Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is surpassing expectations. Not only is the threequel getting some of the best reviews the franchise has ever seen, it’s also posting strong numbers during one of the most competitive times of the year at the box office. The film, which stars Ben Schwartz as the beloved video game character and James Marsden as his human companion, opened to $62 million this past weekend. Per Variety, not only did those numbers push past its projections (which expected a $55 to $60 million haul), Sonic 3 also debuted bigger than the first film ($58 million in February 2020) and came in just under the second ($72 million in March 2022). The good folks at Paramount are so pleased with how things are going in the Sonic-verse that a fourth film has already been put on the schedule for 2027.
Meanwhile, Disney may be slightly less pleased with the performance of Mufasa: The Lion King, the photorealistic prequel to its 2019 Lion King remake. Mufasa opened to $35 million at the domestic box office, far less than the projected $50 million debut reported by Variety. It fared a bit better overseas, earning $87.2 million, though even that is below projections and the $122 million worldwide gross is a fraction of the reported $200 million production budget (plus and extra $100 million for marketing). Sonic, which had a reported production budget of $122 million, doesn’t open internationally until Christmas.
Elsewhere, the Thanksgiving box office face-off is still holding on as Wicked and Moana 2 respectively take the third and fourth spots on the list. Coming in at number five is Homestead, the latest film from Angel Studios (the Christian crowdfunding entertainment company behind Sound Of Freedom). The rest of the list includes franchise entries and holiday fare like Red One, which may not have been a box office success but apparently “has a long shelf life with multiple verticals,” according to star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. You can check out the full box office top 10, courtesy Box Office Mojo, below.
Sonic The Hedgehog 3, $62,000,000
Mufasa: The Lion King, $35,000,000
Wicked, $13,500,000
Moana 2, $13,100,000
Homestead, $6,066,710
Gladiator II, $4,450,000
Kraven The Hunter, $3,100,000
The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim, $1,270,000
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, $825,000
Red One, $416,000