Box office: Wicked 2 shatters all records, Running Man confirms its failure

It was one of the cinema events of the year, and Wicked: Part 2 was at the rendezvous of History. The long-awaited sequel arrived on American screens this weekend, and in addition to securing a comfortable place at the top of the rankings, the Universal film surpassed the figures of the first film and set a few records. We take stock.

Wicked: For Great!

The American box office has just taken a big breath, and it is therefore thanks to the 150 million dollars garnered by Wicked: For Good during its inaugural weekend. For comparison, that’s a 25% increase from the first Wicked released in November 2024, which opened with $112.5 million on American soil.

The box office is even more impressive when taking into account the rest of the world, where the film rakes in an additional 76 million. A global start-up which therefore reaches 226 million dollars, and which therefore does better than the first Wicked (172.5 million), but also that Fantastic Four: First Steps (218 million) and Superman (220 million) released this year.

Such a plebiscite obviously excites the counters, and Wicked: Part 2 naturally broke some records. John Chu’s film marks the best American and global start for an adaptation of a Broadway show, as well as for its actresses Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. This “Wicked 2” is also the best launch in November for a musical, ahead of Moana 2.

Finally, the film marks the second best American start of all time for Universal, behind Jurassic World released in 2015 ($208.8 million at the time). Suffice to say that the studio must be more than happy, especially with a reasonable budget estimated at 150 million dollars… At this rate, the sequel should exceed the final score of the first Wickedwhich ended its career at $758.7 million worldwide. To be continued.

In the rest of the box office, the kings of yesterday – Elusive 3 And Running Man – have fallen from their pedestals. The robber/magician film is still not doing too badly with a second place at 9.1 million dollars, down only 56%. This brings its US total to a measly 36.8 million, and its world cumulative close to 150 million dollars. A weak pace which should make this opus the least popular in the franchise.

The disappointment is confirmed on the side of Running Man. Edgar Wright’s film fell sharply in the second week, and already fell to fourth position with $5.8 million earned. The feature film, whose budget is estimated at 110 million, only totaled 48.3 million dollars worldwide today and is establishing itself as one of the big flops of 2025. And it’s a shame, especially given the quality of the film.

This beautiful awakening of American theaters should be confirmed next week, with the release of Disney animated film Zootopia 2.

US box office from November 21 to 23, 2025 (estimates)

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