Total, Worldwide, Domestic, & Opening

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was one of the last major tentpole releases of 2024. The movie, which debuted in theaters on December 20, is the third feature-length installment in the live-action multimedia franchise adapting the iconic video game franchise, which also includes the Paramount+ spinoff series Knuckles. The new movie was directed by Jeff Fowler, who has directed all three installments, and co-written by franchise stalwarts Pat Casey and Josh Miller alongside John Whittington (DC League of Super-Pets, The Lego Batman Movie), who joined the duo from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 onward.

The live-action Sonic the Hedgehog 3 cast features a multitude of returning stars, including Jim Carrey as Dr. Ivo Robotnik (in addition to now doubling as his character’s grandfather Professor Gerald Robotnik), James Marsden as Tom Wachowski, Tika Sumpter as Maddie Wachowski, Lee Majdoub as Agent Stone, Natasha Rothwell as Rachel, and Adam Pally as Wade Whipple, joined by newcomers Krysten Ritter and Jorma Taccone. The voice cast also includes returning players Ben Schwartz as Sonic, Idris Elba as Knuckles, and Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Tails, this time joined by John Wick star Keanu Reeves as the notorious Shadow the Hedgehog.

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Sonic The Hedgehog 3’s Total Box Office (So Far)

It’s One Of The 25 Highest-Grossing Movies Of 2024

At the time of writing, the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 release has reached a worldwide total of $210.6 million toward the end of its second full week in theaters. This total is composed of a $136.6 million gross in North America and a $74 million gross from international markets, in which it opened five days after its domestic debut, on Christmas Day. However, it will likely climb to a much higher total by the end of its run, especially considering the fact that there are no new wide releases providing competition during its third weekend in theaters.

At the time of writing, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is No. 21 on the chart of the highest-grossing movies of 2024 worldwide. It has already outgrossed a variety of notable blockbuster releases, including IF, Bob Marley: One Love, Smile 2, and Mean Girls. If it earns another $51 million worldwide, which it could very well do before the end of its third week in theaters, it will climb an additional two spots, surpassing the overall grosses of The Garfield Movie and A Quiet Place: Day One and earning itself a solid spot in the Top 20 movies of the year.

Sonic The Hedgehog 3’s Opening Weekend Box Office

It Debuted At No. 1

This global box office gross has sprouted from a reasonably solid 3-day domestic debut. During the first three days of its release, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 grossed $60.1 million. That total, while far from being one of the best opening weekends of the year, saw the movie outgross the entire runs of quite a few major movies at the domestic box office, including Transformers One, Challengers, Argylle, Madame Web, Trap, Speak No Evil, and The Strangers: Chapter 1.

This opening weekend total came in slightly below initial expectations, especially given the fact that glowing Sonic the Hedgehog 3 reviews earned the movie a Certified Fresh score of 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is the best of the entire franchise. This is partially due to the fact that ticket sales collapsed over the Sunday of its debut, so projections from the beginning of the weekend were somewhat inaccurate. However, the movie still opened at No. 1, earning significantly more than the No. 2 new release, Mufasa: The Lion King, which grossed $35.4 million.

How Sonic The Hedgehog 3’s Box Office Compares To The First Two Movies

It Debuted In The Middle Of The Pack

When it opened, the new installment was squarely in the middle of the pack of the three Sonic the Hedgehog movies. While it outgrossed the original movie’s debut by a hair over its 3-day opening weekend, it came in more or less exactly $12 million below the $72.1 million debut of its 2022 follow-up, Sonic the Hedgehog 2. However, the 2024 movie grossed $37 million in its second weekend, which is by far the most that any installment earned in their sophomore frame. Below, see how the first two domestic weekends and overall worldwide totals of all three movies compare:

There are various factors influencing these relative numbers, which make it difficult to estimate exactly where Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will land by the end of its run. This includes the fact that the original movie’s global total was drastically affected by the fact that it premiered shortly before movie theaters were shut down worldwide amid the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also the only movie in the trilogy to open during the Christmas season, during which movies tend to have more slow-and-steady runs.

It is quite common for December new releases to have lukewarm or downright disappointing debuts but eventually climb to become record-breaking hits. This includes the 2023 Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney-led romantic comedy Anyone But You, which grossed $220.3 million by the end of its run despite opening with just $6 million. If it keeps up its current trajectory, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 could potentially earn roughly equal to or more than the previous installment, landing somewhere between $400 and $500 million by the end of its run.

What Sonic The Hedgehog 3’s Box Office Means For The Franchise

Sonic’s Future Seems Secure

As the biggest-budgeted of the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, there is a lot more riding on the third installment. The movie reportedly cost $122 million, which is more than $10 million higher than Sonic the Hedgehog 2‘s roughly $110 million budget, which was already a huge step up from the original movie’s roughly $90 million. Because movies typically need to earn back two and a half times their budgets in theaters, this likely places its break-even point somewhere around $305 million, a point which it has not yet reached at the time of writing.

However, if Sonic the Hedgehog 3 makes good on its current trajectory, which could place it above the worldwide gross of the previous installment, it could quickly break even and become the highest-grossing movie in the franchise, continuing a trend of the movies being solid theatrical successes, if not runaway smash hits. This would more than justify the fact that the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is already in development.

The sequel was announced before the debut of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, implying that producers were already confident in the movie’s prospects, perhaps based on solid pre-sale totals. The fact that this was the case could mean that even more sequels are a strong likelihood moving forward, especially if the fourth installment is able to capture the same delighted audience that has given the movie a Verified Hot 96% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is the sequel to the 2022 comedy-adventure movie that featured the Blue Blur and his companions on an adventure to stop Dr. Robotnik from taking over the world. The new film sees the new antagonist Shadow the Hedgehog, arriving to cause trouble for the newly formed trio of heroes, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, as they adjust to their earthly lives.

Release Date

December 20, 2024

Runtime

109 Minutes

Main Genre

Adventure

Director

Jeff Fowler

Writers

Pat Casey
, Josh Miller
, John Whittington

Studio(s)

Sega Sammy Group
, Original Film
, Marza Animation Planet
, Blur Studio

Distributor(s)

Paramount Pictures

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