'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' Storms Towards Elite Global Box Office List Despite Digital Release

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Paramount's Sonic the Hedgehog 3 witnessed a bit of a setback this weekend, as it was overtaken by Disney's Mufasa: The Lion King despite leading the race for the entirety of its theatrical run. Both movies debuted on the same day in December, with Sonic the Hedgehog 3 earning around $25 million more than the big-budget Disney film. But it appears to be running out of gas, especially after its debut on PVOD platforms. Disney wisely held off on debuting Mufasa on digital, giving it enough room to overtake Sonic the Hedgehog 3 at the domestic box office.

With $233 million domestically and another $239 million from overseas markets, Sonic the Hedgehog 3's cumulative global haul stands at $472 million. This will probably be its large major milestone, and the chances of the movie passing the half-billion mark look slim at the moment. That being said, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is just $2 million shy of overtaking Venom: The Last Dance to become the 10th-biggest Hollywood hit of 2024. The movie had previously overtaken films such as Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and fellow Paramount blockbuster Gladiator II.

The studio found some respite recently, after a concerning few years. Films such as A Quiet Place: Day One, Smile 2, Gladiator II, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 helped alleviate some of the behind-the-scenes tensions. It also helps that each of these franchises can continue. A fourth Sonic the Hedgehog movie, for instance, has already been dated for 2027. The franchise has already expanded onto streaming, with the Knuckles spin-off series. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is by far the trilogy's top-grossing installment, having overtaken the first Sonic the Hedgehog's $300 million-plus global haul, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2's $400 million-plus haul.

'Sonic the Hedgehog 3' Was Received Well by Critics and Audiences

Produced on a reported budget of $120 million, the third film is the most expensive of the lot. But it's also the best-reviewed. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 holds a "fresh" 86% rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes and an even better 95% audience score. In his review, Collider's Aidan Kelley praised the film's climax as "wacky and visually dazzling," but criticized Keanu Reeves' voice performance. The movie features a returning Ben Schwartz as the voice of the titular character, and Idris Elba as Knuckles. Jim Carrey appears in a dual negative role, while James Marsden plays the live-action lead.