‘Wicked’ Beating ‘Gladiator II’ Handily In Weekend Box Office Battle

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s “Wicked” is dominating Paul Mescal and Denzel Washington’s “Gladiator II” this weekend at the domestic box office.

According to Deadline, Wicked—the long-awaited big-screen adaptation of the classic 2003 Broadway musical—is projected to make $117 million in its first Friday to Sunday frame. The Universal Pictures release is playing in 3,888 North American venues.

Deadline said the PG-rated Wicked had a production budget of $150 million before prints and advertising. Wicked: Part Two, which is still in the works, is set for a November 21, 2025, release.

Meanwhile, Deadline projects that director Ridley Scott’s R-rated Gladiator II—the sequel to 2000’s Best Picture Oscar winner Gladiator—will make $60 million from 3,573 North American theaters.

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Per Variety, Gladiator II had a $250 million production budget before P&A.

According to the trade publication, the Paramount Pictures film was released in several international territories on November 15, making $87 million from 63 markets in its first Friday to Sunday frame.

‘Red One’ Nosedives In The Wake Of ‘Wicked’

Predictably, business is projected to drop off for Red One with the simultaneous releases of Gladiator II and Wicked—or Glicked a la Barbenheimer, as dubbed in the media—in its second Friday to Sunday frame.

The Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans Christmas action adventure, per Deadline, is projected to earn $13.5 million this weekend from 4,032 North American venues after opening with a tepid $34 million from November 15-17.

Deadline projects that the Angel Studios period thriller Bonhoeffer. Pastor. Spy. Assassin will open at No. 4 with $4.8 million from 1,900 theaters domestically.

Meanwhile, Sony Pictures Entertainment projects that Venom: The Last Dance will make $4 million from 2,558 domestic locations for a No. 5. Finish. To date, the Tom Hardy comic book movie about the symbiote antihero has earned $133.8 million domestically to date.

Note: This box office report on Wicked, Gladiator II and other films in the domesptic top five will be updated throughout the weekend with the most current domestic and international box office information available. The final numbers for this weekend’s box office will be released on Monday.