The first weekend of 2025 saw the box office generate an impressive $105 million, a 22% increase from last year’s $85.9 million.
Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King took the top spot with $24.5 million, bringing its total to $169.2 million after three weeks.
Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 followed closely with $20.7 million, reaching a total of $187 million.
The film is just $4.5 million away from surpassing Sonic the Hedgehog 2 as the highest-grossing title in the franchise.
Focus Features’ Nosferatu secured third place with $13.1 million in its second weekend, while Disney’s Moana 2 brought in $13.2 million, pushing its total to $425.9 million. Universal’s Wicked rounded out the top five with $10.2 million, reaching $450.7 million overall.
Despite no major new releases, the weekend outperformed the same period last year, showing strong holdovers from popular films. Mufasa claimed its first No. 1 weekend win, while Sonic 3 maintained steady numbers.
The box office continues to recover post-pandemic, though it remains below pre-Covid levels.
In 2016, the first weekend brought in $219.5 million, led by Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Still, this year’s start signals optimism for the film industry in 2025.
