‘Lion King’ remake roars to $191.8 million opening
If there was any doubt that the 2019 box office belonged to the Walt Disney Co., this past weekend put an end to it.
Not only did its photorealistic remake of
“The Lion King” devour opening-weekend records for July and Pg-rated films, but “Avengers: Endgame” also crept past “Avatar” to become the highest-grossing film of all time.
“The Lion King” roared into 4,725 North American theaters, where it grossed a stunning $191.8 million. Although reviews were mixed for Jon Favreau’s remake of the 1994 animated film, audiences still turned out in droves to hear the A-list voice cast, from Beyoncé to Donald Glover, and see the innovative technology that made the film possible.
Industry experts had pegged “The Lion King” for a $150 million opening, which turned out to be far too modest a projection. Instead, with $191.8 million, Disney notched a few achievements to boast about: It’s the eighthbiggest opening of all time, a July record (unseating “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2”), and a Pgrating record (taking over from “The Incredibles 2”).
It’s the second time this year a beloved Disney brand has overwhelmed a tepid critical response. “Aladdin,” which is still in the top 10 after nine weeks in theaters, has made $989.1 million globally.
“Certain brands have so much goodwill and equity,”
said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box office tracker Comscore. “Reviews clearly didn’t matter at all.”
Having opened in China a week early, “The Lion King” has amassed more than $543.6 million in just 10 days. Audiences also embraced large format and 3D for the event film: 36 percent of that total came from 3D showings and $25.2 million from Imax.
This is just the latest in a long string of wins for Disney, which now holds five of the top six spots for the year. It’s evident even in this weekend’s charts. Five weeks in, “Toy Story 4” is still at
No. 3 with an additional $15.6 million (behind “SpiderMan: Far From Home,” which slipped to second in its third weekend with $21.2 million). The Pixar sequel has grossed $861.2 million globally. “Aladdin” was seventh, with $4.1 million for the weekend.
And then there is “Avengers: Endgame,” which didn’t make the top 10 but, with $1.5 million globally added this weekend, surpassed “Avatar’s” all-time record, not accounting for inflation.
“Avatar” grossed $2.789 billion worldwide, and “Avengers: Endgame” is at $2.79 billion.