Box Office Blowout: Moana 2 and Wicked Dominate in Record-Breaking Weekend

Walt Disney Animation’s Moana 2 continues its extraordinary run, smashing records in its second weekend with a global haul of $600 million. This figure surpasses the entire lifetime earnings of the first Moana film, which grossed $582 million at current exchange rates.

In North America, Moana 2 secured its spot at No. 1 with a weekend gross of $52 million from 4,300 theaters—the highest post-Thanksgiving weekend gross in history, leaving the previous record-holder, Disney’s Frozen II ($35.1 million), far behind. By Friday, the sequel’s domestic earnings hit $11.7 million, surpassing the original Moana‘s lifetime domestic total of $248.7 million in just 10 days. While the film saw a 63% drop from its Thanksgiving weekend performance, it remains a powerhouse.

Internationally, Moana 2 added $103.4 million to its foreign tally, bringing its overseas total to $300 million and its global earnings to $600 million. Already, the animated blockbuster is the fifth-highest-grossing film of the year, joining Disney’s other major successes, Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine, in the top five.

Universal’s Wicked also continued its remarkable run, earning $34.9 million from 3,885 theaters in its third weekend, pushing its domestic total to $320.5 million. The film, based on the beloved Broadway musical, made history by becoming the highest-grossing Broadway adaptation of all time, overtaking Grease ($188 million, unadjusted for inflation). Internationally, Wicked earned $26.9 million, bringing its global total to $455.5 million.

These two blockbusters, along with Paramount’s Gladiator II, have bolstered domestic box office revenues, pushing overall earnings 90% above the same frame in 2023. After earlier concerns that the year’s total revenue might fall short of $8 billion (compared to $9 billion in 2023), estimates now suggest a more promising $8.5–$8.6 billion—just a 4% deficit year-over-year.

Gladiator II held steady at third place with $12.4 million from 3,440 theaters, bringing its domestic total to $133.7 million.

Additional Highlights

Paramount celebrated the 10th anniversary of Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar with an Imax rerelease, which generated an impressive $4.5 million from just 166 theaters. The rerelease had the highest per-theater average of the weekend at $70,000, with every showing selling out.

On a less triumphant note, A24’s horror-comedy Y2K, directed by Kyle Mooney, struggled in its debut. The film earned just $2.1 million from 2,108 locations and received a lukewarm C- CinemaScore, landing in ninth place and failing to capture audiences’ enthusiasm.

The Takeaway

With Moana 2 and Wicked leading the charge, and strong contributions from Gladiator II, the 2024 box office is on track for a robust finish, fueled by a mix of new hits and nostalgia-driven rereleases.