The “Wicked” franchise is once again working its magic at the box office.
Universal’s musical sequel Wicked: For Good has generated $30.8 million during its early preview screenings — the largest pre-opening tally of 2025 so far. The achievement comes with a small footnote, as these numbers include multiple days of advance showings rather than the traditional Thursday-only previews. The film earned $6.1 million from Amazon Prime–sponsored fan events on Monday, added another $6.5 million from early Wednesday screenings, and collected $18.2 million from Thursday previews, which featured double-feature presentations of both Wicked films.
Warner Bros.’ Superman previously held this year’s preview record with $22.5 million from its Thursday showings, which preceded a $125 million opening weekend.
Industry forecasts suggest that Wicked: For Good, the eagerly awaited finale to last year’s pink-and-green blockbuster, could debut between $150 million and $180 million — potentially the biggest opening weekend of the year. At the moment, that title belongs to Warner Bros.’ A Minecraft Movie, which pulled in $10.6 million from Thursday previews before launching with $162 million. Universal remains cautious, projecting a $125 million opening, though fan anticipation is strong thanks to the continued popularity of Ariana Grande’s Glinda and Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba.
In 2024, Jon M. Chu’s first Wicked film opened during the same pre-Thanksgiving corridor with $19.2 million in previews and reached a $112.5 million opening weekend. The follow-up reunites the ensemble cast — including Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, and Bowen Yang — to bring the “Wizard of Oz” prequel saga to a close. The original film contributed to a record-breaking $420 million Thanksgiving box office last year, helped by strong performances from Gladiator II and Moana 2. With Disney’s Zootopia 2 arriving next week, both it and Wicked: For Good will aim to replicate that holiday-season success.
Also debuting this weekend is Sony’s action sequel Sisu: Road to Revenge, expected to earn around $3 million after taking in $575,000 from Thursday previews. Searchlight’s Rental Family, starring Brendan Fraser, also opens in the low single digits.
