‘Sonic 3’ bests ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ at the box office

NEW YORK (AP):

In the holiday season battle of big-budget family movies, Paramount Pictures’ Sonic the Hedgehog 3 sped past the Walt Disney Co’s Mufasa: The Lion King to take the top spot at the box office ahead of the lucrative Christmas corridor in theatres.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 debuted with US$62 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates. With strong reviews (86 per cent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and a high score from audiences (an ‘A’ on CinemaScore), the film is well positioned to be the top choice in cinemas during the busiest moviegoing period of the year.

It was telling of some wider trends that Sonic 3 – made for $122 million – bested one of Disney’s top properties. Videogame adaptations, once among the most derided movie genres, have emerged as one of the most dependable box office forces in recent years. The two previous Sonic movies together grossed more US$700 million worldwide.

Mufasa’ s US$35 million in domestic ticket sales came in notably shy of expectations . The photorealistic Lion King prequel was launched in 4,100 theatres and gobbled up most IMAX screens, compared with 3,761 locations for Sonic 3. Though Mufasa’s reviews were poor (56 per cent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences gave it an ‘A-’ CinemaScore.

Sonic 3 nearly doubled the haul for Mufasa which cost more than $200 million to make. Directed by Jeff Fowler, Ben Schwartz returns as the voice of the hedgehog, alongside Tails the Fox (Colleen O’Shaughnessey), Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba) and Jim Carrey in scene-stealing dual roles as Dr Robotnik and his grandfather.

Film-maker Barry Jenkins directs Mufasa’s voice cast, including Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr, Donald Glover, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Mads Mikkelsen and Blue Ivy Carter. It follows Jon Favreau’s 2019 photorealistic The Lion King remake, which had a huge US$191-million opening weekend.