Disney’s Recent Success Sparks Studio Anxiety, Forces Major Movie Release Change

It’s no secret that Disney has been struggling at the box office for quite a while. There has only been one movie since the pandemic that has done really well for the studio that has not been from Marvel. That was the live-action Little Mermaid, which was released on May 26, 2023. Sadly, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), Haunted Mansion (2023), and Wish (2023) all failed to perform.

Related: Did Disney ‘Hocus Pocus’ Its New ‘Haunted Mansion’ Movie?

And Pixar has not fared any better. Onward (2020) was pulled from theaters due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, Soul (2020), Luca (2021), and Turning Red (2022) weren’t even released in theaters. Lightyear (2022) failed horribly and lost more than $100 million. Elemental (2023) performed well overseas and did great when it landed on Disney+, but it didn’t succeed at the domestic box office.

However, that all changed when Inside Out 2 was released on June 14. The highly anticipated sequel was expected to earn around $100 million at the box office during its opening weekend. But the movie skyrocketed and made just under $300 million. In less than three weeks, the film has passed the $1 billion mark and is the most successful film of the year so far.

But Inside Out 2 is not the only major movie Disney is expected to release this year. On November 27, Moana 2 will hit theaters nationwide. It was originally expected to be Disney’s biggest film of the year before Inside Out 2 surprised everyone.

Related: ‘Inside Out 2’ Just Made Animation History!

So, some studios might be thinking that going up against Disney isn’t the best idea right now.

For more than ten years, Universal has been working on a film adaptation of the hit Broadway play Wicked, which starred Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth. The movie suffered a number of setbacks and delays, but in 2021, Universal announced that Pinocchio (2022) star Cynthia Erivo would play Elphaba and Ariana Grande would play Glinda.

Related: Disney Reveals New ‘Moana 2’ Look and MAJOR New Villain!

Wicked was originally supposed to be one film, but in April 2022, Universal announced that the film would be released in two parts. The first part was originally supposed to be released on November 27, 2024. You might recognize that date as the date that Disney will release Moana 2.

Now, we have learned that Universal has decided not to try to battle Disney’s highly anticipated Polynesian princess sequel. According to reports, Wicked: Part One will now be released AHEAD of Moana 2, coming out on November 22, 2024.

Now, instead of competing with Moana 2, Wicked will be up against Paramount’s own sequel, Gladiator II.

Wicked: Part Two is slated to hit theaters on November 26, 2025. The film also stars Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Marissa Bode as Nessarose, Ethan Slater as Boq, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, and Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard. The film was written by Winnie Holzman and Gregory Maguire. It is directed by Jon M. Chu.

Will you be seeing Wicked when it premieres on November 22? Let us know in the comments!