The worst thing a studio can do on a massive weekend like this is over-project. And if there’s one thing about Thanksgiving forecasts, they always get over-projected. Right now, Disney’s Moana 2 is putting up an estimated $54M first day, inclusive of yesterday’s Walt Disney Animation preview record of $13.8M. This will coast the Dwayne Johnson-Auli’i Cravalho sequel to at least $170M+ at 4,200 theaters, easily a Thanksgiving 5-day record both for an opening, unseating Disney’s own Frozen ($93.9M), as well as a movie with the biggest haul over the holiday stretch, the former being Frozen 2 ($125M). The 3-day for Moana 2 is somewhere between $90M-$100M+.
This is Disney’s fourth blockbuster north of $100M+ domestic under the Alan Bergman team after Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Inside Out 2 (the highest grossing movie of the year) and Deadpool & Wolverine, the latter being the highest R-rated movie of all-time.
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Now, some rivals easily see $200M+ over the Wednesday-Sunday period. One of the highest openings for a movie debuting on a Wednesday belongs to Super Mario Bros Movie at $204.6M. Keep in mind the first day here for Moana 2 bests the first day of that Illumination/Nintendo title at $31.7M — but that pic didn’t have any previews. Back out Moana 2‘s previews, and the surfer girl is at $40.2M currently.
We’re not done yet…Wicked by Sunday will stand at $236.9M, arguably the best ever stateside for a movie based on a Broadway musical, burying Grease ($190M). 5-day on Wicked is estimated at $92M. Today is $18.5M, the pic’s highest weekday so far, +11% over yesterday, which will plow into a $61M second weekend, -46% at 3,888 theaters. The production for both Wickeds is $320M before P&A.
Paramount’s Gladiator 2 at 3,580 sites is posting another $6.7M today, for a second weekend of $27.3M, -50% and 5-day of $39.4M and a running total of $106.6M for the $250M feature production.
Remember, the biggest Thanksgiving five-day Wednesday-Sunday frame for all titles belongs to 2018, when Ralph Breaks the Internet opened to No. 1, that period amassing $315.6M per Comscore. It’s looking like we could easily eclipse that benchmark.