PREVIOUS FRIDAY AM: Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 posted $6.5M in previews Thursday night.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 opened to $72.1M in 2022, the best so far of the series.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is expected to open to $60M, while Mufasa originally was forecast to be north of $50M.
Critics are harder on Mufasa at 57% Rotten, while Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is at 88% fresh.
Moviegoing traditionally has exploded on Christmas Day, as holiday distractions cease, and continued strong into New Year’s weekend.
MIDDAY FRIDAY PM: Although the fanboys missed Lord of the Rings: War of Rohirrim and Kraven the Hunter last weekend, they will be back in force this weekend for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 from Paramount, which is aiming for a franchise-best three-day opening that would surpass Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s $72.01M. Today, the Jeff Fowler-directed threequel is earning $26 million for a three-day total of $70 million at 3,761 theaters.
Some competitors were anticipating a huge gap between Sonic and Mufasa, but who knew that in recent years, a Paramount tentpole would dwarf a Disney one? There was more than a $10M spread.
With $13.3M for Friday on its way to $35M at 4,100 sites, Disney’s Mufasa isn’t feeling sentimental tonight. Disney is relying on foreign markets to recover from the $200 million prequel that was released prior to PandA. Even though Mufasa is falling far short, it’s still a lucrative market for two family films.
A couple things: families will return on Christmas while fanboys are away. Additionally, following a $3.07 million Friday, Disney faces competition from their own fourth weekend of Moana 2, which brought in $14 million at 3,600 locations, a 47 percent decrease. By Sunday, it will have made $360 million. It will be a battle for third place because Universal’s Wicked is also projected to make $14 million, or -38 percent, at 3,289 theaters, for a total running total of $384.
After a $2.08 million Friday showing in fifth place, Angel Studios’ Homestead, which is showing in 1,886 theaters, is looking at a three-day total of about $5.02 million. The film centers on an ex-Green Beret who joins a prep site in the midst of chaos; love blossoms, secrets are revealed, and a community comes together. The Ben Smallbone-directed western features Neal McDonough as the lead actor.
PREVIOUS FRIDAY AM: Thursday night’s previews for Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 showed $6.05 million. The official Paramount number is that. According to Disney, Mufasa: The Lion King made $3,3 million.
Prior to the previous installment’s $5 million Thursday and $6.25 million total preview take, those are the best previews ever for a Sonic the Hedgehog film. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 had the highest opening of the series to date in 2022, with $72.1 million. In February 2020, Sonic the Hedgehog received $3 million in previews; the film made $58 million at its pre-pandemic premiere.
The initial projection for Mufasa was that it would be more than $50 million, while Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is anticipated to open at $60 million. It’s unclear if Mufasa will make it there because its trailers are similar to those of 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse ($3.5M, and $35.4M) and Wonka ($3.5M), which made $39M the previous year. There are 4,100 theaters reserved for the Barry Jenkins-directed prequel.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is rated as 88 percent fresh, while Mufasa is rated as 57 percent Rotten by critics. An audience score of 98 percent has already been established for Sonic 3.
A related article is Photo Gallery’s list of the highest-grossing animated films ever.
Disney is optimistic that business will pick up after Christmas Day, even if Mufasa doesn’t perform well this weekend. When holiday distractions fade, moviegoing usually erupts on Christmas Day and continues well into the New Year’s weekend. That being said, the massive Christmas tentpole has historically been located in this frame. E. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). According to Comscore, 81% of colleges are off today, while 13% of K–12 students are on break. Before reaching nearly 100% levels from Christmas Eve through New Year’s Day, this shifts to 94% of colleges on break and 95% of K–12 students off on Monday.
The remainder of the week went like this.
