Sonic The Hedgehog Surpasses Detective Pikachu To Become Highest-Grossing Video Game Movie (in the USA)

Vampire

your only escape is me Community Manager Moderator VIP+ Ninth Place HoE
Joined
Jun 24, 2019
Posts
6,637
Reaction score
9,616
Points
49,420
Location
USA
Plus Coins
⨭857,450
Sonic the Hedgehog's latest weekend total allowed it to surpass Detective Pikachu and become the highest-grossing video game movie ever in the US.

When the first trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog dropped last year, the world looked on in collective horror. What had Paramount done to our poor, beloved hedgehog? The design of the iconic video game character was criticized so heavily that the studio decided to delay the movie's release so that Sonic could be tweaked.

As it turns out, Sonic's rescheduling couldn't have been timed more perfectly for a number of reasons. Had it been released in November 2019 as planned, it would have gone up against the behemoth that was Frozen 2. It's February release meant its only real competition was Birds Of Prey which massively under-performed at the box office. Plus, DC's latest offering might not even be considered competition for Sonic since it's not exactly aimed at kids and families.

Not only all of that, but as movie release dates are delayed and theaters are closed amid the spread of the coronavirus, had Sonic's release been delayed any longer it could have been a disaster for different reasons. As it turns out, Sonic was released just in time to avoid heavy competition, but also limit how much it was affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

So much so that this past weekend, it surpassed Detective Pikachu to become the highest-grossing video game adaptation of all time in the US, reports ScreenRant. Sonic has now amassed $145.8 million domestically, while Detective Pikachu managed $144.1 million by the end of its run. Sonic has definitely taken a hit as it only brought in $2.58 million last weekend to limp past Detective Pikachu's record.

As for the worldwide record, it seems as if that will belong to Detective Piakchu for the foreseeable future. That's the one element of Sonic's success that has been affected by the worldwide pandemic we are in the midst of. The movie's release has been delayed in China and as it stands as brought in $306.5 million worldwide. That's a long way off the $433 million record set by Detective Pikachu.

 

yerm

I can make the beat go! Graphics Lead Donor
Joined
Jun 16, 2019
Posts
2,443
Reaction score
2,691
Points
47,770
Plus Coins
⨭2,505,706
Pronouns
she/her
I still haven't seen Detective Pikachu but so many of us followed the story of Sonic being made and I think a lot of people wanted to see how the terrible animation got ironed out. Also, it was a really fun movie! I thoroughly enjoyed it and I bet others did too.
 
Top Bottom