Coco Takes The Top Spot Over Thanksgiving Weekend

Disney has once again launched a successful property over the Thanksgiving Day weekend box office and is proving that this weekend could belong to them year after year.

With an estimated $49 million for the three-day weekend and $71.2 million for the five-day, Disney and Pixar’s Coco delivered the fourth largest Thanksgiving three- and five-day-openings of all time. As a result, Disney continues to dominate nine of the ten largest three and five-day openings over the Thanksgiving holiday with New Line’s Four Christmases being the only non-Disney titles remaining among those ranks.

Coco’s domestic opening is a tad over the 2010 opening for Disney Animation’s Tangled, which went on to gross over $200 million domestically. The question now is whether Coco, a Disney film that doesn’t feature a traditional Disney princess, can have the same longevity as a film like Tangled or even last year’s Thanksgiving hit, Moana, which opened with $82 million over the holiday five-day and went on to gross nearly $250 million domestically and nearly $650 million worldwide. If Coco’s “A+” CinemaScore is any indication, the answer is yes. The film has received glowing reviews (96% on Rotten Tomatoes) and kids as well as adults, seem to love the film as well. I see strong legs in this film’s future.

In second place we find Justice League and the news is looking grim for the $300 million film on the domestic front. The film dropped almost 57% in its second weekend for an estimated $40.7 million three-day and $59.6 million over five days. The Thanksgiving holiday prevented the film from facing a steep weekend two drop like some of its DCEU predecessors (69% for Batman v. Superman and 67% for Suicide Squad) but this second weekend (if only counting the Friday, Saturday & Sunday period) is less than the $51.3 million for Batman v. Superman and the $43.5 million for Suicide Squad. The running total stands at $171.5 million but here is where the problem lies. The weekend after Thanksgiving tends to see pretty hefty drops (keep in mind there are no new releases opening this weekend which should show you how dead it tends to be) and I expect Justice League to take quite a tumble in weekend three. It needs at least $275 million stateside to begin the process of breaking even for Warner Bros. but it is well beyond that internationally with a gross of over $300 million from overseas markets. This brings its worldwide total to $481.3 million but its domestic prospects will have the studio thinking long and hard about what to do next.

In third place we find Wonder and it’s proving to be just that at the box office. After overperforming last weekend with a gross of $27 million, the film comes in strong during its second weekend with an estimated $22.3 million three-day and a $32.2 million five-day.  The three-day portion represents a slim drop of 19% as the film is proving to be a big hit with families and should continue to perform well, even if it sees a heavier drop this coming weekend. The $20 million film is now just shy of $70 million after ten days of release and is a certain lock for $100 million at the box office.

Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok lands in fourth place with an estimated $16.8 million three-day and a five-day that nearly reached $25 million. The three-day portion only sees a 22.5% drop which is showing that Justice League isn’t really taking its audience. The film is now the tenth largest release within the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a domestic gross that now stands at $277.5 million. Additionally, Ragnarok added $11 million internationally this weekend for a global total that is now up to over $790 million making it the seventh largest worldwide release in the MCU. It’s basically doing what Justice League should be doing and on a smaller budget ($180 million v. $300 million).

Rounding out the top five is Daddy’s Home 2 with estimated $13.25 million over the three-day and $18.6 million for the five day weekend. The film seems to be the comedy choice at the box office which explains why it’s hanging in there despite the visceral reviews (I saw it this weekend and our theater seemed to dig it) but it’s definitely not getting to the $150 million that the original grossed. That was aided by opening in December over the holiday season, which tends to inflate box office. That being said, the $69 million film has grossed $72.6 million to date and could possibly see $90-100 million by the end of its run, which isn’t a bad showing at all.

Check out the full top ten results below:

  1. Coco – $49 million (NEW, $71.1 million after five days)
  2. Justice League – $40.7 million (-57%, $171.5 million)
  3. Wonder – $22.3 million (-19%, $69.4 million)
  4. Thor: Ragnarok – $16.7 million (-22.5%, $277.4 million)
  5. Daddy’s Home 2 – $13.25 million (-8.2%, $72.6 million)
  6. Murder on the Orient Express – $13 million (-5.8%, $74.4 million)
  7. The Star – $6.8 million (-29.9%, $22 million)
  8. A Bad Moms Christmas – $5 million (-28.4%, $59.7 million)
  9. Roman J. Israel, Esq. – $4.5 million (+7,182.4%, $6.2 million)
  10. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri – $4.4 million (+299.2%, $7.6 million)

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About Gaius Bolling 3795 Articles
At the age of five, I knew I wanted to write movies and about them. I've set out to make those dreams come true. As an alumni of the Los Angeles Film Academy, I participated in their Screenwriting program, while building up my expertise in film criticism. I write reviews that relate to the average moviegoer by educating my readers and keeping it fun. My job is to let you know the good, the bad, and the ugly in the world of cinema, so you can have your best moviegoing experience. You can find more of my writing on Instagram @g_reelz.