Box Office: ‘Mufasa’ Leaps to $671 Million Globally, ‘Paddington in Peru’ Crosses $100 Million Milestone Overseas
“Mufasa” is still showing box office strength, with the photorealistic “Lion King” prequel clearing $671 million in global ticket sales.
Over the weekend, the film added another $8.5 million from 52 overseas markets. After eight weekends on the big screen, Disney’s musical blockbuster has grossed $235 million domestically and $432.9 million internationally to stand as the seventh-biggest release of 2024. Without much in the way of competition, worldwide revenues are nearing $700 million. It’s an encouraging reversal in theatrical fortunes after a soft start ahead of Christmastime, even if those returns are nowhere close to the towering heights of its predecessor, Jon Favreau’s 2019 “The Lion King” remake ($1.66 billion globally). Still, the turnaround is vital for Disney because “Mufasa” was hugely expensive, costing above $200 million to produce and roughly $100 million to promote.
In another global milestone, “Paddington in Peru,” the third tale about the marmalade-loving bear, crossed $100 million at the international box office. The animated family film has collected $104 million overseas ahead of its launch in the U.S. and Canada on Feb. 14. The first two films in the “Paddington” series, all based on the children’s series by British author Michael Bond, have been much bigger abroad compared to the domestic market, and the third film looks to continue that trend. StudioCanal developed and fully financed the threequel with Sony handling distribution in select territories such as the United States, Canada and Latin America.
In terms of newcomers, Universal’s action comedy “Love Hurts” massively misfired with $1.075 million from 31 markets. The R-rated film, starring Ke Huy Quan and Ariana DeBose, also stumbled in the U.S. and Canada with $5.8 million for a feeble global total of $6.8 million. Critics and audiences rebuked the film, which cost $18 million to produce. Luckily, that modest price tag means “Love Hurts” doesn’t have a high bar to clear in terms of theatrical profitability.
Another Universal offering, the animated “Dog Man,” also lacked bite with $6.5 million from 41 overseas markets. The kid friendly film opened this weekend in the United Kingdom and Ireland with $4 million but stumbled just about everywhere else. The canine-crime-fighting film has grossed $54.1 million domestically and $66 million globally against its $40 million budget.
