With “Gladiator II” and “Wicked”, American cinemas are rubbing their hands – 11/21/2024 at 08:10

After the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon, the “Glicked” wave? In the United States, theater operators hope that the release this weekend of two of the most anticipated films of the year, “Gladiator II” and “Wicked”, will ignite the box office like “Barbie” and ” Oppenheimer” in 2023.

“Gladiator II” marks the return of Ridley Scott to ancient Rome, 24 years after his first epic crowned with the Oscar for best film. “Wicked” adapts for the big screen a famous Broadway musical, which chronicles the adventures of the witch from “The Wizard of Oz”.

Produced respectively by the behemoths Paramount and Universal, the two films benefit from enormous marketing campaigns.

The Internet is already full of “Glicked” or “Wickiator” memes while the country's multiplexes and shopping centers are adorned with the green and pink tones associated with the witches of “Wicked”, or mini-Colosseums made of cardboard.

No one knows if fans will dress in togas or witch hats, as they are invited, but operators are salivating in anticipation.

“I am convinced that this is going to be the biggest Thanksgiving the industry has ever known,” Jordan Hohman, executive at Phoenix Theaters, told AFP.

In this chain of theaters, reservations for “Wicked”, in which pop star Ariana Grande plays, are 63% ahead of those for the global hit “Barbie” before its release last year.

– Thumbs up –

American theaters may have rebounded, but they have never regained their pre-pandemic attendance.

They could really use a helping hand in 2024, a year during which programming was cut short by the delays of numerous productions, due to the strike which paralyzed Hollywood for six months in 2023.

Only a few films really stood out, like Pixar's “Vice-versa 2”, or this summer's “Deadpool & Wolverine”. Announced as a sensation, “Joker: Folie à Deux” turned into a commercial flop.

In this context, the record summer of 2023 carried by “Barbie” and her peroxide doll, as well as “Oppenheimer”, portrait of the father of the atomic bomb, is a recipe to follow. In their opening weekend, both films grossed $245 million in North America.

Studios are historically reluctant to release two blockbusters at the same time.

But like the “Barbenheimer” duo, “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” “aren't likely to step on each other's toes,” observes David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.

“They are aimed at different audiences,” he recalls, with a gender distinction in marketing.

Advertisements for “Gladiator II” are ubiquitous during American football matches, while a makeup line inspired by “Wicked” is already on sale.

– “Unexpected scenario” –

At Cinema Con, the industry's high mass organized each year in the spring in Las Vegas, Paramount set up shop at the Ceasar's Palace casino and brought one of its managers in in a chariot, flanked by several Roman soldiers.

For its part, Universal distributed thousands of green and pink plastic flowers to light up its conference on the theme of “Wicked”.

But despite this profusion of means, matching the heights reached by “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” will be difficult.

“Barbenheimer was an example of massive outperformance of two films, (…) an unexpected ideal scenario,” warns Daniel Lora, expert for Boxoffice Media.

The first indicators nevertheless remain encouraging.

“Gladiator II” was already released in dozens of other countries last week and has grossed $87 million. Paramount is hoping for similar numbers in the United States this weekend.

For “Wicked”, Universal – which produced “Oppenheimer” – hopes to exceed $100 million at the North American box office this weekend.

Reassuring prospects for theater operators, who are also counting on the Disney cartoon “Moana 2” for the end of the year.

In 2024, “I don't think it's a two-film phenomenon,” says Cory Jacobson, the boss of Phoenix Theaters. “I believe there will be a three-movie phenomenon.”