The Walt Disney Company’s latest release, “Mufasa,” has captured the top position at the North American box office during its first weekend in 2025, earning an impressive $23.8 million in its third weekend. This photorealistic prequel to “The Lion King” has proven to be a strong contender, outpacing Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” which brought in $21.2 million this weekend, accumulating a total of $187.5 million domestically and helping the franchise surpass $1 billion globally. In comparison, “Mufasa” has a domestic total of $169.2 million so far.
In third place, the Focus Features remake of “Nosferatu” demonstrated strong staying power, with ticket sales of $13.2 million over the weekend. The horror film only experienced a modest 39% drop from its opening weekend, an impressive feat for a genre typically known for sharp declines.
The weekend’s box office also showcased a few holdovers from recent weeks, with Disney’s animated sequel “Moana 2” securing the fourth spot after bringing in $12.4 million. The film has earned a global total of $960.5 million after six weekends in theaters.
The Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown” also maintained a steady performance, generating $8.1 million in its second weekend for a total of $41.7 million, marking it as Searchlight’s highest-grossing film since its acquisition by Disney in 2019.
In other box office news, A24’s film “Babygirl” earned $4.5 million while Universal’s musical “Wicked” chipped in $10.2 million, demonstrating a strong ongoing interest despite having been available for purchase on video-on-demand.
An IMAX re-release of David Fincher’s classic “Seven” brought in over $1 million from 200 locations.
As the box office year of 2025 begins, it shows a promising start, up around 20% compared to the same weekend in 2024. Final domestic figures for the weekend will be released on Monday, but the latest estimates for ticket sales include:
1. “Mufasa: The Lion King” – $23.8 million
2. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” – $21.2 million
3. “Nosferatu” – $13.2 million
4. “Moana 2” – $12.4 million
5. “Wicked” – $10.2 million
6. “A Complete Unknown” – $8.1 million
7. “Babygirl” – $4.5 million
8. “Gladiator II” – $2.7 million
9. “Homestead” – $2.1 million
10. “The Fire Inside” – $1.2 million.
