Two major blockbuster films have hit cinemas just before Christmas, but the question of which one dominated the holiday box office remains uncertain.
Disney's 'Mufasa: The Lion King' and Paramount's 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' were in a tight race over the Christmas box office period.
On its opening weekend, Disney claimed that its live-action 'Lion King' prequel had topped the box office. However, fans of Sonic quickly accused Disney of bending the truth to make the film appear more successful than its blue haired rival.
While 'Mufasa' did top the global box office, grossing $327 million during its first two weeks, compared to Sonic's $211 million, Sonic fans pointed out that 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' had outperformed 'Mufasa' in the U.S. box office, bringing in $138 million versus' Mufasa's' $113 million. Fans speculated that 'Mufasa' had topped the global charts due to its wider international release compared to 'Sonic'.
However, in its second week, Disney posted on X claiming that 'Mufasa' had reached the top of the U.S. box office. A community note on the post, however, revealed that 'Sonic 3' was still leading the U.S. box office and that Disney's figures could not be verified.
#Mufasa: The Lion King is now the #1 movie in America, and the #1 movie in the world, two weeks in a row! 🦁 See it now, only in theaters! pic.twitter.com/bPIi9DBQWP
— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) December 29, 2024
Variety's article cleared up a little bit of the confusuion. They explained that while 'Mufasa' had beaten Sonic at the U.S. box office over the five-day Christmas period (Wednesday to Sunday), 'Sonic' ultimately overtook 'Mufasa' and narrowly secured the long weekend (Friday-Sunday).
Although the debate rages on, these two films weren’t the only ones making waves this week. Let’s take a look at the UK and Ireland box office.
'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' significantly outperformed 'Mufasa', earning £11.8 million compared to 'Mufasa's' £4.2 million.
In third place was Universal’s 'Wicked'. The musical, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, has become the highest-grossing musical adaptation, surpassing 2008’s Mamma Mia! They earned £2.7 million in its sixth week.
Fourth place went to Disney’s Moana 2, which earned £2.2 million in its fifth week of release.
The Robbie Williams biopic Better Man debuted in fifth place, earning £1.6 million. The film went viral on TikTok, as many British and Irish were horrified to find out that Americans did not know who the popstar was, highlighting Williams' struggle to break the US market.
In sixth place was Paddington in Peru, the third instalment in the Paddington Bear series from STUDIOCANAL, which grossed £819,000 in its eighth week of release.
