'Moana 2' Smashes Records in Its Opening Weekend
by EG
After a summer and fall filled with disappointments for theater owners, the Thanksgiving holiday finally delivered a cheerful weekend. Disney's animated sequel Moana 2 surpassed already high expectations to turn in a record-setting debut over the long holiday weekend. Moviegoers also continued line up for the musical film Wicked, showing that perhaps moviegoers are in the mood for fare that's a bit lighter than they've been given lately. Read on for details.
Via Variety.
Movie theaters finally have something for which to be thankful.
Disney’s “Moana 2” cemented a new Thanksgiving box office record with $225 million over the five-day holiday frame, obliterating the previous high-water marks set by 2019’s “Frozen II” ($125 million) and 2013’s “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” ($109 million). It also stands as the biggest five-day debut in history, overtaking Universal’s 2023 behemoth “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($205.6 million). The film’s three-day tally of $139.7 million registers as the best start for Walt Disney Animation ahead of “Frozen II” ($130.2 million the weekend prior to Thanksgiving). Ticket sales for the “Moana” sequel were higher than Sunday’s estimates of $135.5 million over the traditional weekend $221 million over the five-days and far above early projections of $135 million to $145 million.
“‘Moana 2’ has far surpassed our high expectations this weekend and is a testament to the phenomenon that ‘Moana’ has become,” Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman said in a statement. “This is a moment to celebrate, and we’re thankful to all the moviegoers and fans who’ve helped make this a record-breaking debut.”
And it’s not just the Polynesian animated adventure that’s keeping the nation’s multiplexes booked and busy. Universal’s adaptation of “Wicked” and Paramount’s action epic “Gladiator II,” both of which opened last weekend, are continuing to bring out audiences. Together, the trio of big-budget blockbusters are powering the biggest Thanksgiving period on record with approximately $422 million across all films.
Get the rest of the story at Variety.