‘Wicked’ and ‘Gladiator’ Make Gravity-Defying Theater Debuts

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NEW YORK (AP) — With a combined $270 million in worldwide ticket sales, “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” have breathed new life into a box office that has struggled of late, leading to one of the busiest movie weekends of the year.

“Wicked,” Jon M. Chu’s lavish, big-budget musical comedy starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, debuted with $114 million domestically and $164.2 million worldwide for Universal Pictures , according to studio estimates on Sunday. That makes it the third biggest opening weekend of the year, behind « Deadpool & Wolverine » and « Inside Out 2. » It’s also a record for a Broadway musical adaptation.

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Ridley Scott’s « Gladiator II, » a sequel to his award-winning 2000 original film, opened with $55.5 million in ticket sales. With a price tag of around $250 million to produce it, « Gladiator II » was a big gamble by Paramount Pictures to return to the Coliseum with a largely new cast, led by Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal. Although its opening was slightly lower than the projected $60 million in ticket sales domestically, « Gladiator II » performed well overseas. This added $50.5 million internationally.

The collision of the two films echoed last year’s « Barbenheimer » effect, when « Barbie » and « Oppenheimer » were released simultaneously. This time, the nickname « Glicked » wasn’t as catchy and the cultural footprint was also significantly less. Not many people were looking for a double feature this time around. Domestic revenues in 2023 – $162 million for “Barbie” and $82 million for “Oppenheimer” – were also higher.

“Glicked” is no match for “Barbenheimer”

For Universal, which distributed “Oppenheimer” last year, the weekend was more of a triumph of “Wicked” than “Glicked.”

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“We saw an opportunity to dominate a weekend and kick off the Thanksgiving holiday in a big way,” said Jim Orr, Universal’s distribution chief. “We are confident that the game will perform ridiculously well throughout the Christmas corridor and into the New Year.”

But the counterprogramming effect was still powerful for “Wicked” and “Gladiator II,” which also divided largely along gender lines. And it was once again the female-oriented release – “Wicked”, like “Barbie” before it – which easily won the weekend. About 72% of ticket buyers for “Wicked” were women, while 61% of those who saw “Gladiator II” were men.

« Each of these films, in isolation, may have done pretty much what they did, but it’s hard to know, » said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “Awareness can indeed lead to an increase in box office. Let’s put it this way: they didn’t get hurt at all.

Massive marketing campaigns paved the way for opening weekend

While “Barbenheimer” benefited enormously from word-of-mouth spread, “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” relied on all-out marketing blitzes.

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The « Gladiator II » campaign included everything from a highly controversial Airbnb cross-promotion with Rome’s Colosseum to the simulcast of a one-minute trailer on more than 4,000 television networks, radio stations and digital platforms.

The « Wicked » assault went even further, with pink and green « Wickedly Delicious » Starbucks drinks, Stanley cups and Mattel dolls (some of which led to an awkward encore). Its stars have made appearances at the Met Gala and the Olympics.

“We had about 400 global brand partners on ‘Wicked,’ so the campaign was unmissable,” Orr said. “And our cast, led by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, worked really hard on this. They were everywhere. They did everything we asked of them. »

Entering the weekend, the box office was down about 11% from last year and about 25% from pre-pandemic. That means this week’s two blockbuster films have brought about a much-needed resurgence for movie theaters. With « Moana 2 » releasing Wednesday, Hollywood could be looking at historic sales during the Thanksgiving holiday.

Both films boosted lackluster box office performances

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« This weekend’s two strong debuts reinvigorate a box office that has collapsed after a good summer, » said David A. Gross, a movie consultant who publishes a newsletter for Franchise Entertainment.

Although “Wicked” faces direct competition from “Moana 2,” it would seem better prepared for a long and lucrative theatrical run than “Gladiator II.” Although some have called « Wicked » for being 2 hours and 40 minutes long, the film received mostly excellent reviews. Audiences gave it an « A » on CinemaScore. The reception to “Wicked” has been strong enough that Oscar prognosticators expect it to be a contender for best picture at the Oscars, among other categories.

The producers, perhaps sensing success, also made the decision to split « Wicked » in two. The second part, already filmed, should be released next November. Each “Wicked” installation cost approximately $150 million.

« Gladiator II » also received good reviews, particularly for Washington’s charismatic performance. Audience scores, however, were lower, with ticket buyers giving it a « B » on CinemaScore. The film will, however, make up part of this deficit thanks to strong international sales. It launched in many overseas markets a week ago and has already grossed $165.5 million internationally.

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“Red One,” the Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans holiday movie-turned-action film, came in third place for the weekend. In its second week of release, the Amazon MGM Studios release grossed $13.3 million, bringing its two-week worldwide gross to $117 million. At a cost of $250 million, « Red One » is the biggest failure of the season, although it could recoup some value for Amazon if it becomes more popular once it begins streaming.

Final national figures will be released on Monday. Estimated ticket sales Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:

1. “Bad Guy,” $114 million.

2. “Gladiator II,” $55.5 million.

3. “Red One,” $13.3 million.

4. “Bonhoeffer: Pastor Spy Assassin,” $5.1 million.

5. “Venom: The Last Dance,” $4 million.

6. “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” $3.5 million.

7. “Heretic,” $2.2 million.

8. “The Wild Robot,” $2 million.

9. “Smile 2,” $1.1 million.

10. “A Real Pain,” $1.1 million.

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