Dec 02, (V7N) - "Moana 2" dominated the Thanksgiving weekend box office with a record-breaking $220 million opening in North America, making it the highest-grossing Thanksgiving debut ever. The sequel to the 2016 Disney hit, which had originally been planned as a direct-to-Disney+ release, surpassed expectations by outperforming the original film's three-day opening, which was $82 million. This impressive success came after the film was shifted to a theatrical release earlier this year.

The holiday weekend also saw strong performances from other major films. Universal's Wicked: Part I, which continues to impress in its second week, earned $117 million for a total of $262 million. Critics have praised Cynthia Erivo's portrayal of Elphaba, and the film’s success bodes well for the release of Wicked: Part 2 next year.

Paramount's Gladiator II made $44 million during the five-day stretch, bringing its two-week total to $111 million. The sequel to Ridley Scott's 2000 epic features Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, and Denzel Washington in an action-packed story set in ancient Rome.

Other notable performances included Red One, the Christmas comedy starring Dwayne Johnson, which earned $18.7 million, and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, which made $4.9 million.

The overall box office for the Thanksgiving period reached an estimated $422 million, breaking previous records for the holiday weekend.

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