Box Office Update: ‘Mufasa’ Outperforms ‘Sonic’ Over Christmas Weekend, While New Films ‘Nosferatu’ and ‘A Complete Unknown’ Shine.
Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King and Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 were neck-and-neck for the top spot at the North American box office, with each earning close to $60 million during the five-day Christmas stretch.
According to estimates, Sonic 3 led during the traditional weekend with $38 million from Friday to Sunday and $59.8 million over five days from 3,769 theaters. However, Mufasa edged out Sonic for the five-day total with $63.9 million, including $37.1 million over the weekend from 4,100 locations. Both films proved popular with audiences over the holiday period.
Meanwhile, two new releases—Nosferatu, a remake directed by Robert Eggers, and A Complete Unknown, a biopic of Bob Dylan starring Timothée Chalamet—also performed well, surpassing expectations.
Nosferatu, which stars Bill Skarsgård as the vampire Count Orlok, opened in third place with $21.1 million for the traditional weekend and $40.3 million over the five-day stretch. The film nearly doubled initial projections of $25 million, thanks to strong advance ticket sales, with 40% of tickets sold the day before the movie’s release. The gothic horror film, which cost $50 million to produce, has performed well among its target audience, and experts believe it will have staying power at the box office.
A Complete Unknown, which follows Dylan’s rise to fame, secured sixth place with $11.6 million over the weekend and a strong $23.2 million over the extended period. It is now the second-largest opening for Searchlight Pictures, behind only Notorious (2009), which earned $20.4 million. With a production budget of $70 million, the film faces a tough road to profitability, but Chalamet’s growing star power and the success of music biopics could help it gain traction.
Industry analysts note that Nosferatu will dominate the horror genre for the rest of the holiday season, while A Complete Unknown is expected to appeal to older audiences, which tend to take longer to decide on movie outings.
“Mufasa” is rebounding after a disappointing domestic debut, where it earned just $35 million compared to Sonic 3’s $38 million during the opening weekend. While critics were lukewarm on the film, it has resonated with family audiences, helping it to achieve $111 million in North America and $328 million globally after just nine days in theaters. The success of Mufasa supports Disney’s strong 2024 box office lineup, including hits like Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 has now grossed $137.5 million domestically and $211 million globally. The third entry in the franchise, which cost $122 million to produce, is on track to surpass the box office totals of its predecessors, Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022). Paramount is already working on a fourth installment.
A24’s Babygirl, an erotic thriller starring Nicole Kidman, debuted in eighth place with $7.2 million from 2,115 screens. The R-rated film has received mixed reviews, with a 77% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a “B-” grade on CinemaScore.
Amazon MGM’s The Fire Inside, an inspirational sports drama about boxer Claressa “T-Rex” Shields, earned $2 million over the weekend and $4.33 million for the five-day period. The film, directed by Rachel Morrison, has been well received by critics, holding a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an “A” grade on CinemaScore. Despite a modest opening, analysts believe the $12 million-budgeted film will recover its costs through its theatrical run.
In the top five, Universal’s Wicked earned $19.4 million over the weekend and $31.7 million over five days, bringing its domestic total to $424 million and global total to $634 million. Meanwhile, Moana 2 added $18.3 million over the weekend and $28.3 million over the holiday period, raising its North American earnings to nearly $395 million.
While no major blockbusters such as Avatar or Spider-Man were released over the Christmas season, holdover films like Moana 2 and Wicked helped to maintain strong ticket sales. Domestic box office revenue was 4% behind 2023 and about 23% behind 2019, according to Comscore.
“The final weeks of 2024 have brought a diverse and exciting selection of films, contributing to a strong finish for the year,” said Comscore senior analyst Paul Dergarabedian.
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