Firstly, the good news is that the box office has delivered yet another late-year blockbuster in the form of “Sonic the Hedgehog 3.”
The numbers indicate a $63M opening weekend for ‘Sonic 3’ which beats initial expectations of a $55M weekend. Regardless, that $63M weekend is above 2020’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” ($58M) and just below the 2022 sequel (a series-best $72M). The ‘Sonic 3’ budget was $122M.
Now, the bad news. Disney’s “Mufasa” did not do well. On Friday, I sounded the alarm about Barry Jenkins’ ‘Lion King’ prequel potentially opening below $40M, and that’s exactly what happened.
A $35M opening weekend is being reported for ‘Mufasa.’ That’s horrendous. A few weeks ago, Jenkins’ producer had hinted that the film might have cost as much as $250M to produce, and roughly $100M to promote. The global tally wasn’t any better as ‘Mufasa’ earned a paltry $80M internationally.
When compared to Jon Favreau’s 2019 remake, “The Lion King,” which also garnered mixed reviews, the numbers don’t lie. Favreau’s film delivered a stunning $191M domestic debut in its first weekend — that’s almost 6x more than what ‘Mufasa’ made.
Despite mixed reviews, ‘Mufasa’ has several positive signs heading into the holiday season, including a great “A-” grade on CinemaScore from audiences. With strong word of mouth, there’s the possibility that the film could have some legs this holiday season.
“Wicked” finished third over the weekend with $13.5M from 3,296 venues. The Oscar-contending musical has so far earned $383M domestically and $571M globally after five weekends of release. It barely beat “Moana 2,” which added $13M in its fourth weekend on the big screen. The animated adventure has grossed $359M domestically, so far.
Paul Greengrass’ "The Uprising," starring Andrew Garfield, opened to $3.2M from 2,068 theaters this weekend. Yikes. The budget hasn’t been disclosed, but is said to be in the $20-$30M range.