Lion King opening weekend? Breaking down its $35 million box office

Disney's long-awaited prequel Mufasa: The Lion King got off to a dismal start with a disappointing opening weekend, leaving many wondering what went wrong at the box office for what seemed like a surefire hit. The continuation of Disney's box office juggernaut The Lion King tells the story of Mufasa's youth and his rise to the throne of the Pride Lands, told through an extensive flashback. Some familiar faces return, as the narrative is actually told as a story told to Simba's daughter, Timon, and Pumbaa by Rafiki.

Unlike its predecessor, Mufasa: The Lion King contained an original story in the tradition of The Lion King universe. With original songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins at the helm, expectations were understandably high for one of Disney's most expensive films in recent years. Despite fixing one of the The Lion KingWith the biggest flaws of more expressive animal animation, critics and audiences were divided over Mufasawhich unfortunately yielded a box office total far below expectations on its opening weekend.

Mufasa: The Lion King opened with almost half of its projected box office performance

The prequel fell well short of most estimates

According to Deadlineearly November estimates indicated that Mufasa: The Lion King it was expected to generate a healthy domestic box office total in its first weekend; the most commonly seen range was between $60 and $65 million. In this context, Mufasa: The Lion KingThe opening weekend was an absolute disaster, as debuted with just $35 million domestically the weekend before Christmas. There are countless reasons why any movie fails, but Disney has seen a huge resurgence at the box office lately, which makes it MufasaThe low domestic total is much more noticeable.

Mufasa: The Lion King also struggled internationally in its opening weekend

Exceeded more than US$50 million below projections

Oftentimes, movies (especially blockbusters) will perform better overseas than they do in the U.S., which can be their saving grace when it comes to profitability. Another Disney movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tidesfamously grossed a billion at the global box office, despite an underwhelming domestic total that would have been $130 million under its budget. This unfortunately was not the case Mufasa: The Lion Kingas it only grossed US$122 million worldwide. With initial projections placing Mufasathe worldwide opening weekend totaled around US$180 million, the international movement was as disappointing as the national one.

Mufasa: The Lion King's opening weekend is a fraction of 2019's Lion King

The 2019 adaptation was one of the most successful family films of all time

Mufasa: The Lion KingThe initial box office failure seems even more dramatic when compared to its predecessor. The Lion King debuted in 2019 with a surprising domestic opening weekend box office of $192 million, more than five times that of the 2024 prequel. The Lion King It ended up grossing a domestic total of US$543.6 million and an additional US$1.113 billion from other countries around the world, bringing its box office total to over US$1.6 billion. The Lion Kingthe global debut of in particular was impressive, as Its revenue of US$446 million placed it among the 10 best films of all time.

The final box office total made The Lion King the highest-grossing animated film of all time, a title it recently lost when it was surpassed by Inside Out 2The box office total was US$1.69 billion. Mufasa: The Lion King opening to just a fraction The Lion Kingthe total will almost certainly be considered a disappointment for Disneyno matter what the final box office total is.

Why Mufasa Performed So Much Worse Than The Lion King

Several elements combined for box office failure

Despite high expectations, Mufasa: The Lion King in fact, there were a few elements working against it from a box office perspective. On the one hand, it was released at a time when there was a lot of competition for families in theaters at the same time. The latest edition of the popular Sonic the Hedgehog series premiered on the same day as Mufasawhich undoubtedly impacted its box office potential as families chose one or the other. Furthermore, there were still a good amount of remnants of two other giants in Moana 2 and Evil.

Mufasa: The Lion King also boasted far less star power than its predecessor; almost all the characters in The Lion King was voiced by a Hollywood celebrity including Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Donald Glover, John Oliver, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Seth Rogen and James Earl Jones reprising his role as Mufasa. Some of the voice actors returned for brief cameos, while Timon and Pumbaa returned in earnest for the prequel. However, his presence was unnecessary and, frankly, out of place in the more serious narrative. Talented through the voice cast of Mufasa is that the known names that The Lion King he boasted.

The prequel also lacked pure nostalgia and interest of the original The Lion King. The 1994 animated version is among the most beloved and celebrated animated films of all time, and many of the children and teens who grew up with this film are now parents. Seeing one of their favorite animated films come to life has an obvious appeal for this audience. Mufasaon the other hand, it didn't have the same emotional attachment, and the interest in an original story simply isn't there.

Can Mufasa: The Lion King recover at the box office after its difficult debut?

There's Still Hope for Disney's Most Significant Movie of the Holiday Season

Despite the many reasons it has failed thus far, not all hope is lost for Mufasa: The Lion King at the box office. As uninspiring as the opening weekend was, There really aren't any major threats to its reign as the top family film in theaters in the last two weeks of December. Children will be out of school and adults will be out of work, leaving more time and more opportunities to go to the theater.

Moana 2 and Evil will be away from the spotlight for another week, and the families who may have selected Sonic the Hedgehog 3 on Mufasa could certainly return to the Disney prequel. It seems likely that the final box office total for Mufasa: The Lion King it will still be disappointing in the grand scheme of things, as it will be difficult for the film to fully recover after such a rocky start. However, there's still plenty of time for the film to not only recoup its budget, but also become a legitimate profit-maker for the House of Mouse.

Source: Deadline