Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King safely pulled ahead of Sonic 3 to win the first weekend of the new year with $23.8 million as the film’s domestic total climbed to $168.6 million. Sonic 3 is certainly no slouch, and it followed Mufasa in second place this weekend with $21.2 million for a domestic total of $187.5 million.
Paramount announced Sunday that the Sonic franchise, based on the Sega video game, has crossed the $1 billion mark in worldwide tickets sold. The threequel has been a huge crowd-pleaser after adding Keanu Reeves to the star-studded cast, led by Jim Carrey.
Nosferatu placed third with $13.2 for a pleasing domestic tally of $69.4 million in its second weekend. The pic was among several films opening nationwide on Christmas Day; Sonic 3 and Mufasa opened on Dec. 20 and are now in their third weekends.
The top 12 movies of the weekend, as of Sunday, January 5, are as follows:
| # | Title | Distributor Name | Weekend Total | # of Locs | Loc Avg | Cume Total | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mufasa: The Lion King | Disney | $23,836,000 | 3,925 | $6,073 | $168,600,931 | -35% |
| 2 | Sonic The Hedgehog 3 | Paramount | $21,200,000 | 3,746 | $5,659 | $187,508,000 | -43% |
| 3 | Nosferatu | Focus Features | $13,200,000 | 3,132 | $4,215 | $69,401,000 | -39% |
| 4 | Moana 2 | Disney | $12,397,000 | 3,345 | $3,706 | $425,152,483 | -34% |
| 5 | Wicked | Universal | $10,200,000 | 3,287 | $3,103 | $450,752,000 | -48% |
| 6 | Complete Unknown, A | Searchlight | $8,067,000 | 2,835 | $2,846 | $41,696,667 | -31% |
| 7 | Babygirl | A24 | $4,492,499 | 2,164 | $2,076 | $16,112,999 | 0% |
| 8 | Gladiator II | Paramount | $2,675,000 | 1,748 | $1,530 | $168,867,000 | -35% |
| 9 | Homestead | Angel Studios | $2,103,576 | 1,700 | $1,237 | $17,475,156 | -32% |
| 10 | Fire Inside, The | Amazon MGM Studios | $1,229,902 | 2,032 | $605 | $7,129,000 | -37% |
| 11 | Kraven the Hunter | Sony | $1,055,000 | 1,862 | $567 | $23,703,000 | -35% |
| 12 | Se7en (30th Anniversary) | Warner Bros. | $850,000 | 182 | $4,670 | $850,000 |
