Current:Home > Markets'Wish' lacked the magic to beat out 'Hunger Games,' 'Napoleon' at Thanksgiving box office-LoTradeCoin
'Wish' lacked the magic to beat out 'Hunger Games,' 'Napoleon' at Thanksgiving box office
View Date:2024-12-23 23:33:01
NEW YORK − Disney’s “Wish” had been expected to rule the Thanksgiving weekend box office, but moviegoers instead feasted on leftovers, as “The Hunger Games: Songbirds and Snakes” led ticket sales for the second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Neither of the weekend’s top new releases − “Wish” and Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon” − could keep up with the “Hunger Games” prequel. After debuting the previous weekend with $44.6 million, the return to Panem proved the top draw for holiday moviegoers, grossing $28.8 million for the weekend and $42 million for the five-day holiday frame.
In two weeks of release, “Songbirds and Snakes” has grossed nearly $100 million domestically and $200 million globally.
The closer contest was for second place, where “Napoleon” narrowly outmaneuvered “Wish.” Scott’s epic outperformed expectations to take $32.5 million for the five-day weekend and an estimated $20.4 million Friday through Sunday. The film, starring Joaquin Phoenix as the French emperor and Vanessa Kirby as his wife Joséphine de Beauharnais, was also the top movie globally with $78.8 million.
Reviews were mixed (61% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and ticket buyers were non-plussed (a “B-” CinemaScore), but “Napoleon” fared far better in theaters than its subject did at Waterloo.
“Napoleon,” like Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” is a big-budget statement by Apple of the streaming service's swelling Hollywood ambitions. With an estimated budget of $200 million, “Napoleon” may still have a long road to reach profitability for Apple (which partnered with Sony to distribute “Napoleon” theatrically), but it’s an undeniably strong beginning for an adult-skewing 168-minute historical drama.
“Wish,” however, had been supposed to have a more starry-eyed start. Disney Animation releases like “Frozen II” ($123.7 million for five days in 2019), “Ralph Breaks the Internet” ($84.6 million in 2018) and “Coco” ($71 million in 2017) have often owned Thanksgiving moviegoing.
But “Wish” wobbled, coming in with $31.7 million in five days and $19.5 million Friday through Sunday.
“Wish,” at least, is faring better than Disney’s Thanksgiving release last year: 2022’s “Strange World” bombed with a five-day $18.9 million opening. But hopes had been higher for “Wish,” co-written and co-directed by the “Frozen” team of Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee and featuring the voices of Ariana DeBose and Chris Pine. “Wish,” a fairy tale centered around a wished-upon star, is also a celebration of Disney, itself, timed to the studio’s 100th anniversary and rife with callbacks to Disney favorites.
'Wish' movie review:Ariana DeBose is a powerhouse in a musical that owns its Disney-ness
But instead of righting an up-and-down year for Disney, “Wish” is, for now, adding to some of the studio’s recent headaches, including the underperforming “The Marvels.” The Marvel sequel has limped to $76.9 million domestically and $110.2 million overseas in three weeks.
Still, the storybook isn’t written yet on “Wish.” It could follow the lead of Pixar’s “Elemental,” which launched with a lukewarm $29.6 million in June but found its legs, ultimately grossing nearly $500 million worldwide.
“Wish” also faced direct competition for families in “Trolls Band Together.” The DreamWorks release opened a week prior, and took in $17.5 million in its second frame ($25.3 million over five days).
Also entering wide-release over the holiday weekend was Emerald Fennell’s “Saltburn,” the writer-director’s follow-up to 2020’s “Promising Young Woman.” After debuting in seven packed theaters last weekend, “Saltburn” grossed about $3 million in five days. Barry Keoghan stars as an Oxford student befriended by a rich classmate (Jacob Elordi) and invited to his family’s country manor.
'Saltburn':Emerald Fennell, Jacob Elordi go deep on the year's 'filthiest, sexiest' movie
veryGood! (7449)
Related
- John Robinson, successful football coach at USC and with the LA Rams, has died at 89
- Gas Prices Unlikely To Skyrocket As Oil Companies Assess Hurricane Ida Damage
- This Is The Devastation The Deadly Flooding Wrought In Tennessee
- Chloe Bailey's Dream Role Is Playing This Superhero in a Marvel Movie
- NCT DREAM enters the 'DREAMSCAPE': Members on new album, its concept and songwriting
- The Dixie Fire Has Destroyed Most Of A Historic Northern California Town
- YouTuber Tanner Cook Shot While Making Prank Video in Virginia Mall
- Robert Downey Jr. Shares Marvelously Rare Glimpse of His 3 Kids During Birthday Celebration
- Mike Tyson impresses crowd during workout ahead of Jake Paul fight
- Robert Downey Jr. Shares Marvelously Rare Glimpse of His 3 Kids During Birthday Celebration
Ranking
- Watch: Military dad's emotional return after a year away
- Opinion: 150 years after the Great Chicago Fire, we're more vulnerable
- Heat waves are dangerous during pregnancy, but doctors don't often mention it
- China accuses Biden of open political provocation for equating President Xi Jinping to dictators
- Best fits for Corbin Burnes: 6 teams that could match up with Cy Young winner
- Climate Change Is Driving Deadly Weather Disasters From Arizona To Mumbai
- Pregnant Rumer Willis Reveals Future Family Plans Ahead of Welcoming Baby
- If You’re Tired of Pulling up Your Leggings, These 14 Pairs Are Squat-Proof According to Reviewers
Recommendation
-
Trump breaks GOP losing streak in nation’s largest majority-Arab city with a pivotal final week
-
Laura Benanti Shares She Suffered Miscarriage While Performing in Front of 2,000 People Onstage
-
Floods threaten to shut down a quarter of U.S. roads and critical buildings
-
Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, diagnosed with breast cancer, undergoes surgery
-
Martin Scorsese on faith in filmmaking, ‘The Saints’ and what his next movie might be
-
Monkey torture video ring with suspects and customers in U.S. exposed by BBC investigation
-
Western Europe Can Expect More Heavy Rainfall And Fatal Floods As The Climate Warms
-
U.S. Envoy Kerry Says China Is Crucial To Handling The Climate Crisis