NEW YORK (AP) – With total worldwide ticket sales of $270 million, “Mean” AND “Gladiator II” breathed fresh life into the box office that did it he’s been struggling recentlyresulting in one among the busiest movie weekends of the 12 months.

Jon M. Chu’s lavish, big-budget musical “Wicked,” starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, debuted for Universal Pictures with $114 million domestically and $164.2 million worldwide, in line with studio estimates Sunday. This made it the third-biggest opening weekend of the 12 months, second only to it “Deadpool and Wolverine” AND “Inside Out 2”. This can be a record for a musical adaptation on Broadway.

“Gladiator II” by Ridley Scott the sequel to his best-picture-winning 2000 original, which grossed $55.5 million in ticket sales. The production cost of “Gladiator II” was roughly $250 million. Paramount Pictures took a giant step to return to the Coliseum with a largely latest forged, led by Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal. Although domestic ticket sales exceeded the projected $60 million, “Gladiator II” performed well overseas. It added $50.5 million internationally.

The clash between the two movies caused some echoes “Barbenheimer” the results of last 12 months’s premiere of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer”. This time a nickname “Gloss” it wasn’t as catchy and the cultural footprint was much smaller as well. Not many individuals he was searching for a double feature this time. The 2023 domestic grosses – “Barbie’s” $162 million and “Oppenheimer’s” $82 million – were also higher.

‘Glicked’ Doesn’t Compare to ‘Barbenheimer’

For Universal, which distributed “Oppenheimer” last 12 months, the weekend was more of a triumph for “Wicked” than for “Glicked.”

“We saw an opportunity to dominate the weekend and jumpstart Thanksgiving,” said Jim Orr, distribution chief at Universal. “We are sure he will perform ridiculously well in the Christmas corridor and into the new year.”

However, the counterprogramming effect was still strong for “Wicked” and “Gladiator II,” which also split fundamentally along gender lines. Once again, it was a female-oriented release – “Wicked,” like “Barbie” before it – that easily won the weekend. About 72% of ticket buyers for “Wicked” were women, and 61% of people that watched “Gladiator II” were men.

“On their own, you could argue that each of these films could have done exactly what they did, but it’s hard to say,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “Raising awareness can actually result in a rise in ticket sales. Let’s put it this fashion: they didn’t hurt one another in any respect.

Massive marketing campaigns paved the way for opening weekend

While “Barbenheimer” benefited enormously from the proliferation of memes, each “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” relied on all-out marketing attacks.

The “Gladiator II” campaign included all the pieces from Airbnb’s much-discussed cross-promotion with the real Colosseum in Rome to concurrently broadcast a one-minute trailer on over 4,000 TV networks, radio stations and digital platforms.

The “Wicked” attack went even further: pink and green Starbucks “Wickedly Delicious” drinks, Stanley cups and Mattel dolls appeared (a few of which led to an ungainly memory). Its stars visited the Met Gala and the Olympic Games.

“For Wicked, we had about 400 brand partners from around the world, so the campaign was inescapable,” Orr said. “And our cast, led by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, worked very hard on it. They were everywhere. They did everything we asked them to do.”

Before the weekend, ticket sales were down about 11% in comparison with last 12 months and about 25% in comparison with pre-pandemic times. This meant that the week’s two major movies led to a much-needed revival in theaters. WITH “Moana 2” Premiering on Wednesday, Hollywood could also be historic Thanksgiving box office numbers.

Both movies improved on sluggish box office results

“Two strong releases this weekend are reinvigorating ticket sales that have fallen apart after a strong summer,” said David A. Gross, a movie consultant who publishes a newsletter for Franchise Entertainment.

While “Wicked” will face direct competition from “Moana 2,” it appears to be higher positioned for an extended and lucrative theatrical run than “Gladiator II.” While some have panned “Wicked” for being an extended film, clocking in at 2 hours and 40 minutes, it received mostly excellent reviews. Audiences gave it an “A” grade on CinemaRating. The reception of “Wicked” was so great that Oscar forecasters expect it to be a contender for, amongst others, the Academy Award for Best Picture.

Producers, perhaps sensing successful, also decided to separate “Wicked” into two parts. Part two, already shot, shall be released in November next 12 months. Each “Wicked” installation cost roughly $150 million to create.

“Gladiator II” also received good reviews, especially for Washington’s charismatic performance. Audience performance was weaker, nevertheless, with ticket buyers giving it a “B” on CinemaRating. However, the film will partially compensate for this with solid foreign sales. It was launched in multiple overseas markets every week ago and has already raised $165.5 million worldwide.

Taking third place over the weekend was “Red One,” Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans’ holiday movie-turned-action movie. In its second week of release, Amazon’s MGM Studios release grossed $13.3 million, bringing its two-week global gross to $117 million. At $250 million, “Red One” is the biggest failure of the season, though Amazon could recoup some value if it becomes more popular once streaming begins.

Final national data shall be published on Monday. According to Comscore, estimated ticket sales from Friday through Sunday in U.S. and Canadian theaters:

1. “Wicked” – $114 million.

2. “Gladiator II” – $55.5 million.

3. “Red” – $13.3 million.

4. “Bonhoeffer: Pastor-Spy-Killer” – $5.1 million.

5. “Venom: The Last Dance” – $4 million.

6. “The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever” – $3.5 million.

7. “The Heretic” – $2.2 million.

8. “Wild Robot” – $2 million.

9. “Smile 2” – $1.1 million.

10. “Real Pain” – $1.1 million.