Families will be feasting, footballers will be playing, shoppers will be fighting and two huge sequels will be battling it out at the box office over the Thanksgiving weekend. Creed II and Ralph Breaks the Internet are both hitting theaters on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and while both are poised to do well, it's Ralph that has the eye of the tiger and is expected to break the box office with a $65 million opening.
As always, these projections could fluctuate as the release draws near, but the early tracking pegs Ralph Breaks the Internet for $65 million over the five-day weekend from Wednesday to Sunday. The animated sequel is tracking particularly well with younger females, but interest is high in all demographics, according to Deadline.
Wreck-It Ralph debuted to $49 million over the first weekend in November in 2012. Although not over the Thanksgiving weekend, the five-day haul for that film was $56.7 million. It went on to make $189.4 million domestically and $471.2 million worldwide.
Ralph is poised to debut at number one for the Thanksgiving weekend, but there is plenty to go around, and Creed II also has a ton of interest from audiences. The sequel to Ryan Coogler's 2015 film is looking to put in a solid round on the scorecards with $48 million over five days. That would best Creed, which made $42.1 million over the Thanksgiving period when it opened.
Also opening over the Thanksgiving frame is Lionsgate's Robin Hood starring Taron Egerton, Jamie Foxx and Ben Mendelsohn in what looks to be an action-packed retelling of the classic tale. Robin Hood is tracking at $17 million.
As it often is, the Thanksgiving holiday is looking to be a big one for moviegoing, and despite some strong competition, it looks like Ralph Breaks the Internet will continue Disney's reign of dominance over the holiday where its other films like Frozen and Coco have found success.
Ralph Breaks the Internet picks up after the events of the first film with Ralph and Vanellope now friends. When the arcade owner plugs in a wi-fi router, it opens up the world of the internet to the characters. And that's a world they'll have to venture in to when the Sugar Rush game is broken, leaving Vanellope homeless. The trailers for Ralph Breaks the Internet have been hilarious and see Disney actually poking fun at itself (although not Kylo Ren).
The original Wreck-It Ralph followed the disappointing box office of Winnie the Pooh, which was bafflingly released opposite Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 and marked the end of 2D animation for the storied studio.
Since then, Walt Disney Animation Studios has been on a hot streak with Frozen, Big Hero 6, Zootopia, and Moana. The animation studio doesn't historically do many sequels, but it is looking to buck that trend with a one-two punch of Ralph Breaks the Internet this year and Frozen 2 in 2019.
Ralph Breaks the Internet opens in theaters on November 21. Check out all the movies you can look forward to this holiday season in our release calendar.
