Wicked' and 'Gladiator 2' kicked off Thursday night respectively grossing $20M and $6M+ in previews. 'Wicked's cash includes earlier previews.

The two tentpoles are kicking off what's expected to be the biggest Thanksgiving in history at the domestic box office, which welcomes 'Moana 2' on Wednesday.

Just like “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” combined last year for the box office juggernaut of “Barbenheimer,” Universal’s musical “Wicked” and Paramount’s action epic “Gladiator II” will try to create “Glicked” this weekend.

Wicked,' starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, and 'Gladiator II,' starring Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal, both open wide this weekend.

Wicked and Gladiator II are both off to a strong start at the box office; however, it won’t be as big of an opening weekend as Barbenheimer. Wicked and Gladiator II are both now playing in United States theaters.

Whether “ Wicked ” and “ Gladiator II ” inspires an unorthodox double feature à la last summer’s simultaneous blockbusters “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” remains a question. Either way, there’s a box office battle brewing between Universal’s pink-and-green musical and Paramount’s bloody sword-and-sandal epic, both of which open on Friday.

By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -"Wicked," the first installment in a two-part movie adaptation of a beloved Broadway musical, generated $19.2 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales from early screenings this week,