Summary

The Color Purple has surpassed $25 million at the box office, outgrossing several other major 2023 releases. The movie is based on the 2005 Broadway musical inspired by the 1982 novel by Alice Walker. It took only two days for it to reach this box office milestone.

The Color Purple has already passed a major box office milestone. The new movie is based on the Broadway musical of the same name by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray, which was in turn based on the 1982 novel by Alice Walker. The movie, which is set in the American South during the early 20th century, follows a woman named Celie (Fantasia Barrino), who finds strength from her connections with the women in her life, including her stepdaughter-in-law Sofia (Danielle Brooks) and nightclub singer Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson).

Per Variety, the Color Purple box office has added an additional $7.1 to its gross in North America on the post-Christmas Tuesday. This has brought its cumulative total to $25 million, meeting that important benchmark in just two days. The movie has already outgrossed the complete runs of several major 2023 titles, including Strays ($23.9 million), Renfield ($17.3 million), Expend4bles ($16.7 million), and The Last Voyage of the Demeter ($13.6 million).

How High Could The Color Purple Climb?

It remains to be seen how quickly the Color Purple release will climb up the annual domestic chart for the year as its run extends into early 2023. However, its 2-day total is more or less unprecedented for modern-day December musicals. The most recent comparable title is likely 2017’s The Greatest Showman, but that sleeper hit didn’t earn $25 million until the beginning of its second week in theaters. Check out The Color Purple’s total compared with other recent major December musicals below:

Title 2-Day Domestic Total Complete Domestic Total The Color Purple (2023) $25 million N/A Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody (2022) $2.7 million $23.7 million West Side Story (2021) $7.9 million $38.5 million Cats (2019) $4.7 million $27.1 million Mary Poppins Returns (2018) $8.8 million $171.9 million The Greatest Showman (2017) $4.6 million $174.3 million

Currently, domestic projections for the Color Purple musical are seeing it leg out to a total around $100 million. This estimate is based on the rule of thumb that holiday releases like this tend to eventually earn about ten times their opening day total. However, given the scale that previous musical hits reached in the late 2010s, it’s possible that its domestic total could eventually climb to $170 million or more.

Even if it only crests $100 million, the new musical will reach a milestone only accomplished by 23 other movies this year so far.

If The Color Purple reached that titanic box office total, it would become one of the highest-grossing movies of the year. At the time of writing, only 13 movies have grossed more than $170 million in North America, ranging from Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One at $172.1 million to Barbie at $636.2 million. However, even if it only crests $100 million, the new musical will reach a milestone only accomplished by 23 other movies this year so far.

Source: Variety

The Color Purple (2023) Based on the novel by Alice Walker, The Color Purple is a drama-musical film by director Blitz Bazawule. The film centers on Celie, a young African American woman living through the tumultuous era of the early 1900s in the South who finds her independence through a budding sisterhood that she cultivates over decades. Release Date December 25, 2023 Director Blitz Bazawule Cast Taraji P. Henson , Danielle Brooks , Colman Domingo , Corey Hawkins , Halle Bailey , H.E.R. , Phylicia Pearl Mpasi , Fantasia Barrino Rating PG-13 Writers Marcus Gardley Story By Alice Walker, Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, Stephen Bray, Marsha Norman Studio(s) Harpo Films , Amblin Entertainment , Scott Sanders Productions , Quincy Jones Productions Distributor(s) Warner Bros. Pictures