If you want to find Wicked, look no further than the top of the box office charts. Universal's film adaptation (with some filler) of the first act of the popular Broadway musical took in $114 million from 3,888 theaters, making it the No. 1 movie in North America for the weekend.
These impressive ticket sales made the film the third-biggest domestic opening of the year, behind Deadpool & Wolverine ($211 million) and Inside Out 2 ($154 million). By other measures, Wicked surpassed Disney's recent remake of The Little Mermaid ($95.5 million) and had the fourth-biggest opening of any musical ever, behind Frozen II ($130 million). It was also the highest opening (ever) for a Broadway adaptation, beating the record set by 2014's Into the Woods ($31 million).
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Wicked brings in another $50.2 million at the resurrected international box office, bringing its worldwide total to $164.2 million. That's the biggest world premiere for a movie based on a Broadway show, beating the $103 million made by Universal's 2012 musical Les Miserables.
"It's huge business," says David A. Gross, who runs the film consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. "Audiences make the experience their own with the songs and the costumes."
While Wicked attracted women (about 75 percent of ticket buyers) and families, men flocked to Paramount's R-rated sequel, Gladiator II, directed by Ridley Scott. It's been a quarter of a century in the making. The blood-soaked sandal epic earned a solid (though below expectations) second place finish over the weekend, grossing $55.5 million from 3,573 theaters.
It's unclear whether "Wicked" and "Gladiator II" inspired each other, like the unexpected 2023 phenomenon "Babenheimer," in which tens of thousands of moviegoers chose back-to-back screenings rather than choosing between Greta Gerwig's "Barbie Doll" and Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," or whether "Glicked" is just an effective counter-show. Either way, this weekend was one of the most successful this year, grossing about $210 million. And the box office record will continue until Thanksgiving, when Disney's "Moana 2" hits theaters on November 27. But year-to-date ticket sales are 10.5% below 2023 and 26.6% below 2019, according to ComScore. "It's clear again and again that when healthy competition meets world-class experiences, the market thrives and consumers win," said Michael O'Leary, president and CEO of the National Association of Theatre Owners, a trade group for the theatrical industry. "This is a great catalyst for strong box office sales through December and into the new year."
Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu and starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, was released in theaters after more than a decade of development and a promotional campaign (including 400 brand partnerships) that rivaled the popularity of Barbie. With Wicked: Part 2, the musical's second act, due to hit screens in 2025, Universal needed to tug at moviegoers' nerves with a song-and-dance film. Both films cost a combined $300 million to produce, excluding the huge marketing budget.
Despite its enduring popularity on stage, Wicked's box office take is something of a film anomaly, as no musical adaptation has been brought to the big screen in more than a decade, since 2012's Les Miserables ($442 million worldwide) and 2014's Into the Woods ($212 million worldwide on a $50 million budget). Recent films like Steven Spielberg's West Side Story remake, Chu's In the Heights, Dear Evan Hansen, Cats and The Color Purple all missed the mark for a variety of reasons despite being based on popular original works.
Well-received by critics and audiences, Wicked features Broadway classics like Defying Gravity and Popular, and follows all the events that occur before and after Dorothy lands in Oz and strolls down the famous Yellow Brick Road. Set before, during, and after The Wizard of Oz, the story chronicles the unlikely friendship between the green-skinned Elphaba (later known as the Wicked Witch of the West) and the feisty, pink-loving Glinda (eventually named Glinda the Good). At 2 hours and 40 minutes long (the entire Broadway show is 2 hours and 45 minutes long), the film earned an "A" grade from CinemaScore and an excellent 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critical acclaim, positive word of mouth, and the infectious musical soundtrack are sure to have you watching it over and over again throughout Thanksgiving and into December.
"Wicked has become a phenomenon and it deserves to be seen on the big screen," said Jim Orr, Universal's head of domestic distribution. "It's so great to see audiences so enthusiastic about it, regardless of age group or demographic. It's going to be a phenomenal start to the new year."
Gladiator II also has a huge budget - over $250 million in production costs and around $100 million in advertising - and will need to achieve box office takings above the global average to be considered a success. So far, this strong sequel has been much more successful internationally, bringing in $221 million at the global box office.
Wicked, directed by Jon M. Chu and starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, came to fruition after more than a decade of development and an advertising campaign (including 400 brand partnerships) that rivaled the popularity of Barbie in movie theaters. With the musical's second act, Wicked: Part 2, due for theaters in 2025, Universal needed to tug at moviegoers' nerves with a film full of song and dance. Both films cost a combined $300 million to make, excluding the huge marketing budget.
Despite its enduring popularity on stage, Wicked's box office takings are something of a film anomaly, as no musical has been adapted for the big screen in more than a decade, since 2012's Les Miserables ($442 million worldwide) and 2014's Into the Woods ($212 million worldwide, $50 million budget). Recent films like Steven Spielberg's remake of West Side Story, Chooses in the Heights, Dear Evan Hansen, Cats, and The Color Purple have missed the mark for a variety of reasons despite being based on popular original works. Well-received by critics and audiences,
WICKED features Broadway classics like Defying Gravity and POPULAR, and follows all the events that happen before and after Dorothy's landing in Oz and her walk along the famous Yellow Brick Road. Set before and after The Wizard of Oz, the story depicts the unlikely friendship between the green-skinned Elphaba (later known as the Wicked Witch of the West) and the feisty, pink-loving Glinda (later known as Glinda the Good). Clocking in at 2 hours and 40 minutes long (the entire Broadway show is 2 hours and 45 minutes), the film received an "A" grade from CinemaScore and a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critical praise, positive word of mouth and an immersive soundtrack make this a film worth watching multiple times over the Thanksgiving period and into December. "Wicked has become a phenomenon and deserves to be seen on the big screen," said Jim Orr, Universal's head of domestic distribution. "It's great to see audiences so excited about it, regardless of age group or demographic. Gladiator II has a massive budget -- over $250 million to produce and about $100 million to promote -- and it needs to achieve box office numbers above the global average to be considered." It's a success. So far, the strong sequel has been much more successful internationally, grossing $221 million worldwide.
