Paramount’s ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Keeps Box-Office Crown

(Bloomberg) -- Video-game adaptation “Sonic the Hedgehog” outdrew two new releases and stayed No. 1 at the North American box office for a second weekend, a welcome win for Paramount Pictures.

• The film generated ticket sales of $26.2 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, Comscore Inc. said Monday. Analysts had expected about $30 million.

Key Insights

• “Sonic” is a rarity among movies based on video games: a box-office winner with legs. It’s also the biggest hit for Paramount, a division of ViacomCBS Inc., since the last “Mission: Impossible” movie in 2018.

• A new release -- “The Call of the Wild,” based on the Jack London classic about a sled dog -- captured second place. The film from Walt Disney Co.’s 20th Century Studios film benefited from Harrison Ford’s star power and generally good reviews, with a 65% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But there has been a glut of dog movies in recent years. That’s led to diminishing returns for the genre, according to Box Office Pro.
• “The Call of the Wild” took in $24.8 million. Analysts had expected about $17.5 million.
• The new horror film about a life-like doll, “Brahms: The Boy 2” from closely held STX, landed in fifth place with $5.8 million. Analysts had expected $6 million. It was mostly panned by critics.
• The returning “Birds of Prey” from AT&T Inc.’s Warner Bros. came in third place, while Sony Corp.’s “Bad Boys for Life” landed in fourth.

Get More

• See the weekend release schedule.
• See Box Office Pro’s long-range forecast.

To contact the reporter on this story: Hailey Waller in New York at hwaller@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Ludden at jludden@bloomberg.net, Nick Turner, Kevin Miller

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