Super Mario Bros. is expected to smash. Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s opening weekend box office record. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 generated $71 million in ticket sales in the United States when it was released in April 2022, becoming the video game-based film with the best opening weekend. The film was a worldwide hit, and became the fourth-highest-grossing video game film of all time.
According to Deadline, the Illumination film based on the popular Super Mario video game franchise is expected to gross between $85 million and $90 million during its five-day opening weekend, surpassing Sonic the Hedgehog’s opening box office record. 2. However, this rating is the lowest a movie can earn during its theatrical debut, so it could exceed box office expectations.
The box office showing of the Super Mario Bros. suggests that Mario could beat Sonic’s opening weekend record at the domestic box office. With the Illumination adaptation, Super Mario Bros. Ultimate will take place. In the Mushroom Kingdom, unlike Sonic the Hedgehog’s decision to take place on Earth. Since Mario’s theatrical debut will have the same setup as his video game series, the familiarity could be enough to dislodge Sonic the Hedgehog from his throne at the box office.
However, like Sonic the Hedgehog, the Super Mario Bros. movie actually features several easter eggs from various installments of the many video games in which Mario appears. The difference between the films, though, is that the references to the Sonic the Hedgehog games didn’t take place in a familiar setting, while the Super Mario Bros. movie will feature many familiar locations from the games. These direct references may help the Super Mario Bros. movie’s box office success due to its distinction within the film’s setting.
Super Mario Bros. has the added advantage of being an Illumination animated movie, whose strength in theatrical sales is evidenced by the success of the Despicable Me movies and the Minion spinoffs. The animation would also allow the film to explore Mario’s world in depth that would have been too expensive for a live-action production. Many factors indicate that the Super Mario Bros. movie will break Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s box office record, but that’s something we won’t know for sure until the movie is released next month.
