‘Encanto,’ ‘House of Gucci’ fuel Thanksgiving box office

NEW YORK  — Thanksgiving weekend moviegoing was still far from the feast it normally is, but Disney’s “Encanto” and the Lady Gaga-led “House of Gucci” both gave a lift to two genres that have been particularly battered by the pandemic: family movies and adult dramas.

“Encanto” led the box office with $27 million over the weekend and $40.3 million across the five-day holiday frame, according to studio estimates Sunday. While well off the pace of past Disney animated movies released over Thanksgiving — “Coco” launched at the same time of year with $72 million and “Ralph Breaks the Internet” did as well with $84 million — the result was the best opening for an animated movie during the pandemic.

Family films have been especially slow to bounce back, though with kids increasingly getting vaccinated, hopes have been rising that releases such as “Encanto” can lead a rebound. Disney earlier this year released films like Pixar’s “Luca” straight to Disney+, but put out “Encanto,” exclusively in theaters. The film, about a magical Colombia family and featuring original songs from Lin-Manuel Miranda, took in $70 million globally.

MGM’s “House of Gucci,” from director Ridley Scott, debuted with $14.2 million over the three-day weekend and $21.8 million across five days. That, too, was among the best performances for an adult drama.

The $75 million-budgeted “House of Gucci,” about the family behind the Italian fashion brand, features a large cast including Adam Driver, Jared Leto and Al Pacino. But its star, Lady Gaga, who plays Patrizia Reggiani, especially drove the turnout. According to MGM, 59% of the audience was female and 45% were between the ages of 18-35.

“Originality still counts in the public’s mind,” said Erik Loomis, distribution chief for MGM. “We were really pleased with the results. If you asked me going into the weekend, I was praying that the predictions were right because you just don’t know today. You just don’t know how the market’s going to react.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/32HKP8L