After a close box office battle, Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog” pulled ahead of Disney and 20th Century’s “The Call of the Wild” on North American charts.
The two movies had been in a surprising tug-of-war for first place. Heading into the weekend, “Sonic” was expected to easily dominate again but Harrison Ford’s “Call of the Wild” ended up taking the top spot on Friday. Ultimately, “Sonic” finished the weekend with $26.3 million, enough to defeat “Call of the Wild” and its $25 million debut.
“Sonic the Hedgehog” became an unexpected box office hit after launching with a stellar $70 million over the Presidents’ Day holiday weekend. In its second week of release, the movie crossed the $100 million mark in North America and has surpassed $200 million globally.
Though “Call of the Wild” beat projections, it carries a massive $125 million price tag, so the PG film will need support from ticket buyers across the globe to break even. It launched overseas with $15.4 million from 40 foreign markets, taking its worldwide haul to $40.2 million. The latest adaptation of Jack London’s 1900s novel got a mixed reviews from critics, though moviegoers were more impressed and gave the film an “A-” CinemaScore.
STX’s supernatural thriller “Brahms: The Boy II,” this weekend’s other new release, generated $6 million from 2,151 venues, on par with expectations. Overseas, the horror film pulled in another $2.22 million for a global start of $8.22 million. Opening-weekend crowds for “Brahms: The Boy II” skewed female (53%), while 56% were under the age of 25. The standalone sequel to 2016’s “The Boy” — starring Katie Holmes — cost $10 million. STX reports that its exposure on the film is under $3 million after foreign pre-sales, meaning it should be financially successful for the studio.
(Excerpt) Read more in: Variety