In the battle of the CG animals at the US box office this weekend, it was the reigning champ Sonic The Hedgehog that emerged victorious, triumphing over new arrival The Call Of The Wild (with its digital dog and fellow critters) to stay top. The speedy creature took home $26.3 million, according to studio estimates.
Sonic has now earned more than $106 million domestically since its launch last week, speeding to more than $203 million worldwide and surely shoving a sequel on to a faster track than ever before. Wild, meanwhile, offered up a pooch spending time with a gruff Harrison Ford, and the latest adaptation of the Jack London book came close (it won Friday's take, for example), but couldn't quite chase down the hedgehog, opening to $24.8 million in second. And with a bigger budget to make back, it'll have to go some to turn a profit.
Birds Of Prey was pushed to third, adding $7 million (and seems unlikely to cross $100 million in the States), and that was enough to keep it ahead of the week's second new entry, horror sequel Brahms: The Boy II. The chiller took in $5.9 million in fourth, off the back of some negative reviews.
Bad Boys For Life held steady at fifth with $5.8 million, while 1917 dug in at sixth and $4.4 million. Misfiring horror entry Fantasy Island sank from third to seventh, adding just $4.1 million, while Parasite, which thanks to its rollout release pattern has been in the charts for 20 – count 'em - weeks, managed to take in $3.1 million. Also in the staying power stakes, Jumanji: The Next Level took in $3 million at ninth place, no mean feat for a film that has been in the charts since December. Finally, in 10th, we find The Photograph, with the romantic drama picturing $2.8 million.