Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is quickly starting to gain traction at the domestic box office, grossing $62 million in its opening weekend. That’s significantly more than Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King’s live-action prologue grossed $35 million in the same period.
So this is an early victory for Sonic, but the story is a bit different around the world. Mufasa: The Lion King premiered worldwide and grossed $87.2 million, which, combined with its domestic results, was enough to become the number one global opening weekend with $122.2 million.
However, Sonic The Hedgehog 3 has not yet been released in all international markets, so a proper global comparison will only be possible once next weekend’s data is released.
Will Paramount be elated with Sonic 3’s performance so far? Sonic the Hedgehog 3 opened above 2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog’s original price of $58 million and slightly below 2022’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 ($72 million). Both films will hopefully have staying power over the holiday season and into the New Year.
This sounds like a positive image for Sonic, but a disappointing one for Mufasa. Diversity he called it a “terrible” start in the country, considering Mufasa cost over $200 million to produce and around $100 million to promote. On the other hand, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 cost $122 million and still has an international release to go.
It’s no wonder that Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is already confirmed. For more information, check out Sonic 3’s Ending Explained, the Big the Cat Cameo That Almost Was, and our Sonic The Hedgehog 3 review.
As for Mufasa: The Lion King, Disney is hoping positive feedback will support it make a comeback during the holidays. IGN’s review of Mufasa: The Lion King gave it an 8/10. We said: “Barry Jenkins’ Mufasa is a powerful, uncomplicated work that should charm children. The director of Moonlight’s involvement in Disney’s CGI-filled prequel left true movie buffs wringing their hands, but the results speak for themselves: it’s a simply wonderful movie.
Wesley is the UK news editor at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. Wesley can be reached at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wy100@proton.me.
