Warner Bros. is continuing to beat out Warner Bros. and Warner Bros. over the New Year’s holiday weekend, with “Wonka” now rising above “The Color Purple” and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.” With that trifecta, the studio has laid claim to the three of the top five slots at the domestic box office throughout the holiday season.
The Timothée Chalamet-starring musical added another $8.6 million on Friday, up 32% from one week ago. The Paul King film has emerged as the theatrical favorite for the holidays, crossing $100 million domestically earlier this week. With a $119 million cume to date, the film continues to show strength and will reach $300 million globally before the calendar turns.
Though it slid into second place for Friday with $6.75 million, Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” fell 51% from its opening day last week. The latest and final entry in the current continuity of DC Comics adaptations has struggled for air, only reaching $65 million in its first week of release. The first “Aquaman,” released in 2018, surpassed that figure in its opening weekend alone. Bad reviews and superhero fatigue have plagued “Lost Kingdom,” which more than likely won’t even reach half the $335 million domestic total of its predecessor, much less justify a $205 million production budget.
Taking a close third place, Illumination and Universal’s “Migration” is maintaining its footing with $6.7 Friday after a muted $12 million debut last weekend. “Migration” has underwhelmed so far, but its 17% increase over last Friday remains encouraging, especially for an original animated film with a production budget of only $70 million.
“The Color Purple” is likely settling into fourth place after its impressive Christmas Day opening. The period musical earned $4.1 million on Friday to boost its domestic tally to $36.4 million. The film looks to add another $20 million or so through the four-day holiday weekend frame, ahead of what it hopes will be a healthy run through January as awards season kicks into high-gear.
Sony’s Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell starrer “Anyone but You” looks to round out the top five with $3.3 million on Friday. The romantic comedy has seen an uptick in business each day of the week. It will likely clear more than $26 million domestic gross through the New Year — not exactly a dazzling figure, but well on its way to justifying its $25 million production budget.
