After Sonic the Hedgehog 3 claimed the top spot at the box office opening weekend by nearly doubling the total of its second-place competitor, Mufasa: The Lion King closed the gap significantly while still failing to topple the blue speedster. Sonic 3 finished the weekend of December 27 at #1 with $38 million domestically, a 37% drop from the previous weekend’s $60 million to bring its domestic cumulative gross to $136 million. Keanu Reeves’ debut as Shadow the Hedgehog has also collected an additional $74 million from international markets, helping its global haul eclipse the $200 million mark. In addition to helping Idris Elba’s career box office total reach new heights, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is also now one of the top 10 highest-grossing video game movies ever.
The biggest winner of the weekend, despite not finishing at #1, was Mufasa: The Lion King, which collected $37.1 million this weekend, only $900,000 short of Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The live-action Lion King flick earned more during its second weekend than it did during an opening weekend that saw it pull in $35 million. Mufasa, which is led by upcoming DCU actor and Rebel Ridge star Aaron Pierre, has now grossed $113 million domestically and $214 million in foreign markets for a worldwide cumulative haul of $327 million. The film snuck into the top 20 highest-grossing movies of 2024 this weekend while also becoming one of the top 25 highest-grossing musicals of all time domestically, and it will look to take the box office crown from Sonic the Hedgehog 3 as we head into the new year.
The highest-grossing newcomer this weekend was Nosferatu, the vampire horror thriller from director Robert Eggers that grossed $21 million this weekend to finish in the #3 spot, with $19 million during Christmas week for a $40 million domestic total. The gothic horror flick starring Nicholas Hoult also significantly out-paced its biggest new competitor in A Complete Unknown; the Timothée Chalamet-led Bob Dylan biopic finished at #6 and earned $11 million to pair with $12 million over the Christmas holiday for a $23 million total. A Complete Unknown has also set a Rotten Tomatoes audience record for Chalamet’s young but impressive career and is earning the Dune star an immense amount of Oscar buzz. After his last two outings both grossed more than $600 million globally, the film could easily stretch its legs into an impressive box office run.
‘Wicked’ Defies Expectations While ‘Moana 2’ Earns Big Again and ‘Kraven’ Falls out of the Top 10

Despite both being in theaters for more than a month, Wicked and Moana 2 finished the weekend at #4 and #5, respectively. Wicked earned another $19 million and is now one of the top three highest-grossing musicals of all time, while Dwayne Johnson’s animated sequel earned $18 million and is approaching the $900 million mark at the global box office. Babygirl also had a respectable debut, earning $4.3 million domestically largely thanks to its lead in Nicole Kidman, while Gladiator 2 dropped only 9% during its sixth weekend in theaters, earning $4.1 million to help director Ridley Scott’s box office total once again break new ground.
Rounding out the back of the top 10 at #9 and #10 were Neal McDonough’s Homestead and The Fire Inside, which earned $3.1 and $2 million, respectively. Rough theatrical runs continued for both Kraven the Hunter and The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, which both fell outside the top 10 after earning only $1.7 million and $455,000. The month full of stacked newcomers is now officially over, and with no major contenders coming the weekend of January 3, look for the box office list to look fairly similar next weekend. Gerard Butler’s action sequel, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, will look to out-earn its $80 million-grossing predecessor, while Mark Wahlberg and Mel Gibson’s Flight Risk will also be in the mix of incoming competitors.
Stay tuned to Collider for more box office updates and find tickets below for a showing of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 near you.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is the sequel to the 2022 comedy-adventure movie that featured the Blue Blur and his companions on an adventure to stop Dr. Robotnik from taking over the world. The new film sees the new antagonist Shadow the Hedgehog, arriving to cause trouble for the newly formed trio of heroes, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, as they adjust to their earthly lives.

Runtime

109 Minutes

Writers

Pat Casey
, Josh Miller
, John Whittington

Distributor(s)

Paramount Pictures

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