Weekend Box Office Report: Sonic the Hedgehog rushes to the top!

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

A quick start for Sonic!

A famous fast-moving video game character raced into first place at the box office this weekend as SONIC THE HEDGEHOG opened with an estimated $57 million!

The big-screen debut of the classic Sega speedster (voiced by Ben Schwartz) scored the biggest domestic opening for a video game adaptation, narrowly beating the Ryan Reynolds-voiced POKEMON DETECTIVE PIKACHU, which started with $54.3 million last summer.

Also starring James Marsden and Tika Sumpter, the new adventure of the gold-gathering hedgehog and his conflict with Jim Carrey's mad scientist Dr. Robotnik (aka Eggman) is expected to collect a four-day sum of $68 million over the President's Day holiday weekend leading into school vacation week.

Directed by Jeff Fowler, the PG-rated comedy from Paramount cost a reported $85 million, which includes some redesigns of the titular animated mammal after online backlash to his unsettling appearance in the first trailer (the movie was initially scheduled for release in November 2019).

Critics weren't in too much of a hurry to praise the swift blue hero, giving the movie an average of 63% on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 46. Zoom on over to the JoBlo review HERE.

Swooping down to second place was BIRDS OF PREY (now alternately branded as HARLEY QUINN: BIRDS OF PREY) with $17.1 million, a drop of 48% from its opening on top last weekend.

The R-rated post-SUICIDE SQUAD antics of Margot Robbie's murderous harlequin and her violent vigilante cohorts have gathered a ten-day domestic total of $59.2 million and a worldwide total of $142.8 million, on a reported cost of $84.5 million.

Opening in third place was the new horror movie FANTASY ISLAND with $12.4 million.

Blumhouse's terror-filled twist on the 1970s TV show about a magical tropical resort, now with Michael Pena playing the mysterious host Mr. Roarke (previously embodied in a more benevolent fashion by Ricardo Montalban), also picked up $7.6 million from international audiences for a $20 million worldwide total.

Directed by Jeff Wadlow (KICK-ASS 2, TRUTH OR DARE) and also featuring Lucy Hale, Maggie Q, Portia Doubleday and Michael Rooker, the PG-13 wish-fulfillment thriller only cost a reported $7 million.

Critics couldn't wait to escape the devious take on the television series, giving the movie a 9% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 20 on Metacritic. Pay a visit to the JoBlo review HERE.

Taking advantage of a Valentine's Day release was the new romance THE PHOTOGRAPH, opening in fourth place with $12.2 million for the weekend.

Directed by Stella Meghie (EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING), Universal's PG-13 drama with Lakeith Stanfield and "Insecure" star Issa Rae cost a reported $16 million.

Critics seemed reasonably content to spend quality time with the couple, giving the movie an average of 75% on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 63.

In fifth place was the Will Smith/Martin Lawrence reunion BAD BOYS FOR LIFE with $11.3 million on its fifth weekend in theaters. The R-rated action sequel from Sony has a domestic total of $181.3 million and a worldwide total of $368.3 million on a reported $90 million cost.

Director Sam Mendes' R-rated World War I thriller 1917 was in sixth place with $8 million, bringing Universal's $90 million war drama to a domestic total of $144.4 million and $322.5 million worldwide on its seventh week in wide release.

The PG-13 action-comedy JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL was in seventh place with $5.7 million (a slight increase over last weekend). After ten weekends, Sony's adventure sequel with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black and Karen Gillan has a domestic total of $305.7 million and a worldwide total of $778.7 million, on a reported cost of $125 million.

Celebrating its Oscar victory in eighth place was the R-rated comedy-drama PARASITE with $5.5 million for its first appearance in the Top 10 during the 19 weekends it has been in theaters.

Filmmaker Bong Joon-ho's multiple award winner about a South Korean grifter family has accumulated a domestic total of $43.1 million and a wolrdwide total of $183 million, on a reported cost of $11 million.

In ninth place was the PG-rated period fantasy DOLITTLE with $5 million over its fifth weekend in release. The Robert Downey Jr. adventure from Universal has a domestic total of $70.5 million and a worldwide total of $181.1 million on a reported $175 million cost.

Buried at the bottom was the new comedy-drama DOWNHILL with an opening weekend of $4.6 million.

The R-rated Will Ferrell/Julia Louis-Dreyfus remake of the Swedish avalanche drama FORCE MAJEURE marked the lowest wide opening for Ferrell, beneath the $7.4 million post-Christmas weekend of HOLMES & WATSON in 2018 and the $8.7 million start of THE HOUSE in 2017.

Critics didn't really want to spend time with the bickering family during their disastrous ski trip, giving the movie a 40% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 49. Slalom over to the JoBlo review HERE.

Outside the chart, director Guy Ritchie's crime-comedy THE GENTLEMEN bid farewell along with horror fairy tale GRETEL & HANSEL, writer-director Rian Johnson's  crime-comedy KNIVES OUT, filmmaker Greta Gerwig's period adaptation LITTLE WOMEN and saga sequel STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER.

Next weekend offers up the adventures of Harrison Ford and his dog in THE CALL OF THE WILD, more creepy family horror with BRAHMS: THE BOY II, the Steve Coogan satire GREED, and Anya Taylor-Joy as the title character in the latest Jane Austen adaptation EMMA.

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