'Moana 2' sets highest-grossing Thanksgiving weekend ever at box office

"Moana 2" is going far at the box office.

The Disney animated sequel took in a massive $221 million in its five-day domestic debut, Disney said, setting a new record for the largest Thanksgiving weekend haul in history. The record was previously held by another Disney sequel, "Frozen II," which in 2019 grossed $125 million over Thanksgiving weekend.

"Moana 2" also broke the record for the biggest five-day opening weekend ever, Disney noted, surpassing "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" ($204.6 million).

This continues a strong month for theaters after the "Wicked" movie opened to an impressive $112 million, as "Gladiator II" took in $55 million.

Auli?i Cravalho talks 'Moana 2,' 'Cabaret' on Broadway and her 'love bites'

The success of "Moana 2" also continued a comeback for Disney animation. In recent years, several of the company's cartoons underperformed at the box office, including the "Toy Story" spin-off "Lightyear," the sci-fi adventure "Strange World," and "Wish," a princess musical celebrating Disney's 100th year anniversary.

Some analysts speculated that Disney had trained audiences to watch its animated films at home by releasing multiple Pixar films directly on Disney+ during the pandemic, and it would therefore be difficult to get families to resume seeing them in theaters.

'Moana 2' review: Disney's latest fantastic voyage is also a familiar one

But in June, Disney's "Inside Out 2" turned things around in a big way, grossing $1.6 billion worldwide and becoming the highest-grossing animated film in history. The question for Disney now is whether families will turn out in theaters for an original animated movie, such as next summer's "Elio," or whether they will reserve their theatergoing for large sequels.

Disney also faced multiple live-action failures last year, from "The Marvels" to "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," casting a pall over its 100th anniversary.

But even outside of animation, the company has fared better in theaters in 2024. Its Marvel brand also rebounded with "Deadpool & Wolverine," which set a record for highest grossing R-rated film.

But "Moana 2" represents a unique case of a movie setting box office records after not being intended to play theatrically at all. The sequel was originally imagined as a Disney+ streaming series, but in February, Disney made the surprise announcement that the show would be a theatrical release instead. It was a rare instance of a blockbuster movie being announced and released in the same calendar year.

After the success of "Moana 2" and "Inside Out 2," audiences can expect Disney to continue doubling down on sequels. Several are already on the way, including "Zootopia 2," "Toy Story 5," "Frozen 3," "Frozen 4," and "Incredibles 3."

"We're leaning a little bit more into sequels and franchises," Disney CEO Bob Iger said during an earnings call earlier this year. "Given the environment, and given what it takes to get people out of their homes to see a film, doing that, leaning on franchises that are familiar, is actually a smart thing."

"Moana 2" also teases a possible third film in the series that has not yet been confirmed. A live-action remake of the original "Moana" is set for release in 2026.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Moana 2' box office: Sequel sets Thanksgiving weekend record