As Glinda (or Galinda) boldly claimed, “We’re gonna make you popular”, and popular are the Witches of Oz, indeed. Wicked: For Good, the highly anticipated follow-up to Universal’s adaptation of the Broadway musical, has opened to a staggering US$226 million globally, with US$150 million coming from North American theatres.
The haul puts it ahead of its predecessor’s US$164.2 million gross over the same period, setting the biggest overseas launch for a Broadway adaptation. It also ranks as the second-biggest start of the year, sandwiched between April’s A Minecraft Movie (US$162 million) and Disney’s Lilo & Stitch remake, which collected US$146 million domestically. Overall, the film currently occupies fifth place in terms of opening numbers for musicals, behind The Lion King (2019), Moana 2, Frozen 2, and Beauty and the Beast.
For the U.S. box office in particular, Wicked: For Good represents a much-needed respite from the recent slate of male-skewing features and the lack of family-centric or women-led offerings, resulting in the sharpest decline in decades. Despite the pivot into a darker tone and a more lukewarm response as compared to the first instalment, it remains a hit among audiences, scoring an “A” grade on CinemaScore exit polls — the same as before.
Directed by original helmer Jon M. Chu, the sequel covers the musical’s second act, where Elphaba, played by Cynthia Erivo, and Ariana Grande’s Glinda “embrace their new respective identities as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch of the North”, while facing the consequences of their previous decisions.
The leading pair is joined by returning stars Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton) as Fiyero Tigelaar, Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman, Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp, Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) as Madame Morrible, and Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park franchise) as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Coming in second at the domestic box office is Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, which added US$36.8 million to a global haul of US$146.2 million, followed by Predator: Badlands with a franchise-best tally of US$159.6 million, and The Running Man, earning US$5.8 million for a domestic and worldwide total of US$27 million and US$48.3 million, respectively.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Natalie
