The Walt Disney Co.'s animated film remained at the top of the box office in its second weekend in theaters as it brought in .
The film added $52 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. That brings its domestic total to $300 million, surpassing the original, and its global tally to a staggering $600 million.
The amount set a record gross for a movie on the weekend following Thanksgiving weekend, unseating 鈥淔rozen II,鈥� which earned $35.2 million in the same time frame in 2019. The numbers are not adjusted for inflation. Originally conceived as a Disney+ series, 鈥淢oana 2鈥� has already broken into the top five highest grossing releases of the year. Its performance means Disney has three films in this year's top five, including and The studio also has another big movie on the way before the year ends: Barry Jenkins' 鈥淢ufasa," out Dec. 20.
The weekend also showcased several new releases, including A24鈥檚 horror comedy 鈥淵2K鈥� and the Jude Law crime thriller But nothing was ever going to present significant competition to the enticing , 鈥淢oana 2,鈥� and
Second place at the box office was occupied by 鈥淲icked,鈥� which added $34.9 million, bringing its domestic total to $320.5 million in three weeks. Globally, the musical adaptation released by Universal is at $455.6 million. 鈥淕ladiator II鈥� followed in third place with $12.5 million, while 鈥淩ed One鈥� came in fourth with $7 million.
鈥淭hese holdovers are going to create the momentum that鈥檚 going to put an $8.5 billion-plus box office year on the horizon,鈥� said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore.
Pre-pandemic, $11 billion had become the annual norm for the movie business. Since then, the closest the industry has gotten to that number was last year, which cracked $9 billion. This year started off slow and up to a few months ago, Dergarabedian said, even hitting $8 billion for the year was in doubt. But in the two weeks since Thanksgiving, the deficit from last year has narrowed by over 5%.
The newcomers struggled to make a significant impact. Even the 10th anniversary rerelease of Christopher Nolan鈥檚 which played in only 165 theaters, did better than 鈥淵2K鈥� ($2.1 million) and 鈥淭he Order鈥� ($878,000) combined. Paramount reported that the science fiction epic starring Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway brought in an estimated $4.4 million. IMAX also noted that all the of 鈥淚nterstellar鈥� were sold out through the weekend.
鈥淚 was thrilled so many moviegoers took advantage of the original IMAX experience of 鈥業nterstellar鈥� this weekend," Nolan said in a statement.
The biggest of the many newcomers was the Indian action pic 鈥淧ushpa: The Rule 鈥� Part 2,鈥� which earned $4.9 million. Sony and Crunchyroll's anime release, 鈥淪olo Leveling 鈥� ReAwakening,鈥� made $2.4 million. Fathom also released pop duo for KING + COUNTRY鈥檚 鈥淎 Drummer Boy Christmas鈥� concert in theaters where it made $2.1 million.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a really diverse marketplace,鈥� Dergarabedian said. 鈥淭here's event cinema, international cinema, a re-release of a 10-year-old film. It's easily one of the most eclectic and interesting lineups I鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�
Next weekend theaters are in for another influx of bigger movies, with both Sony's comic book film 鈥淜raven the Hunter鈥� and the animated 鈥淭he Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim鈥� opening in wide release. Awards contenders 鈥淣ickel Boys鈥� and 鈥淪eptember 5鈥� will also open in a limited number of theaters.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淢oana 2,鈥� $52 million.
2. 鈥淲icked,鈥� $34.9 million.
3. 鈥淕ladiator II,鈥� $12.5 million
4. 鈥淩ed One,鈥� $7 million.
5. 鈥淧ushpa: The Rule 鈥� Part 2,鈥� $4.9 million.
6. 鈥淚nterstellar鈥� re-release, $4.4 million.
7. 鈥淪olo Leveling 鈥� ReAwakening,鈥� $2.4 million.
8. 鈥淵2K,鈥� $2.1 million.
9. 鈥渇or KING + COUNTRY鈥橲: A Drummer Boy Christmas,鈥� $2.1 million.
10. 鈥淭he Best Christmas Pageant Ever,鈥� $1.5 million.
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
