; France $22.5m; Spain $15m; Mexico $12.9m; Australia $11.5m.
519th biggest worldwide between The Wild Robot and Fatal Attraction; 21st biggest 2024 between The Wild Robot and A Quiet Place: Day One; 43rd biggest historical film between Robin Hood and Inglourious Basterds; 59th biggest Paramount Pictures between Megamind and Fatal Attraction.
- Red One – MGM/Amazon Studios
Dropped 4% in the third weekend $12.73m and $75.89m
455th biggest third weekend between Peter Rabbit and Bad Boys II (close to Miss Congeniality, Die Another Day, Minority Report and Central Intelligence)
1,157th biggest between 48 Hrs. and The Haunted Mansion (2003); 2,243rd biggest inflated between Windtalkers and Friends with Benefits.
Jake Kasdan previously directed Dwayne Johnson in two Jumanji films (which took $1.7bn worldwide) and also directed 2014’s Sex Tape, 2011’s Bad Teacher, and 2007’s Walk Hard. He will also direct Jumanji 3, set for release on December 11th, 2026.
2011’s Bad Teacher dropped 38.5% $8.91m and $78.67m of $100.29m and $216.19m worldwide
2014’s Sex Tape dropped 41.8% $3.52m and $33.88m of $38.54m and $126.06m worldwide
2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle dropped 25.6% $37.23m and $245.6m of $404.54m and $962.54m WW
2019’s Jumanji: The Next Level up 33% $35.24m and $175.48m of $320.31m and $801.69m worldwide
Took $5m from 75 territories $72.6m total and $148.99m worldwide; UK $7.5m; Mexico $6.2m; Germany $4.4m; Australia $3.3m; Spain $3.2m.
1,319th biggest worldwide between Death Becomes Her and Lights Out; 35th biggest in 2024 between The Beekeeper and Smile 2; 354th action film between Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance and Broken Arrow.
UK Box Office Top 10
UK Box Office Preview
Moana 2 will drop about 45-50% in its second weekend between £5.8m-£6.5m, unlike the 13.7% drop for Moana and 25.6% drop for Encanto as audience reactions have been far more mixed. Audiences came out to see it in its opening weekend due to the love of the original film, but the sequel was a poor follow-up.
If Moana were to drop 50%+ then Wicked and Paddington In Peru would have lower drops with Wicked dropping 40% which could see its third weekend being close to Moana 2’s sequel weekend. While Paddington In Peru could switch places with Gladiator II taking about £1.4m.
Fifth place will be between the second weekend of Conclave and Andre Rieu’s Christmas Concert: Gold And Silver. It’s 13 years since the first Andre Rieu Event Cinema concert but post-COVID the audience has shrunk from having £1.5m opening in 2019 to the last concert in August opening £629,652 from 649 screens despite prices being £20+.
The other new releases will struggle to find an audience Disney’s Nightbitch; premiered at the Toronto Film Festival receiving mixed reviews; received its UK premiere at the London Film Festival. Many took issue with the tone of the trailer which felt very different to the novel.
Searchlight acquired world rights in 2022 from Annapurna for $25m as with several other films was originally set for release on streaming in the US until Searchlight announced in April would be released in December.
Marielle Heller previously directed 2015’s The Diary of a Teenage Girl (opened £81,185 #12 from 80 screens); and 2019’s Can You Ever Forgive Me? (opened £518,230 #8 256 screens taking £1,170,469) and 2020’s A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (opened £493,770 ‘8 taking £1,129,994).
Other films about motherhood include 2018’s Tully opened £138,674 #8 200 screens and 2021’s The Lost Daughter Netflix.
Biographical sports drama Unstoppable also premiered at the Toronto Film Festival receiving positive reviews (72% on Rotten Tomatoes) Jharrel Jerome and Jennifer Lopez promoted the film in October appearing on the Graham Norton Show.
Wrestling films have had mixed success at the UK box office; 2015’s Foxcatcher (opened £877,408 taking £1,681,381); 2009’s The Wrestler (opened £802,046 taking £1,592,098); 2024’s The Iron Claw (opened £754,152 taking £2,380,926); 2019’s Fighting With My Family (opened £2,022,174 taking £5,837,684).
Black comedy Rumours starring Cate Blanchett, Charles Dance and Alicia Vikander and directed by Guy UK. Maddin had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival receiving positive reviews and will have a limited cinema release in the UK. The weekend after Thanksgiving is normally a dump weekend for studios as they clear their films for the new year or time to release films distributors don’t know how to handle.
Opening in three weeks
- Sonic The Hedgehog 3 – Paramount Pictures
An action-adventure comedy based on the video game series; sequel to 2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog and 2022’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 featuring voices of Jim Carrey, Ben Schwartz, Natasha Rothwell, James Marsden, Idris Elba, Krysten Ritter and Keanu Reeves and directed by Jeff Fowler.
2020’s Sonic The Hedgehog opened £4,733,768 #1 619 screens taking £18,986,844 over 5 weeks before COVID lockdown
2022’s Sonic The Hedgehog 2 opened £4,986,334 #1 650 screens; The Bad Guys opened #2 £2,279,074; taking £26,182,692
Has 6 days of previews from December 20th to December 26th
- Better Man – Entertainment Films
Biographical about Robbie Williams starring Robbie Williams, Jonno Davies, Steve Pemberton and Alison Steadman and directed by Michael Gracey.
Its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival received positive reviews (87% on Rotten Tomatoes). Its UK premiere was last week, a month before its UK opening. Robbie Williams sold 20.36 million albums and 9.2 million singles in the UK, including seven solo number-one singles and another seven with Take That.
Michael Gracey previously directed 2017’a The Greatest Showman opening the same weekend with £4,754,049 including £2.178,902 reviews #3 606 screens behind Star Wars: The Last Jedi #1 and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle #2it had very long legs due to very positive audience reactions (despite receiving average reviews) in the top 10 for 18 weeks taking £1m+ for 12 weeks taking £49,592,940.