Sawt Falasteen - 'Gladiator II', 'Wicked' battle for N. American box office honors

"Wicked," the latest take on 1939's beloved "Wizard of Oz," took in an estimated $114 million for the Friday-through-Sunday period, said industry watcher Exhibitor Relations.

"This is a sensational opening for the start of a new adventure fantasy series," said analyst David A. Gross, who cited "superb" reviews and audience scores.

"Wicked" scored one of the biggest openings ever for a big-screen musical, according to The Hollywood Reporter -- good news for the film's investors, with "Wicked: Part 2" set to be released next year.

Critics say Cynthia Erivo has a showstopping turn as green-skinned heroine Elphaba, while pop music star Ariana Grande, another vocal powerhouse, plays fellow witch Glinda.

"Gladiator II," the long-awaited sequel to 2000's Oscar-winning "Gladiator," put up big enough weekend numbers -- $55.5 million -- that fans are linking it to "Wicked" with portmanteaus like "Glicked" and "Wickiator."

Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen and a delightfully evil Denzel Washington star in a story set in ancient Rome years after the original "Gladiator."

Durable director Ridley Scott (he turns 87 next week), weaves a tale of ruthless ambition and retribution, spicing up the original by bringing sharks, baboons and a rhinoceros into the blood-soaked arena.

Last weekend's box-office leader, Christmas comedy "Red One" from Amazon and MGM, earned $13.3 million for third place. Dwayne ("The Rock") Johnson plays a North Pole security officer trying to find a kidnapped Santa Claus (J.K. Simmons) on Christmas Eve.

Fourth place went to Angel Studios' new historical drama "Bonhoeffer," at $5.1 million. It tells the story of German pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who preached a message of love, detested the Nazi dictatorship and was accused of involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler. German actor Jonas Dassler stars.

In fifth was Sony's "Venom: The Last Dance," at $4 million. Tom Hardy stars.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

"The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" ($3.5 million)

"Heretic" ($2.2 million)

"The Wild Robot" ($2 million)

"Smile 2" ($1.1 million)

"A Real Pain" ($1.1 million)

G.AbuOdeh--SF-PST