The movie “Wicked,” based on the popular stage musical, has set a new record for at-home streaming. This musical tells the backstory of the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, and her friendship with Glinda, the future Good Witch. Released in theaters just before Thanksgiving 2024, the film has earned over $675 million worldwide, making it the highest-earning Broadway musical adaptation ever.
Wicked was released for watching at home on December 31, 2024, and made $70 million in its first week. On its first day, it earned $26 million, the highest ever for Universal movies released at home.
It made twice as much as the previous record-holder, The Super Mario Bros. Movie from 2023. It currently costs $30 to buy or $20 to rent.
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The Wicked movie’s amazing at-home debut shows it’s still going strong. On its first day at home, it made 56% of what it earned on its first day in theaters. On November 22, 2024, including early Thursday showings, it made $46.2 million in theaters. This means its at-home earnings for the first week are almost as big as what it made in theaters during that time. This is much better than The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which only made about 40% of its first-day theater earnings from at-home sales.
The Wicked movie could keep making more money in theaters and at home as award season heats up. It already won the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement award at the 2025 Golden Globes. It’s also nominated for 11 Critics’ Choice Awards and 5 Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Plus, it’s in the running for 4 Oscar categories, and if it gets nominated, people will keep talking about the movie until early March. This could attract both new fans and people who want to watch it again.
It’s unclear if Wicked will keep growing as fast with at-home sales as it did in theaters. However, as it takes less time in theaters, more people might start watching it at home.
If it keeps up this pace, it could make about $250 million from rentals and purchases before it begins streaming on Peacock in two and a half months. That would be the perfect way to top off its fantastic success in theaters.
Source: Deadline