Disney is wishing upon a box office star this Thanksgiving, as its latest animated movie “Wish” takes on Apple and Sony’s historical drama “Napoleon.”
“Wish” is expected to come out on top this weekend, but “Napoleon” won the first box office battle in previews. “Napoleon” made $3 million in previews, which began on Tuesday due to the Thanksgiving holiday, and “Wish” made $2.3 million.
The family-friendly animated movie about Disney’s iconic wishing star is expected to make $35 million over the typical weekend. With the extra-long Thanksgiving holiday, it could add up to between $45 million and $50 million over the five days. “Napoleon,” directed by Ridley Scott and starring Joaquin Phoenix as the brutal French ruler, is projected to make $16 million over the weekend and around $22 million in the extended holiday frame. Apple backed the film but Sony is distributing it, much like how Apple and Paramount rolled out “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Disney usually dominates during Thanksgiving time, when families arrive in droves to theaters, but “Wish” marks the second smaller opening for the company. Last year’s animated adventure “Strange World” flopped with just $18 million over the five-day holiday. In 2021, the musical “Encanto” made $40.3 million in the same timespan during the pandemic, but didn’t start to really sing until it was made available to stream on Disney+. The years before that had much bigger hits, like 2019’s “Frozen II” ($123.7 million), 2018’s “Ralph Breaks the Internet” ($84.6 million) and 2017’s “Coco” ($71 million).
“Wish” is written and directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, both of “Frozen” fame, and stars Oscar winner Ariana DeBose (“West Side Story”). She plays Asha, a girl who must save her kingdom from a wish-stealing villain — while she belts out a few hit songs along the way.
“Napoleon” is Apple’s second big-screen bet this fall, following Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon.” That movie opened with $23 million and has gone on to make $145 million so far. Like “Napoleon,” they both carry expensive price tags and are adult-skewing, auteur-made dramas backed by the deep-pocketed Apple, so it’s hard to judge their success based solely on the box office receipts. The movie reunites Scott and Phoenix years after “Gladiator” and also stars Vanessa Kirby as Empress Josephine.
