Moana' Makes Splash at Box Office
November 27 2016 - 8:10PM
Dow Jones News
Walt Disney Co.'s "Moana" sailed to a hit $81.1 million at the
box office over the five-day holiday weekend.
The estimated gross is the second-best five-day Thanksgiving
opening of all time, behind Disney's own "Frozen," which opened to
$93.6 million in 2013. Disney has come to dominate the Thanksgiving
release window; "Moana" now means Disney has the top six five-day
debuts for the holiday of all time.
Featuring the voices of Auli'i Cravalho and Dwayne "The Rock"
Johnson and songs by "Hamilton" creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, "Moana"
introduces a new Disney heroine, a Polynesian girl who must set
sail on a dangerous mission to save her community.
Thanksgiving week helps draw in multiple generations of
moviegoers, said Dave Hollis, Disney's executive vice president of
distribution. "It gives us that big burst," he said. "Frozen"
became its own juggernaut in 2013, coasting on strong weekends for
months to a domestic haul of $400 million.
For "Moana," the studio is counting on strong interest
continuing through the Christmas season, aided by adult moviegoers
drawn in by Messrs. Johnson and Miranda, said Mr. Hollis.
On Friday, the North American box office passed the $10 billion
mark in record time, according to the National Association of
Theatre Owners. Last year's movies passed it on Dec. 18, before
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens" drove the annual results to
record-setting grosses.
It was a range of feast or famine for the rest of the
Thanksgiving box office.
"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," the Harry Potter
spinoff that premiered in first place last week, slipped to No. 2
with a healthy $65.8 million over the five days. The movie, from
Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros., has collected a total of $156.2
million in North America and made its debut in China with $41.1
million. Its world-wide total stands at $317.5 million.
"Allied," starring Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard as World War
II spies and lovers, grossed an underwhelming $18 million over the
five days. "It was OK, and you hope to do better than OK on a
holiday weekend," said Megan Colligan, president of world-wide
distribution and marketing at Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures,
which released the movie.
"Allied" drew an older audience, who typically don't rush out to
see a movie on opening weekend. That could help it draw in
moviegoers in the coming weeks. "Allied" is leaning on the star
power of its cast, but those marketing efforts were hampered by Mr.
Pitt's headline-grabbing divorce from Angelina Jolie, which
prevented as much publicity for the film as usual.
"Bad Santa 2," starring Billy Bob Thornton as a debauched Kriss
Kringle, went straight to moviegoers' naughty list. It was
distributed by Broad Green Pictures and collected a measly $9
million.
That was still better than "Rules Don't Apply," director Warren
Beatty's passion project about 1958 Hollywood. It collected only
$2.2 million over the five days, ranking among the worst
wide-release openings this year. The movie was released by
Twentieth Century Fox. (21st Century Fox, which owns the Fox
studio, and News Corp., owner of The Wall Street Journal, share
common ownership.)
Of all the new releases, audiences like "Moana" best. It
received an "A" grade from audiences, according to the CinemaScore
market research firm. "Allied" received a "B," "Rules Don't Apply
got a "B-" and "Bad Santa 2" a "C+."
Write to Erich Schwartzel at erich.schwartzel@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 27, 2016 19:55 ET (00:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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