Mufasa has dominated the global box office, but the Lion King prequel lacks the flavor of Disney’s previous live-action films.
The film is a prequel to Jon Favreau’s 2019 remake of “The Lion King,” which grossed $87.2 million overseas and $122 million worldwide. While ticket sales were enough to top box office charts worldwide, the film fell well short of pre-release expectations of $130 million overseas and $180 million worldwide. “Mufasa” also missed expectations in North America, where it debuted with just $35 million, while coming in second place behind Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” ($62 million). The third “Sonic” adventure will not hit the international box office until December 25.
China was Mufasa’s largest market with $7.8 million to start, followed by France with $7.7 million, Mexico with $7.1 million, and the United Kingdom with $5.5 million.
Barry Jenkins, best known for his Oscar-winning Best Picture film “Moonlight,” directs “Mufasa,” a primer on the formative years of the future ruler of the Pride Lands. The film takes place before Favreau’s “The Lion King,” which grossed a whopping $1.66 billion at the global box office despite mixed reviews.
“Mufasa,” which also has to overcome critical sentiment, features the music of “Hamilton” composer Lin-Manuel Miranda as well as the voice cast of Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. In the role of Mufasa and Scar. Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Mads Mikkelsen and Blue Ivy Carter complete the star-studded ensemble. The film carries a hefty price tag of more than $200 million, so Disney needs to keep Mufasa through the new year to justify its cost and continue the studio’s box office streak of “Inside Out 2,” “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Moana.” 2.”
Meanwhile, “Moana 2” added an additional $32.8 million from 52 territories over the weekend. The sequel, which was originally commissioned for online streaming, was a theatrical success with $431 million worldwide and $790.2 million worldwide. It is expected to eventually become Disney’s third release of 2024 to cross the $1 billion mark.
Elsewhere at the international box office, Universal’s adaptation of “Wicked” brought in another $12.6 million from 81 markets. The big-budget musical, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, has grossed $383 million domestically and $571 million worldwide to date. It is the second-biggest Broadway remake worldwide after 2008’s “Mamma Mia” ($611 million).
Paramount’s Gladiator II grossed $5.4 million over the weekend, bringing its overseas total to $262.3 million. The quarter-century sequel to Oscar-winner Ridley Scott’s 2000 epic “Gladiator” has grossed $416 million globally, doing big business for movie theater owners. However, the film won’t struggle to get out of the red for Paramount, which has spent more than $250 million to get back into the game.