Mufasa: The Lion King has had a less-than-stellar opening weekend at the box office, but Disney is reportedly hopeful that it will catch up down the line. The photorealistic “live-action” Lion King prequel earned an estimated $35 million domestically — less than projected and far behind Sonic the Hedgehog 3, according to The Hollywood Reporter. However, sources at Disney said the company expects an uptick in ticket sales once the holiday madness is over.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 opened at $62 million domestically, which was also less than expected but still far ahead of Mufasa. Analysts noted that Sonic pulled in a mostly-male audience, and appealed to a wider age range than Mufasa. By comparison, most Mufasa ticket-buyers were female and were there with children and families. They suspect that holiday preparations kept everyone away from the theaters this weekend, but especially families. Now that school is out and the gift-giving will soon be finished, Mufasa has a chance to bounce back in its second and third weekends.
Mufasa is a prequel to The Lion King, beginning when Simba’s father was young. It reveals that Mufasa was an orphan, and was taken in by another pride, making him and Scar adopted brothers. That makes it all the more surprising that Mufasa eventually became the king of Pride Rock. The story also involves the mandrill Rafiki and the hornbill Zazu. It is a frame story, narrated by Rafiki as he tells the story to Simba and Nala’s daughter, Kiara in the future. Timon and Pumbaa provide their own color commentary.
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The movie is an odd choice to follow the 2019 photorealistic Lion King. Disney could have remade the animated sequels in the same style — The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride or The Lion King 1½. In many ways, it’s surprising that The Lion King got a sequel at all. While it was commercially successful, it got mixed reviews at best with many critics and fans saying that the live-action style did not suit the story. Disney could easily have taken the victory here and moved on.
If Mufasa does not catch up to expectations, it may do just that, but we have a few more weeks to find out. Mufasa: The Lion King is in theaters now. The previous Lion King movies are streaming now on Disney+.
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