Moana 2 Box Office Sets Disney Animation Preview Record

“Moana 2” cruised at the box office with $13.8 million in previews on Tuesday, ranking as the biggest preview in history for Disney Animation. It’s also the biggest pre-Thanksgiving premiere and the second-best preview figure ever for an animated title.

To compare with Disney’s other animated juggernauts, June’s “Inside Out 2” brought in $13 million in Thursday previews before reaching $154 million in its three-day debut, 2019’s “Toy Story 4” brought in $12 million in Thursday previews before was launched at 121 dollars. million over the three days, while 2019’s “Frozen II” earned $8.5 million in Thursday openers before bowing to $130 million over the pre-Thanksgiving weekend. Pixar’s 2018 sequel “Incredibles 2,” which holds the record for the biggest debut for an animated film, brought in $18.5 million in its Thursday opening before opening to a mighty $183 million over the weekend.

Previews for “Moana 2” began at 2 p.m. Tuesday. Disney’s musical sequel officially opens on Wednesday and is estimated to gross at least $135 million to $145 million in its first five days in theaters. Those ticket sales would reach the biggest Thanksgiving haul, surpassing the record set by “Frozen II” ($125 million over the five days) and 2013’s “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” ($109 million over the five days).

The owners of the studio and cinemas are especially grateful for the unexpected that “Moana 2” is ready to bring, because the follow-up to the Polynesian adventure was developed as a TV show for Disney+ before being turned into a feature film.

Reviews have been mixed, averaging 67% on Rotten Tomatoes, but critical sentiment doesn’t always factor into the turnout for family films. Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson reprise their voice roles as the eponymous heroine (who isn’t a princess) and tattooed demigod Maui in the sequel, which picks up as Moana travels far out to sea to find a hidden island and break a curse . Lin-Manuel Miranda, who penned catchy tunes like “How Far I’ll Go” and “You’re Welcome” for the first film, did not return for the second, instead handing over songwriting duties to duo Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear behind “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical.”

With “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” also drawing crowds over the holiday window, this is expected to be one of the biggest Thanksgivings at the box office in modern times.

“Wicked” added a whopping $16.6 million on Tuesday. Universal’s big-budget musical, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, is expected to gross $60 million over the traditional weekend (down about 50% from its record opening of $114 million) and at least $80 million over the five days . It has generated $144.9 million domestically and $195 million worldwide to date.

Meanwhile, “Gladiator II” collected $6.6 million on Tuesday. Paramount’s even bigger-budget tentpole looks to add $33 million from North American theaters over the traditional weekend (down 44% from its $55.5 million debut) and $45 million between Wednesday and Sunday. The sequel to 2000’s “Gladiator” has so far grossed $67.2 million domestically and $232 million globally.