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Sonic the Hedgehog Film Opens at #6 in Japan, But Ghibli Takes Top 3
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Paramount Pictures' Sonic the Hedgehog movie earned 50,732,770 yen (about US$471,800) from Saturday to Sunday to rank #6 in its opening weekend in Japan. The film opened in Japan last Friday and earned 62,942,620 yen (about US$584,700) over its first three days. It had been delayed from its original March 27 opening date due to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
Paramount Pictures is producing a sequel to the film, with Jeff Fowler returning as director, and Pat Casey and Josh Miller as returning scriptwriters.
The film earned US$70,002,074 to rank #1 over its Presidents' Day holiday opening weekend from February 14 to 17 in the United States. The movie has earned a total of US$146,066,470 in the United States as of Monday, and has a worldwide gross of US$306,766,470. The film debuted digitally on March 31, and shipped on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on May 19.
Four Studio Ghibli movies ranked in the Japanese box office top 10 — including all three of the top three films. Studio Ghibli and TOHO launched a campaign to show the studio's movies in 396 theaters in Japan last Friday. Spirited Away (91,908,850 yen or US$854,800), Princess Mononoke (84,946,550 yen or US$790,000), and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind ranked #1 to #3, respectively, while Tales from Earthsea (15,071,700 yen or US$140,200) ranked at #9.
Sources: Kōgyō Tsūshin, Eiga.com, comScore via KOFIC
