Sonic Beats Lion King at Box Office

Disney’s mighty Mufasa … eaten alive by a hedgehog?“Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” directed by Jeff Fowler, arrived in North American theaters as an instant smash: Box office analysts estimated on Saturday that the adventure comedy would collect roughly $70 million in its first weekend in theaters — or about 17 percent more than what had been predicted before its release.The PG-rated sequel to a sequel cost Paramount Pictures about $122 million to make, not including marketing costs.Ticket buyers gave “Sonic 3” an A grade in CinemaScore exit polls and reviews were mostly positive, setting up the fuzzy blue speedball for strong word of mouth among families over the Christmas holiday.In second place, “Mufasa: The Lion King,” a photorealistic “Lion King” prequel, was poised to collect around $35 million — about 30 percent less than what Disney had expected.

“Mufasa,” which cost more than $200 million to make, not including marketing, received an A-minus grade in CinemaScore exit polls.Reviews were weak.Adding to the humiliation for Disney, “Mufasa” had a wider release than “Sonic 3” did — 4,100 theaters compared with 3,761.

“Mufasa” was booked at 400 IMAX theaters, where tickets sell for a premium price.“Sonic 3” was not shown in any IMAX locations.“Mufasa” was directed by Barry Jenkins (“Moonlight”) and features original songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Disney expects the movie to make up ground in North America over the Christmas holiday, which is traditionally the busiest time of year for theaters.One comparison that Disney was using over the weekend: “Wonka,” released last December by Warner Bros., arrived to $39 million in domestic ticket sales and ultimately chugged away to a healthy $219 million.

(The production budget for “Wonka,” however, was about 40 percent less.)Disney noted that “Mufasa” has collected an additional $90 million or so in release overseas.Prequels are harder to market than sequels: Why...