Wicked: For Good did not beat The Lion King’s domestic opening weekend. Its recorded domestic opening was $147,004,640 for November 21–23, 2025, according to Box Office Mojo, while Disney reported The Lion King’s 2019 domestic debut at $191.8 million. The film did set a different record: NBCUniversal said its $223 million worldwide opening was the biggest global opening for a Broadway musical adaptation at that time.
The “set to dethrone” framing is also out of date. The weekend ran in late 2025, so the question now is what the figures show, not what was expected.
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What the headline’s benchmark has to be
The headline refers to a “$1B remake” without naming the film. The only Disney remake that fits is the 2019 The Lion King, so this article uses it as the benchmark. The “$1 billion” figure describes a lifetime total, not an opening weekend. The sources behind this article do not establish that lifetime number, so the comparison here is limited to opening weekends.
An opening weekend is a short, domestic measure: one three-day window in one market. Comparing it with a worldwide or lifetime figure gives a misleading result, which is why the geography and the time window need to match before any “beat” or “fell short” claim is made.
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The opening figures, by source
Several outlets reported Wicked: For Good’s opening, and they do not all measure the same thing. The table separates recorded totals from studio statements and from early estimates.
| Source | Date | Measure | Figure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box Office Mojo | November 21–23, 2025 | Wicked: For Good, domestic opening weekend | $147,004,640 | Recorded weekend total |
| NBCUniversal | 2025 | Wicked: For Good, domestic opening | $147 million | Studio-reported |
| NBCUniversal | 2025 | Wicked: For Good, worldwide opening | $223 million | Studio-reported |
| The Associated Press | 2025, Sunday report | Wicked: For Good, North American opening | $150 million | Sunday studio estimate |
| The Associated Press | 2025, Sunday report | Wicked: For Good, global opening | $226 million | Sunday studio estimate |
| The Walt Disney Company | 2019 | The Lion King, domestic debut | $191.8 million | Studio-reported |
On the domestic measure, the gap is roughly $45 million between Wicked: For Good’s recorded $147 million and The Lion King’s $191.8 million. That is the basis for saying the film fell short.
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Why the Wicked figures differ
The $150 million North American figure from The Associated Press was a Sunday studio estimate, made before the weekend totals were final. The $147 million domestic amount from NBCUniversal and Box Office Mojo’s $147,004,640 reflect the later, recorded numbers. The two sets of figures should not be blended into one number.
The global numbers follow the same pattern. The AP’s $226 million estimate and NBCUniversal’s $223 million are different reporting moments for the same weekend. Quote whichever one matches your source, and name that source.
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Jim Orr, who heads domestic distribution for Universal, said “The results are just fantastic,” according to the AP report. That remark is about the studio’s reaction to the opening, not a measure of the film’s audience or quality.
The record that did hold
NBCUniversal’s claim is narrower than a general box-office win. It said the $223 million worldwide opening was the biggest global opening for a Broadway musical adaptation at that time. The claim is limited to that category and that date, so it should not be read as an all-films record.
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How to compare openings fairly
- Match the geography. Domestic compares only with domestic; worldwide compares only with worldwide.
- Match the window. An opening weekend is not a lifetime gross, and a three-day total is not a full run.
- Match the status. A Sunday estimate and a recorded weekend total can differ, so label which one you are using.
- Match the category. A Broadway musical adaptation record is not the same as an all-films record.
Where this leaves the comparison
On the domestic opening weekend, Wicked: For Good did not surpass The Lion King. Its worldwide opening was reported as a record within the Broadway musical adaptation category, but that claim does not extend to the broader market.
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