The Wicked movie has been making theatrical waves over Thanksgiving weekend. According to Deadline, Wicked, along with Moana 2 and Gladiator II, topped the blockbuster charts, pulling in over 30 million people to the movie theaters.
Global media analytics company Comscore reported that Wicked grossed $262.4 million domestically and $359.2 million globally. In an interview with CNN, Comscore Senior Media Analyst Paul Dergarabedian highlighted the significant attention these three films brought to cinemas.
“Having all three of these films seems to be a strategy, whether by design or by accident, that draws massive amounts of attention to the movie theater experience,” said Dergarabedian.
Wicked is an adaptation of the long-running Broadway musical, which is loosely based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, itself inspired by The Wizard of Oz. The film follows the complex friendship between Elphaba and Glinda, portrayed by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, and the events that lead them down drastically different paths.
Beyond its theatrical success, Wicked also soared in the music industry. According to Billboard, the film’s soundtrack reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 on the Top Album Sales, Soundtracks, and Vinyl Albums charts.
The film sold 139,000 albums in the week of Nov. 28, marking the biggest week for a theatrical film’s soundtrack since the 2018 version of A Star Is Born with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga.
Additionally, the last time a theatrical musical made it to the top spots on the Billboard 200 chart was Chicago in 2003 at the No. 4 spot and Les Miserables in 2013, which landed on the No. 2 and No. 1 spots in its third week following release.
Wicked is now the highest-grossing Broadway adaptation domestically, which was previously held by Grease in 1978. A sequel movie is set to conclude the movie’s plot next year. Wicked: Part Two is set to release on November 21, 2025.
