As expected, Christmas Day brought with it a bonanza at the domestic box office, with Mufasa: The Lion King staging something of a comeback after a lukewarm opening last week. The big-budget sequel finished first on the charts, with a massive $14 million haul, taking its running domestic total past the $60 million mark. Mufasa opened to just $35 million in its first three days of release, and is eying around $50 million over the extended five-day Christmas weekend.
Not only did the movie play well stateside, it was just as popular overseas. Mufasa grossed $18 million internationally, pushing its global haul towards a massive new milestone. With $197 million at the worldwide box office so far, Mufasa is passing the $200 million mark as we speak. While this is a notable achievement, there’s no getting away from the fact that the movie under-performed drastically in its opening weekend. Mufasa made $122 million globally in its first three days of release; by comparison, the 2019 remake of The Lion King grossed around $450 million in its opening weekend, of which $191 million came from domestic theaters.
Directed by Jon Favreau, The Lion King concluded its run with $1.6 billion worldwide. Mufasa is directed by the Oscar-winning Barry Jenkins, and serves as both a prequel and sequel to The Lion King. The movie was produced on a reported budget of over $200 million, which means that it has a way to go before it can be counted as a success. Earlier this year, Joker: Folie à Deux fell significantly short of its predecessor, Joker, which hit the $1 billion mark globally. Joker 2 concluded its run with just over $200 million.
Disney Has Had a Tremendous Year
Mufasa will definitely overtake Joker 2, but there’s no denying the fact that it’s bringing Disney’s excellent year to something of a disappointing end. The studio recently hit the $2 billion mark domestically and the $5 billion mark globally, thanks to hits such as Inside Out 2, Deadpool & Wolverine and Moana 2. Mufasa opened to mixed reviews, and is currently sitting at a 55% “rotten” rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. Featuring Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. in the lead roles, the movie is playing in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
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Simba, having become king of the Pride Lands, is determined for his cub to follow in his paw prints while the origins of his late father Mufasa are explored.
English (US) ·