'Sonic the Hedgehog' Takes the Top Spot at the Box Office

This weekend's box office looks to be competitive with Sonic The Hedgehog and Birds of Prey leading the way.

Sonic the Hedgehog opened up to theaters worldwide this weekend, with a strong Presidents' Day projection. The film had a strong start, bringing in $57 million domestically. Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog is projected to make $68 million, making it the best start for the video-game adaptation, edging out 2019's Detective Pikachu.

Video game films have been a mix of hits and misses. Sonic the Hedgehog doesn't shy away from its target audience being mostly children, with strong marketing towards the younger age group leading to strong box office results. That, alongside a Sonic-redesign, helped the film win the good graces of long-time fans.

Sonic the Hedgehog is projected to make $111 million worldwide, a strong start in the 40 markets it opened in through the weekend. The film's $87 million budget and A CinemaScore gives the film the chance to have strong legs.

Coming in at second place this weekend is Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn. The film is estimated to bring in $19 million through Monday. Falling 48 percent from its less-than-stellar opening weekend, Birds of Prey looks to survive through its second weekend and should perform closer to expectations as it continues its box office run.

Fantasy Island had a global opening of $22 million and Universal's The Photograph opened with $12 million to take third and fourth place respectively. The acclaimed South Korean film Parasite still held serve following a strong showing at the Oscars with an estimated $6.7 million for the four-day weekend.

Bad Boys for Life, the rebirth of the Bad Boys franchise starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, continued to have the audience come to theaters with a $12.8 million Presidents' Day weekend. The film has now made $370 million worldwide, with a sequel in the works.

Overall, the weekend belonged to Sonic The Hedgehog. Surpassing original expectations, the film soared above the competition. The only family-friendly film on the market, Sonic had a leg up on a weekend of mostly R-rated comedies and dramas. Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, the latest superhero offering from DC Comics, continues to hold at second place with no other major studio releases offering much competition.