This Christmas season, Timothée Chalamet’s portrayal of Wonka takes the lead at the box office, marking a festive triumph. However, the DC superhero sequel Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom faced a challenging dive, leaving Hollywood studios and theater owners with a less-than-jolly holiday season.

On Wednesday, the revenue dropped by a significant 52 percent compared to the same day in 2019, the year before the pandemic hit. Despite relinquishing its No. 1 spot to Aquaman 2 over the Dec. 22-25 weekend, Wonka reclaimed the throne on Tuesday and continued its success on Wednesday with $8 million in domestic ticket sales. This pushed the musical past the $100 million mark in North America, reaching $102.5 million by Wednesday.

In contrast, the Jason Momoa-led Aquaman sequel struggled, earning only $52.5 million domestically in its first six days—a more than 55 percent decline compared to its predecessor. However, its overseas cumulative reached well above $100 million.

Illumination and Universal’s Migration climbed to No. 2 after a slow start over Christmas weekend, earning $6.3 million on Wednesday for a domestic total of $30.6 million. Aquaman 2 followed in third place with $5.9 million.

Universal anticipated Migration’s rise post-Christmas as schools closed, while The Color Purple, a musical adaptation produced by Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg, secured the fourth spot with $3.9 million on Wednesday. Despite an impressive $18 million opening on Christmas Day, its drop from Tuesday to Wednesday was 45 percent, raising questions about its longevity.

Migration and Wonka experienced milder declines, slipping by 4 percent and 25 percent, respectively, while Aquaman fell by 29 percent—typical for movies on discounted Tuesday pricing.

Sony’s Anyone But You, an edgy romantic comedy, rounded out the top five, showing a 1 percent increase day-over-day with a Wednesday gross of $2.6 million, reaching a domestic total of $13.3 million.

The Boys in the Boat, directed by George Clooney and co-produced by MGM and Amazon, secured the sixth spot with a solid $2.5 million on Wednesday and a better-than-expected three-day domestic tally of $11.2 million. Neon’s Ferrari, which also opened on Christmas Day, placed eighth on Wednesday with $1.2 million, accumulating a total of $5.6 million.

As the box office standings continue to shift, it remains to be seen how these films will fare in the coming days and whether the holiday season will bring a more robust recovery for Hollywood.