'The Color Purple' 2024: The Second Biggest Christmas Domestic Debut in History – Details

The Color Purple
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust

The Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, Scott Sanders, and Quincy Jones 2023 film adaptation of the beloved musical "The Color Purple" officially becomes the second biggest Christmas movie released in box-office history.

Starring Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, and Danielle Brooks, "The Color Purple" becomes the biggest musical spectacle this holiday season by splashing into the big screen.

'The Color Purple' Domestic Opening Weekend

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "The Color Purple" opened to $18.1 million on the last weekend. To date, it has become the biggest Christmas Day opening for a film since 2009, and officially the second-biggest Christmas Day opening in history.

It is a faithful adaptation of the Broadway musical, which stars "American Idol" alum Fantasia Barrino, Oscar-nominee Taraji P. Henson, and Tony-nominee Danielle Brooks as the lead stars.

"Sherlock Holmes," released in 2009, is to date, the biggest Christmas Day opening film in history. "The Color Purple" pounces on "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom's" opening, which only earned $10.6 million.

According to Variety, "The Color Purple" officially became the first acclaimed movie musical in the past few years that resonated in the box-office scores - considering how movie musical adaptations are faring in huge audiences.

Compared to Spielberg's "West Side Story," which only earned ($10.5 million)," "In The Heights ($11 million)," "Dear Evan Hansen ($7.5 million)," and "Cats ($ 6.6 million) on their respective opening weekends; "The Color Purple" is the biggest movie musical in the past few years.

'The Color Purple' Reviews

On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 7.4/10 rating from critics, with the consensus saying, Building on the legacy of the previous film adaptation while incorporating elements of the stage musical, The Color Purple is a crowd-pleasing testament to resilience in the face of trauma."

In a review, Variety had this to say.

"Some of these tricks work better than others - as in the bathtub scene, where Celie finds herself standing atop a giant record player - but all work to expand the experience, making "The Color Purple" feel even more monumental than it did in Spielberg's hands. And that's saying something, since the director brought such an iconic touch to the material that his choices echo in Bazawule's approach throughout."

Fantasia Barrino earned her first Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for the outstanding reprisal of her role in the film adaptation of "The Color Purple" musical. Barrino famously played the role on Broadway in 2007.

Also coming from the same film, "The Color Purple," Danielle Brooks also earned her very first Golden Globes nomination for reprising her role Sofia in the film adaptation. She played Sofia on the musical revival in 2015 where she earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

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