Great news ahead of its Nov. 22 opening: Universal‘s feature take of stage musical Wicked has posted first day advance ticket sales on Fandango which rank as the retailer’s second best year-to-date behind Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine. As you know that Disney theatrical release posted a first day of $96.1M and 3-day of $211.4M. Wicked hits theaters the Friday before Thanksgiving.
Since Universal moved Wicked off the Wednesday before Thanksgiving away from Disney’s Moana 2 and onto the opening day of Paramount’s Gladiator II, there’s been hope by those in exhibition and the industry that another Barbenheimer effect might be at hand at the box office. We won’t know that until it happens. Tickets for Gladiator II went on sale on Oct. 8.
Wicked is also the best PG-Rated first-day ticket pre-seller of 2024 for Fandango and the No. 3 best PG-Rated first-day ticket pre-seller of all time; only behind the theatrical hits of Frozen II and 2019’s The Lion King. Those last two movies respectively posted 3-days of $130.2M and $191.8M. Distribs always like to caution that presales aren’t always an indicator of box office, but in this post strike environment, hell, yeah — they’ve been a solid indicator. We heard presales for Joker: Folie a Deux were dragging behind that of Warner Bros/DC’s The Flash last weekend, while advance ticket sales for Cineverse’s Terrifier 3 this weekend indicate at least an $11M+ opening.
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“Fan anticipation for the cinematic masterpiece Wicked is incredibly high for what is set to be a one-of-a-kind must-see theatrical event,” said Jerramy Hainline, EVP of Fandango Ticketing. “The success of the film’s first-day ticket sales is a testament to fans’ love for this iconic property, and the off-the-charts appetite to see this beloved story come to life on the big screen.”
The biggest November opening ever at the domestic box office belongs to Marvel Studios/Disney’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which posted a 3-day of $181.3M.