'Wicked' and 'Gladiator' make gravity-defying theatre debuts

Hollywood witnessed a blockbuster weekend. Two popular movies, "Wicked" and "Gladiator II", with global sales of 270 million dollars, gave a new life to the movie industry.

With $114 million domestic and $164.2 million worldwide, "Wicked" had the third biggest opening of the year. The film also set a new record for adaptation of a Broadway play.

"Gladiator II," directed by Ridley Scott, opened with $55.5 million in the United States. Despite costing about $250 million to produce, the film, starring Denzel Washington and Paul Mescall, has also performed well outside the United States.

With their success, these two films show the revival of the cinema industry after a relatively weak period. With "Moana 2" opening on Wednesday, the Thanksgiving holiday is expected to be one of the highest-grossing periods in movie history.

The interesting point is the contrast between these two films. This contrast is reminiscent of last year's "Barbenheimer" phenomenon, when "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" were released at the same time. Both "Wicked" and "Gladiator II" were successful with extensive marketing strategies and flashy promotions.

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