After all the impatient waiting and feverish anticipation, Universal’s Wicked (*cough* Part One *cough*) is finally here — and in news that will surprise approximately nobody, Jon M. Chu’s cinematic take on the Wizard Of Oz inspired Broadway smash is proving pretty Popular with audiences already. The epic movie musical, which tells the origin story of the Wicked Witch of the West (Cynthia Erivo) and her one-time college roommate Galinda (Ariana Grande), has been Defying Gravity at the box office this past weekend, soaring to a record breaking $164 million opening worldwide as it leaves its competitors, er, green with envy.
As of today, Wicked — which scored $114 million of its debut takings on home turf in the states — has already landed the biggest global and domestic opening for a movie based on a Broadway show, besting Les Misérables’ worldwide opening ($103m) in 2012 and Into The Woods‘ domestic launch ($31m) in 2014. What’s more, as well as representing career best openings for director Jon M. Chu, Cynthia Erivo, and Ariana Grande (who has now scored a near-unprecedented No. 1 movie, single, and album all in the same year), in scarcely more than One Short Day, the film has also broken into the top five global and domestic openings for a movie musical period, bested only by a few Disney live-action remakes and the juggernaut that was Frozen II.
Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo headline UK premiere of Wicked
And it wasn’t just Wicked whose box office potential was seemingly unlimited (unlimited…) this past weekend either as the Glicked effect seems to be in full flow too, with Sir Ridley Scott’s swords-and-sandals sequel Gladiator II reaching a strong and honourable $221 million global cume this past weekend. With Wicked on Fiyero at the multiplexes and Gladiator II showing its legs in the theatrical arena heading into Thanksgiving weekend stateside, Barbenheimer looks to have found a more than worthy successor to its stroke of counter-progamming genius. All of which is to say that our dream of Cynthia Erivo flying circles around some sharks in a colosseum at the Oscars while Paul Mescal sings ‘Dancing Through Life’ is still alive.
