Sony’s hope was that the holiday season’s blockbuster releases would get things back on track, after this fall’s releases (like Terminator: Dark Fate and Charlie’s Angels) fell short, and so far that’s proven to be true.
As a sequel to 2017’s surprise smash hit Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, the thought was that the newly released Jumanji: The Next Level should have been able to match or slightly surpass its predecessor in its debut. Now that the numbers are in, it’s safe to say that The Next Level easily wins the box office in its opening weekend, setting a new Sony record in the process.
According to The Wrap, The Next Level earned $60.1 million domestically in its opening weekend, a figure much larger than Welcome to the Jungle’s $36.1 million. The sequel’s global total currently stands at $112.9 million, but as impressive as this is, it’s a far cry from the all-time December mark: Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ $247.9 million. Disney’s animated sequel Frozen II also still holds strong numbers and is the latest 2019 title to crack the $1 billion worldwide.
In 2017 Welcome to the Jungle opened after The Last Jedi, but this time around Sony decided to release The Next Level a week ahead of its Christmas competition; The Rise of Skywalker. That decision clearly paid off, allowing The Next Level to stand apart from the other titles playing. This weekend’s other new arrivals were horror remake Black Christmas ($4.4 million) and Clint Eastwood’s true story drama Richard Jewell ($5 million),
