We’re seriously running out of ways to say that Disney is thankful they didn’t releaseMoana 2as a streaming series and instead decided to give it a full theatrical debut. It’s hard to predict if even the Mouse House saw this level of success coming from theMoanasequel, but good news continued on Thanksgiving Day with the film breaking another record on its way to a full record-breaking weekend.
PerDeadline,Moana 2grossed $28 million on Turkey Day, making it the single biggest Thanksgiving Day-earner ever at the box office, topping the $14.9 million made by Disney’sFrozen IIback in 2019. At this point, it’s just a matter of whereMoana 2goes from here. Thanksgiving Day tends to see sharper declines during the holiday weekend because everyone is gathered around the dinner table, butMoana 2only dropped 37% from the previous day. In fact, the big players this weekend, which includeWickedandGladiator II, all saw great holds yesterday.
We can’t predict the future here, but at this rate,Moana 2is a lock for the best Thanksgiving Day weekend at the box office, with Disney now projecting the five-day opening at $175 million+. Box office analysts believe thatMoana 2will eclipse that figure and soar beyond $200 million over five days. Whatever happens in the end, Disney made a wise decision to pivot the project froma streaming seriesto a theatrical release, even if it came at a creative cost. Whilereviews ofMoana 2aren’t as strongas its predecessor, audiences don’t seem to care, and they’re eager to follow the hero’s journey across the high seas.
The Thanksgiving Day Box Office Was Stuffed
There was room for more movies at the Thanksgiving Day table asWickedcontinued to sing a rich tune at the box office with a gross of $16.9 million (dropping less than 19% from the previous day), which is the second-best Thanksgiving Day gross ever – and those bragging rights aren’t too shabby, either. Universal Pictures is calling for a five-day weekend gross of $105.6 million, which will likely see the film sitting at $245-250 million domestically by the end of the weekend.Wickedis bound to have long legs through the new year as it’s destined for some awards season love, which will only amplify its presence at the box office.
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The soon-to-be earworm from ‘Moana 2’ — “Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” — has a deeper cultural meaning than you might realize!
Action-lovers were also well-fed, withGladiator IIearning $6.7 million on Thanksgiving, which is slightly up from the $6.6 million the film grossed the previous day. Again, all of these Thanksgiving Day grosses are spectacular because it’s typically not the biggest moviegoing day of the holiday frame, but the trend was certainly bucked yesterday. Consistency is key forGladiator II,as it was never expected to hit the daily grosses ofMoana 2orWicked. If the sequel was seeing declines, Ridley Scott and Paramount Pictures would be worried, but any studio would kill for a steady performer in this climate. The five-day prediction is now bumped up to $45 million, and it should see around $112 million by the end of the weekend with overseas sales still looking robust as well.
Movie fans everywhere should be thrilled about the performances of all three of these titles. It’s proof that moviegoing is still going strong and that various demographics are showing up at the theater. If the industry has anything to be thankful for after the holiday, it’s that the theatrical experience continues to thrive and is roaring back in a big way.
