Box Office Battle: 'Office Christmas Party' looks to topple 'Moana'

Opening this weekend, and expected to take the top spot at the box office, is Viacom (VIA, VIAB) subsidiary Paramount Pictures' holiday comedy "Office Christmas Party," starring an ensemble cast led by Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman. The comedy, which is opening at 3,210 theaters, is expected to domestically gross in the $18.5M-$20M range. Now in its third weekend at theaters, Disney's (DIS) animated adventure "Moana," starring Dwayne Johnson and Auli'i Cravalho, is expected to earn another $18M-$19M. The film has already grossed over $124M domestically and $184.5M worldwide. In its fourth weekend at theaters, Time Warner's (TWX) Warner Bros. "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is expected to add $10M-$11M to its domestic gross. In its first three weeks, the "Harry Potter" prequel earned over $187M domestically and more than $611M globally. Paramount's science fiction film "Arrival," starring Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker, is expected to earn about $5M at 3,115 theaters this weekend. Also from Paramount, "Allied," a World War II thriller starring Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard, is expected to earn an additional $4M-$4.5M domestically at 3,018 theaters this weekend. Other publicly traded companies in filmmaking include 21st Century Fox (FOX, FOXA), Comcast (CMCSA, CMCSK), Lionsgate (LGF), and Sony (SNE).