Box Office: ‘Moana 2’ sailing towards post-Thanksgiving record with $60 million
Friday update: As expected, there won’t be much movement in the post-Thanksgiving box office rankings. “Moana 2” is projected to hold the top spot again, taking in around $60 million, which would be the highest numbers ever for the first week of December. The current record-holder is 2019’s “Frozen II,” which grossed $35.1 million. “Wicked” is poised to come in second place with around $32 million, followed by “Gladiator II” at $15.5 million. The big surprise could be “Pushpa 2 — The Rule,” an Indian action film from director Sukumar, which is on track to take in over $10 million in the US. Finally, “Y2k,” A24’s horror-comedy is on track for a $3 – 5 million opening weekend.
What will be the winners and the losers this week at the U.S. box office? Walt Disney Studios’ “Moana 2” shattered Thanksgiving records last weekend, but faces new competition from “Get Away, “Solo Leveling: ReAwakening,” “Werewolves,” and “Y2K.” The newcomers will be facing off against the current top five money-makers: “Moana 2,” “Wicked,” “Gladiator II,” “Red One,” and “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.”
Gold Derby predicts that “Moana 2” will win the Dec. 6 – Dec. 8 weekend with between $50 million – $75 million domestically. “Wicked” is the runner-up choice of our odds-makers. Do you agree or disagree with those rankings? Make your predictions right now — it’s fun and easy! Join the box office discussion in our forums.
NEW RELEASES
“Get Away” (dir. Steffen Haars): A family’s vacation to a remote getaway takes an unexpected turn when they discover the island they’re on is inhabited by a serial killer. The comedy/horror movie starring Nick Frost, Aisling Bea, and Sebastian Croft has a running time of one hour, 30 minutes, and is rated R.
“Solo Leveling: ReAwakening” (dir. Shunsuke Nakashige): Over a decade after “gates” connecting worlds appeared, awakening “hunters” with superpowers, weakest hunter Sung Jinwoo (Taito Ban) encounters a double dungeon and accepts a mysterious quest, becoming the only one able to level up, changing his fate. The animated film has a running time of two hours, one minutes, and is rated R.
“Werewolves” (dir. Steven C. Miller): Two scientists try to stop a mutation that turns people into werewolves after being touched by a super-moon the year before. The action/horror/thriller starring Frank Grillo, Katrina Law, and Ilfenesh Hadera has a running time of one hour, 34 minutes, and is rated R.
“Y2K” (dir. Kyle Mooney): Two high school nobodies make the decision to crash the last major celebration before the new millennium on New Year’s Eve 1999. The night becomes even crazier than they could have ever dreamed when the clock strikes midnight. The comedy/horror/sci-fi movie starring Jaeden Martell, Rachel Zegler, and Julian Dennison has a running time of one hour, 31 minutes, and is rated R.
BOX OFFICE PREDICTIONS
Box office pundits are predicting the “Moanapocalypse” to continue for another week. While families continue rushing to theaters to see “Moana 2” and “Wicked,” four new R-rated films debut this week, hoping to find their own niche audience this holiday season. The most promising appears to be “Y2K,” which stars Golden Globe winner Rachel Zegler (“West Side Story”) and has Oscar nominee Jonah Hill (“The Wolf of Wall Street,” “Moneyball”) as a producer.
“Get Away” and “Werewolves” also have dark themes, hoping to capitalize on audiences who have a more sinister movie appetite this holiday season. Then there’s “Solo Leveling: ReAwakening,” which is an anime adaptation of Chu-Gong‘s “Solo Leveling” by A-1 Pictures.
Here are Gold Derby’s current box office rankings for the top five:
1. “Moana 2”
2. “Wicked”
3. “Gladiator II”
4. “Red One”
5. “Y2K”
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