Ralph Breaks the Internet cruised to a victory this weekend at the box office, scoring the second-best 5-day Thanksgiving opening of all-time. Historically, Disney owns Turkey Day, as they have nine of the 10 highest debuts over that holiday frame. It isn't surprising that it's become something of an annual tradition for the Mouse House to unveil a new movie this time of year, with Coco and Moana serving as recent examples.
To be fair, Ralph Breaks the Internet probably would have found commercial success no matter when it premiered, seeing that it's the long-awaited followup to 2012's Wreck-it Ralph. Critics praised the sequel for its poignant and entertaining story, and even with Illumination's The Grinch still early in its own run, Ralph Breaks the Internet's widely positive reception made it a more appealing option for families on break. As a result, Ralph and Vanellope took aim at the Thanksgiving record, but came up just short.
Related: Ralph Breaks the Internet Cast & Character Guide
Per Box Office Mojo, Ralph Breaks the Internet grossed $84.4 million in its first five days ($55.6 million of which came during the traditional Friday-Sunday weekend), which is the second-best Thanksgiving opening ever. Narrowly edging out Moana ($82 million), Ralph only looks up to Frozen, which posted a strong $93.5 million back in 2013.
The fact that the original Wreck-it Ralph didn't open over Thanksgiving (it came out in early November) makes it difficult to compare the two, but this is still an impressive accomplishment. In the modern era of Disney's in-house animation studio, Wreck-it Ralph is far from their most successful title. It grossed a strong, yet modest $189.4 million domestically, well behind other offerings like Moana ($248.7 million), Zootopia ($341.6 million), and (of course) Frozen ($400.7 million). Ralph Breaks the Internet is already well on its way to surpassing its predecessor's total, and it'll be interesting to see how high its figures go. There isn't another major animated movie hitting theaters until Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in mid-December, so Ralph has the next few weeks to itself and wreck the competition.
Elsewhere in the top five, Creed II was another sequel that did better than the original, earning $55.8 million in its first five days. Though it wasn't as acclaimed as Ryan Coogler's Creed, Steven Caple, Jr.'s followup was still seen as a worthy installment in the Rocky franchise, which boosted its commercial prospects. This Thanksgiving's other wide release, Robin Hood, wasn't as fortunate. Marred by largely negative reviews, the retelling of the classic story floundered and grossed only $14.2 million over the extended holiday weekend. There was hope the film could spawn a new action franchise, but that seems unlikely to happen since interest was so low.
More: Ralph Wrecks the Timeline In His Sequel
Source: Box Office Mojo
