"Thanksgiving's Entertainment Extravaganza: Box Office and TV Hits"
Box Office Records on Thanksgiving
Just like in previous Thanksgivings, movie theaters witnessed a surge in attendance, setting a new box office record. On this special day, box office sales soared past $57 million, doubling last year's total of $22.7 million and tripling the 2022 figure of $17.7 million. It even surpassed the 2018 record of $41.9 million. Disney's Moana 2, released the day before, achieved a remarkable $28 million in ticket sales, surpassing Frozen II's previous record of $14.96 million in 2016. Universal's Wicked, in its second week, also outperformed Frozen II, generating $17.0 million. Paramount's Gladiator II, in its second week, recorded $6.7 million. These three movies from different studios gave moviegoers a compelling reason to leave their homes. Moreover, all three films received strong Rotten Tomatoes audience scores.
Over the five-day Thanksgiving weekend, even more box office records were set. A total of $412.8 million in tickets were sold, surpassing the previous high of $315.6 million in 2018. Comscore's senior media analyst, Paul Dergarabedian, pointed out that the planets aligned perfectly for movie theaters during this holiday, with the right films programmed to deliver massive box office revenue. AMC Theaters' CEO, Adam Aron, announced that over the Thanksgiving holiday (Wednesday through Sunday), more than 8.8 million people watched a movie at an AMC theater globally, setting a new high in its 104-year history. Moana 2 led the way, grossing $221 million in sales, surpassing the previous high of $204.6 million set by the Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2023. It also became the top grossing Disney animated film during Thanksgiving weekend, surpassing Frozen II's 2019 gross of $125 million. Disney now holds seven of the top ten Thanksgiving weekend debuts.
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
The 98th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC and Peacock attracted a record high average audience of 31.3 million, an increase from last year's 28.5 million viewers. The live airing on NBC started at 8:30 a.m. (ET) and ended at 12 noon, averaging 23.6 million viewers, making it the most watched entertainment show since the 2020 Oscars. Peacock's viewing during the parade grew by +26% from 2023. NBC is renegotiating the broadcast rights, which could reach $60 million, a threefold increase from the current agreement. This year, NBC charged advertisers $900,000 for a :30 ad. After the parade, the National Dog Show aired and averaged 12.2 million viewers, the most since 2020.
NFL Thanksgiving Games
After the parade, CBS aired the first of three live NFL games at 12:30 p.m. Although CBS and Nielsen have not renewed their contract, Nielsen still measures the audience. No viewing data for this game is currently available. At 4:30 p.m. (ET), Fox televised the late afternoon Thanksgiving Day game featuring the NFC division rivals New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys. Despite both teams having losing records, the game averaged 38.5 million viewers on Fox, with a peak of 41.3 million viewers in the quarter-hour starting at 6 p.m. (ET). Fox Sports claims it was the most watched regular season game of the 2024 NFL season and the fourth most watched Thanksgiving Day game. However, it was the lowest rated Cowboys game on Thanksgiving since 2020, with a year-over-year viewership decrease of -8%. At prime time on NBC and Peacock, the Green Bay Packers and Miami Dolphins game averaged 26.6 million viewers, slightly below the previous game but an increase from 2022. According to Nielsen, last year, all three Thanksgiving telecasts and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade ranked among the 50 most watched telecasts.
For one day, streaming took a back seat as people flocked to theaters and watched live television. It was a throwback to a bygone era of shared entertainment experiences.