Box Office Vindication: ‘Mufasa’ Passes Up ‘Sonic 3’ in U.S., Heads for $700M Globally

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Mufasa: The Lion King has been vindicated.

Last Friday, Disney’s sequel to their 2019 release, The Lion King, surpassed Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 at the domestic box office with a staggering $232.7 million in earnings. This unexpected achievement was initially doubted following a quiet start during the Christmas box office season. By Sunday, its worldwide total is expected to reach approximately $670 million, aiming to break past the $700 million threshold.

To be clear, Sonic 3 is far from being a weak performer; it has brought in an impressive $231.7 million domestically and $463.7 million worldwide as of Friday, all on a production budget of $122 million before marketing costs are factored in.

Instead, this discussion centers around the remarkable longevity of Mufasa, attributable to strong word-of-mouth, viral marketing, and a more extended exclusive theatrical run. Despite the fact that the prequel may not approach The Lion King’s success in terms of earnings, which amassed an astounding $1.66 billion worldwide mere months before the COVID pandemic reshaped box office records forever.

Despite initial doubts about Jon Favreau’s remake of The Lion King, many dismissed Mufasa following its defeat by Sonic 3 during the Dec. 20-22 weekend. With a domestic opening of $35.4 million compared to Sonic 3’s $64.4 million, it seemed like a clear loss. However, as families had more free time with Christmas presents unwrapped on December 25th, Mufasa found its voice again. What has transpired since is even more astonishing.

Key statistics to note: The film “Mufasa” ranked either first or second in its box office performance for an impressive 36 out of its initial 38 days. To this day, it has amassed revenue 6.5 times greater than its opening weekend earnings. This places it as the third-highest multiplier among films screened on more than 3,000 screens and opening with less than $40 million, trailing only behind “Night at the Museum” (2006) with an 8.2 multiple and “The Blind Side” (2009) with a 7.5 multiple (unadjusted for inflation).

This is the initial broad distribution since 2010 that surpassed the $230 million mark in domestic box office earnings, even though it opened at fewer than $40 million from over 3,000 venues.

The movie titled “Mufasa” will only screen in theaters for 60 days prior to its release on premium Video On Demand (PVOD) on February 18. Unlike many major studio productions, which often become available on PVOD much sooner, such as “Sonic 3”, which was made accessible after just 32 days. It’s been proven that a film can still earn substantial theatrical income even after its debut on PVOD – generating tens of millions in home entertainment revenue. However, Disney sources suggest that a family-oriented film like “Mufasa” with a wide appeal to younger audiences has profited from a longer window due to minimal competition and a high potential for repeat business since it caters to children who may watch multiple times.

As a gamer, I can say that Sonic 3 had massive drops before hitting PVOD, suggesting it had already played to most of its theater audience. Despite this, it’s raked in over $8 million since becoming available for home viewing. However, it slipped out of the top five last weekend. On the other hand, Mufasa, in its eighth round, is aiming to secure the No. 4 spot during the Feb. 7-9 weekend.

Although the critics didn’t particularly enjoy Mufasa, the audience seemed to have a different opinion. It garnered an A- rating on CinemaScore, boasts an 89% verified audience approval on Rotten Tomatoes, and achieved impressive exit scores on PostTrak for both kids and parents.

Not only Mufasa and Sonic 3, but also these two productions share a common rating of PG and have significantly contributed to the recent revival of family-oriented cinema at the box office, which had suffered greatly due to the impact of the pandemic.

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2025-02-09 03:25