While most audiences flocked towards Captain America: Brave New World this weekend, some much-needed counter-programming was provided by Paddington in Peru. The third installment in the beloved children’s franchise, based on the books by Michael Bond, over-performed in its domestic box office debut, having already amassed over $100 million from international markets. Paddington 3 was supposed to be released domestically in January but was delayed by around a month, allowing it to spread its charms like marmalade across the world first.
The movie made around $14 million in its first three days of release at the domestic box office; these figures are expected to fall in the $17 million range across the extended Presidents’ Day holiday frame. Paddington 3 has grossed an additional $115 million from overseas markets, for a cumulative global haul of $129 million. Produced on a reported budget of around $90 million, the film opened to excellent reviews, although the benchmark for the franchise is extremely high. It currently holds a “fresh” 94% rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, in comparison to the first Paddington’s 96% score, and Paddington 2’s near-perfect 99% score.
In his review, Collider’s Ross Bonaime noted the big shoes that it had to fill and wrote that the movie “doesn’t quite work at the level of those previous films, but that burst of hope is very much appreciated.” Both the first and second films were directed by Paul King, who vacated the director’s chair to helm Wonka, for Warner Bros. He was replaced by Dougal Wilson, with Ben Whishaw returning to voice the titular character. Paddington 3 also features returning cast members Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters, and Jim Broadbent, with Emily Mortimer replacing Sally Hawkins.
The ‘Paddington’ Movies Are Universally Beloved

In addition to being critically acclaimed, both previous Paddington films were blockbuster hits. The first film grossed nearly $320 million worldwide against a reported budget of more than $50 million, and the second film grossed over $280 million worldwide against a reported budget of $40 million. In total, the Paddington trilogy has generated over $700 million globally. The reputation of the first two films has only increased in the post-pandemic era, which sets Paddington 3 up for major success as well.
You can watch the film in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

Paddington in Peru

Release Date

November 8, 2024

Runtime

106 minutes

Director

Dougal Wilson

Writers

Mark Burton, James Lamont

Producers

Jeffrey Clifford, Paul King, Ron Halpern, Dan MacRae, Naoya Kinoshita, Rosie Alison