Wicked breaks box office record

Wicked: Part One has soared to a record-breaking $164 million global opening weekend. The film, which explores the origin story of the Wicked Witch of the West (Cynthia Erivo) and her college roommate Galinda (Ariana Grande) from The Wizard of Oz, has left its competitors “green” with envy.

Wicked earned an impressive $114 million in the US alone and £13.7 million in the UK, setting a new record for the largest opening both globally and in the US for a Broadway show adaptation. It surpassed the previous record held by Les Misérables ($103 million worldwide in 2012) and Into the Woods ($31 million in the US in 2014). As well as that, the film now ranks among the top five openings for any movie musical, trailing only a handful of Disney live-action remakes and the phenomenon Frozen II.

Meanwhile, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II also made a triumphant debut, amassing $221 million worldwide during its opening weekend. The swords-and-sandals sequel continues the legacy of its Oscar-winning predecessor with a strong and honourable showing at the global box office.