UPDATE, writethru : Paramount’s Sonic The Hedgehog raced to a $ M worldwide opening this weekend, including $ (M) from the international box office , and a domestic record for a videogame pic. The adaptation of Sega’s globally popular property is playing in offshore markets, repping 80% of the overseas footprint. Directed by Jeff Fowler, Sonic had his best restults in Latin America and Europe with No. 1s in most cases and setting up nicely for hubs that have school holidays afoot.
In like-for-like markets and excluding previews, the little blue speedster came in (% above Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip , (% over Peter Rabbit , (% above) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and 6% higher than Pokemon Detective Pikachu .
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Leading the charge on the Hedgehog was Mexico with $ 6.7M from (locations, followed by the UK with $ 6.2M from , France ‘s $ 4.3M at 680, Germany ‘s $ 3.3M from 525 and Brazil ‘s $ 3M from 779. Sonic still has Russia and Japan to come while the China release has been shelved for the moment owing to the coronavirus epidemic.
Last week ‘s disappointment, Birds Of Prey , had a decent drop of % to add $ (M from markets. The overseas cume is now $ . 6M for $ .9M worldwide. Overall numbers are still low on Warner Bros ’DC spinoff, with Mexico leading at $ 7.9M to date.
In other overseas play, Universal’s Dolittle crossed the $ (M international mark as did Disney / Fox’s Spies In Disguise . Sam Mendes’ award winning war drama , from Universal and Amblin, has blasted to $ . 5m global. Sony’s Bad Boys For Life is closing in on $ 322 M overseas, now with $ (M , and $ (M) worldwide. The studio’s Little Women , meanwhile, is nearing $ M global.
China remains closed for business amid the coronavirus epidemic, and Asia also continues to be affected with cinemagoing down. All theatrical releases through February have been cancelled in the Middle Kingdom and there is currently no clear picture of when screens may come back online.
The next frames will be dominated by holdovers and expansions and will see the additions of Disney / Fox’s The Call Of The Wild and Blumhouse / Universal’s anticipated The Invisible Man .
In the meantime, breakdowns on this week’s films above and more have been updated below.
NEW SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
Latin America and Europe leaned into the little blue fellow while overall moviegoing is down in Asia owing to the coronavirus. An initial February date on Sonic in China has been shelved given all cinemas are closed there for the foreseeable future. Videogame movies typically work well in the market, so hopefully it finally gets a release once the tragic epidemic is contained. Russia opens next weekend, and Japan goes March 26.
The Top markets on Sonic , which stars Jim Carrey, James Masden and Ben Schwartz, are Mexico ($ 6.7M), the UK ($ 6.2M), France ($ 4.3M), Germany ($ 3.3M), Brazil ($ 3M), Australia ($ 2.8M), Spain ($ 2M), Italy ($ 1.9M) and Colombia ($ 1 M).
Sonic was presented as an action packed, fun-fueled movie experience for kids, families and fans with a large presence at Brazil CCXP in December and the unveiling of Baby Sonic out of Japan. The campaign leaned into key international holiday moments including Christmas, New Year’s, the Three Kings and the Chinese Lunar New Year with custom integrations and highly localized media campaigns across TV and outdoor. That included Super Sonic Saturday in the UK which culminated in a two-minute Masked Singer stunt with Sonic speeding through ITV’s ad break; the “World’s Fastest Ad Break” on Nine Network’s afterschool programming in Australia; ski resort takeovers in France; wrapped subway cars in Seoul; and subway and virtual TV ads during the Super Bowl in Mexico.
Talent was out from January, with an international junket in LA and a European junket held in London. Carrey attended fan screenings in Berlin and London. He also appeared on The Chris Tall Show in Germany, and Lorraine and The Graham Norton Show in the UK.
Local voice talent was maximized for eventized fan screenings in such hubs as France, Korea, Brazil, Russia, Netherlands and Mexico. Hedgehog influencers also came out in force to celebrate International Hedgehog Day on February 2.
In total, there were over 83 international brand partners, supporting with over $ 40 M delivering close 1B impressions. Partners include Puma, Pizza Hut, Domino’s, Speed Rabbit Pizza, Ace and Point S along with major retail tie-ins around the world.
BLUMHOUSE’S FANTASY ISLAND
K) and Australia ($ 
K) were among the other best openers . There is still a fair bit of rollout to come on the Jeff Wadlow-directed horror adaptation that stars Lucy Hale, Maggie Q, Michael Pena and Michael Rooker. Upcoming are Germany, Russia, the UK, Mexico, Brazil and Korea through May.
HOLDOVERS / EXPANSIONS BIRDS OF PREY
Harley Quinn had good holds in Germany (- (%), France (- (%) and Australia (- 36%). The UK dipped % but relegated the movie to 5th place after a No. 2 start last weekend.
The overall numbers remain low on the DC spinoff, with Mexico the top play at $ 7.9M. That’s followed by the UK ($ 7.6M), Russia ($ 6.1M), Australia ($ 5M) and France ($ 5M). Japan is the final market to bow on March 26.
This session saw Japan bow to $ 2. (M,) % above Bridge Of Spies and three times The Imitation Game . Word of mouth and reaction is strong there.
The top markets so far are the UK ($ 5M via eOne), France ($ 20. 4M via UNI), Australia ($ 
. 2M via eOne), Spain ($ 9.6M via eOne) and Netherlands ($ 8.9M via eOne).
Leading all play is the UK at $ 24. 7M, followed by Germany ($ (M), Mexico ($ .3M), Australia ($
DOLITTLE (
In the meantime, with some schools off and more to come, Dolittle dipped 55 M% from the previous session and is running ahead of Alice Through The Looking Glass and Night At The Museum 3 .
The UK had a good hold in its second outing, now with $ 5M. After three weekends, Mexico is at $ 8.7M and Australia is at $ 7.4M after five. Still on deck are Brazil and Japan with China TBD.
THE GENTLEMEN
STX Entertainment The Guy Ritchie-directed The Gentlemen added five markets and $ 8.1M this session in a total . The offshore cume on the Miramax title is now $ 3M with global at $ 2M . Russia gave Ritchie his 3rd best debut of all time with $ 4.1M from locations. Mexico was also new, with $ (K from) . France dropped just % for a $ 2.7M cume to date, on par with Hitman’s Bodyguard . The UK remains the lead market at $ 19 M, followed by Australia / NZ at $ 6M. Still on deck are Korea and Germany this month. LITTLE WOMEN
Sony Pictures Sony’s charmer from Greta Gerwig is closing in on $ 296 M worldwide, now at $ (M including $ 101. 5M from the international box office. This weekend was good for $ 7.2M in total markets. Japan releases in March and there are currently no plans for China, again because of the coronavirus.
Korea , despite an overall drag on box office, opened to a terrific $ 3.2M over five days, which is twice the debut of Pride & Prejudice . Elsewhere, notable holds inlcude Netherlands (-7%) and Germany (- 26%).
The Top 5 markets to date are the UK ($ 35. 7M), Australia ($ 17. 5M), Italy ($ 6.5M), France ($ 5.8M) and Spain ($ 5.1M).
.3M global) The Grudge ( SNY): $ 2.5M intl weekend ( markets); $ 5M intl cume (. $ 6M global Jumanji: The Next Level (SNY): $ 1.9M intl weekend (64 markets); $ (M intl cume) $ M global
( Spies In Disguise
(DIS): $ 1.4M intl weekend (49 markets); $ (M intl cume) $ 6M global
Queen & Slim (UNI): $ K intl weekend (8 markets); $ 1.4M intl cume ($ . 2M global The Lighthouse (UNI): $ (K intl weekend) (markets); $ 6.5M intl cume ($ 24. 4M global) Denotes New
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