Regal Cinemas, one of the world’s largest movie theater chains, has secured new financing to restructure a portion of its debt. The exhibition company has arranged a $1.9 billion loan that extends maturity dates to as far out as Dec. 1, 2031. The refinancing comes after a record-breaking Thanksgiving at the box office, though overall […]

Mattel is being sued for mistakenly printing the URL for a pornographic site on the packaging for special-edition “Wicked” dolls. According to court documents, a South Carolina resident is launching a class action lawsuit after purchasing the toy for her young daughter, who visited the X-rated website that had “nothing to do with the ‘Wicked’ […]

Alamo Drafthouse is expanding its presence in the Bay Area. The cinema chain will open two new San Francisco theaters, Alamo Drafthouse Mountain View and Alamo Drafthouse Westfield Valley Fair, in the next year. The Austin-based circuit is taking over spaces from ShowPlace Icon and plans to have the theaters fully converted and operating by […]

“Oh, Mary” writer and star Cole Escola is departing the show in 2025, but the comedic play isn’t leaving Broadway. “GLOW” actor Betty Gilpin is taking over the role of Mary Todd Lincoln. She’ll begin a limited, eight-week engagement on Jan. 21, 2025 through March 15. “I have worshiped at the altar of Cole for […]

Oscar Isaac admits he may have been wrong. He didn’t initially understand the casting of his “Dune: Part Two” co-star Timothée Chalamet as the great folk icon Bob Dylan in director James Mangold’s upcoming musical biopic “A Complete Unknown.” According to Isaac, Chalamet was telling him and their fellow “Dune” actors Josh Brolin and Stephen […]

A trio of blockbusters — “Moana 2,” “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” — are fueling a record-breaking Thanksgiving bounty. Overall domestic box office receipts between Wednesday and Sunday amounted to $420 million, the biggest Thanksgiving haul in history. It obliterated the previous benchmark of $315 million, set by 2018’s slate of “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” “Fantastic […]

Disney’s “Moana 2” sailed to $386 million at the global box office, including a mighty $165.3 million internationally. Ticket sales for the animated family film stand as the second-biggest worldwide opening of the year after Disney’s billion-dollar Marvel behemoth “Deadpool & Wolverine” ($438 million). The sequel to 2016’s musical hit “Moana” got a jumpstart on […]

Movie theaters finally have something for which to be thankful. Disney’s “Moana 2” cemented a new Thanksgiving box office record with $221 million over the five-day holiday frame, obliterating the previous high-water marks set by 2019’s “Frozen II” ($125 million) and 2013’s “Hunger Games: Catching Fire” ($109 million). It also stands as the biggest five-day […]

“Moana 2” set sail at the box office with $13.8 million in preview screenings on Tuesday, ranking as the biggest preview haul in history for Disney Animation. It’s also the biggest pre-Thanksgiving preview bounty and the second-best preview figure of all time for an animated title. To compare to Disney’s other animated juggernauts, this June’s […]

“Wicked” stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo were paid the same amount for leading the movie musical, Universal Pictures said in a rare statement on such a matter, to dispel online rumors about salary discrepancies. False stories about Grande and Erivo’s compensation for their work on “Wicked” circulated over the weekend as outlets like the […]

“Moana 2” is expected to make waves at the box office over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The sequel to Disney’s musical hit “Moana” opens in 4,200 North American theaters on Wednesday and is projected to collect between $135 million to $145 million in its first five days of release. Those ticket sales would register as […]

So if you care to find “Wicked,” look… just about anywhere. You’d have to be flattened by a farmhouse to miss the promotional onslaught for “Wicked: Part One.” From Starbucks drinks (Elphaba cold brew, topped with green matcha foam, anyone?) to Emerald City Lego sets, Shiz University sweaters at Target and OPI’s Fiyero’s My Mani […]

Stitch returns! Disney unveiled the first look at its live-action “Lilo & Stitch,” in which the adorable blue extraterrestrial creature terrorizes an impressively constructed sandcastle. The 30-second clip offers a glimpse at the Hawaiian coastline — and nothing else about the film. According to the official logline, “Lilo & Stitch” chronicles “the bond formed between […]

Cole Escola’s unconventional smash “Oh, Mary!” has recouped its entire production costs on Broadway. The play, capitalized at $4.5 million, is the first show of the 2024-25 season to do so. After a sold-out, twice-extended run at downtown Manhattan’s Lucille Lortel Theatre, “Oh, Mary!” transferred to Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre on July 11. The deranged comedy […]

Musicals aren’t the most successful genre at the box office (see: “Cats,” “Dear Evan Hansen” and “Joker: Folie à Deux”). But song-and-dance films may be enjoying — as Glinda sings — a newfound popularity with “Wicked,” Universal’s adaptation of Act One of the beloved Broadway show. The film collected $114 million in North America and […]

“Wicked” debuted to $164.2 million at the global box office, a towering figure that includes $50.1 million in overseas ticket sales. Universal’s big-budget adaptation of the hit musical was far bigger in North America with $114 million, ranking as the third-biggest domestic debut of the year and the best ever for a Broadway adaptation. Globally, […]

If you care to find “Wicked,” look to the top of box office charts. Universal’s adaptation of Act One (with some padding) of the popular Broadway musical was No. 1 in North America with $114 million from 3,888 theaters over the weekend. Those dazzling ticket sales rank as the third biggest domestic debut of the […]

Jon M. Chu counted himself a fan of “Wicked” long before he was hired to direct the big-budget movie adaptation of the popular Broadway musical. So it was a question of where, not if, he should pay homage to Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, who originated the stage roles of Elphaba and Glinda, in the […]

Samuel L. Jackson is in negotiations to star in the next movie from director J.J. Abrams. If the deal closes, he’ll join a cast that includes Glen Powell, Jenna Ortega and “Sex Education” star Emma Mackey. Abrams is writing and directing the untitled feature, of which details have been kept under wraps. Bad Robot, the […]