‘Wicked: For Good’ Enters the Rankings of Top Grossing Broadway Musical Film Adaptations

Wicked: For Good has earned 226 million dollars worldwide in its opening weekend, officially landing a spot on Billboard’s list of the top grossing films adapted from Broadway musicals. The ranking is based on Box Office Mojo’s running list of the 1,000 highest grossing films of all time worldwide.

Both Wicked: For Good and its 2024 predecessor Wicked are film adaptations of the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked. The first Wicked film opened on Nov. 22, 2024 and became the highest grossing movie ever adapted from a Broadway show within five weeks, surpassing Mamma Mia. Wicked later earned 10 Oscar nominations on Jan. 23, 2025, including best actress nods for Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. It ultimately won two Academy Awards on March 2, 2025 for best costume design and best production design.

Both films were directed by Jon M. Chu, whose work also includes the 2021 film version of Lin Manuel Miranda’s Broadway hit In the Heights.

There are eight film adaptations of Broadway musicals on Box Office Mojo’s list of the top 1,000 highest grossing movies worldwide. One important note before the ranking: the biggest blockbusters from earlier decades cannot compete financially with modern releases. Ticket prices today are dramatically higher than they were during the era of classics. The Sound of Music has a lifetime worldwide gross of 161.4 million dollars, which is not enough to appear in the top 1,000. Yet the 1965 film remains one of the most successful movies ever made. At the time, a ticket cost less than a box of Raisinets does today.

The list also excludes Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again. Even though it features Cher and earned an impressive 395.6 million dollars worldwide, it is considered a sequel rather than a direct adaptation of the Broadway musical. Wicked: For Good qualifies because it uses the same source material as the original Wicked film.

Below are the eight top grossing Broadway musical film adaptations ranked by lifetime worldwide gross.

8. Hairspray

Worldwide gross: 203.6 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 2
Stars: John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, Nikki Blonsky
Director: Adam Shankman
Film release date: July 20, 2007
Broadway premiere date: Aug. 15, 2002
Music credits: Music by Marc Shaiman; Lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman

7. Into the Woods

Worldwide gross: 212.9 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 8
Stars: Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Tracey Ullman, Christine Baranski, Johnny Depp
Director: Rob Marshall
Film release date: Dec. 25, 2014
Broadway premiere date: Nov. 5, 1987
Music credits: Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

6. Wicked: For Good

Worldwide gross: 226 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: not yet charted
Stars: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Colman Domingo, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum
Director: Jon M. Chu
Film release date: Nov. 21, 2025
Broadway premiere date: Oct. 30, 2003
Music credits: Music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz

5. Chicago

Worldwide gross: 306.8 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 2
Stars: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly, Lucy Liu, Colm Feore
Director: Rob Marshall
Film release date: Jan. 24, 2003
Broadway premiere date: June 3, 1975
Music credits: Music by John Kander; Lyrics by Fred Ebb

4. Grease

Worldwide gross: 396.3 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 1 for 12 weeks
Stars: John Travolta, Olivia Newton John, Stockard Channing, Jeff Conaway, Eve Arden, Frankie Avalon, Joan Blondell, Edd Byrnes, Sid Caesar, Alice Ghostley, Dody Goodman, Sha Na Na
Director: Randal Kleiser
Film release date: June 16, 1978
Broadway premiere date: Feb. 14, 1972
Music credits: Music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey

3. Les Misérables

Worldwide gross: 442.8 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 1 for one week
Stars: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen
Director: Tom Hooper
Film release date: Dec. 25, 2012
Broadway premiere date: March 12, 1987
Music credits: Music by Claude Michel Schönberg; Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer

2. Mamma Mia

Worldwide gross: 706.7 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 1 for one week
Stars: Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Julie Walters, Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried, Christine Baranski
Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Film release date: July 18, 2008
Broadway premiere date: Oct. 18, 2001
Music credits: Music and lyrics by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus

1. Wicked

Worldwide gross: 758.1 million dollars
Soundtrack Billboard 200 peak: No. 2
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum
Director: Jon M. Chu
Film release date: Nov. 22, 2024
Broadway premiere date: Oct. 30, 2003
Music credits: Music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz