Wicked proves popular as opening set to be biggest for Broadway film
3 min read
The film adaptation of Wicked is projected to have the highest-grossing opening weekend of any Broadway musical turned film, both in North America and the UK & Ireland. According to data from Boxoffice Company, the film is expected to earn $114 million (£90.6 million) in North America alone during its opening weekend. This surpasses the previous record set by Les Miserables, which grossed $103 million globally during its debut weekend in 2012.
In the UK and Ireland, the movie is forecast to make $17.6 million (£14 million), marking the largest opening weekend of 2024 in those regions. This achievement comes just as Gladiator II also debuted on Friday, making it one of the most successful weekends at the box office before the Thanksgiving holiday in North America since 2013.
The Wicked musical, based on the book by Gregory Maguire that reimagines the backstory of the Wicked Witch of the West, has long been a popular fixture on Broadway and the West End. Since its premiere on Broadway, the show has garnered a massive fan base, and its movie adaptation has clearly captured the public’s attention.
In North America, the film’s opening was particularly strong, with $46.48 million (£37 million) in earnings on Friday, including Thursday previews, followed by $36 million on Saturday. The audience was predominantly female, with 72% identifying as women, and 67% of viewers were over the age of 25. Boxoffice’s Daniel Loria described this as a “massive victory” for Universal Pictures, the film’s distributor. This also marked the third-largest opening in the US this year, following Deadpool 3 with $211 million and Inside Out 2 with $154 million.
On top of strong box office numbers, the film’s soundtrack, featuring hit songs performed by Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, has been making waves on streaming services. Songs like “Popular” and “Defying Gravity” have dominated playlists, further cementing the film’s popularity.
Looking ahead, it remains to be seen if Wicked will achieve the same level of global earnings as other successful Broadway adaptations like Les Miserables, which grossed $442 million (£352 million), or Chicago, which earned $306 million (£244 million). However, the film is off to a very promising start, and its continued success will likely keep it among the top contenders in the coming weeks.
In addition to Wicked, Gladiator II, the highly anticipated sequel to Ridley Scott’s 2000 epic, also premiered this weekend in North America. The film made $22 million (£17.5 million) on Friday and $18.8 million on Saturday, and it is projected to earn $55.5 million (£44.2 million) over its opening weekend. Despite this strong performance, some analysts predict that Moana 2, which is set to release on Wednesday in the US, could surpass both Wicked and Gladiator II for the top spot at the box office.
The upcoming Thanksgiving week could see the highest-grossing holiday weekend in North American history, with Wicked, Gladiator II, and Moana 2 all contributing to a robust box office performance. This optimism comes after a challenging few years for cinemas, which were heavily impacted by the pandemic. The National Association of Theatre Owners celebrated the strong showing on Sunday, calling it “one of the most successful November weekends ever at the box office.”
In the UK and Ireland, Wicked’s opening weekend was also noteworthy, marking the biggest box office opening for Universal Pictures since the release of No Time to Die, the latest James Bond film, in 2021. Meanwhile, Gladiator II had already debuted on 15 November, grossing $11.4 million (£9 million) in its first weekend before seeing a slight dip to $6 million (£4.8 million) this weekend. While this represents a decrease, it is still considered a “fairly strong performance” by Boxoffice’s Loria.
Together with the release of Paddington in Peru, which earned £9.7 million in its opening weekend earlier this month, the UK box office is seeing one of the most exciting periods since the pandemic, with these three films leading the way.
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