‘Lion King’ Prequel Scores $122 Million Globally

“Mufasa” has reigned supreme at the global box office, but the “Lion King” prequel is lacking the bite of Disney’s prior live-action adaptations.

The movie, a prequel to director Jon Favreau’s 2019 photorealistic “The Lion King” remake, powered to $87.2 million overseas and $122 million globally. While those ticket sales were enough to top the worldwide box office charts, the film landed far behind pre-release expectations of $130 million overseas and $180 million globally. “Mufasa” also missed projections in North America, debuting to just $35 million while landing in second place behind Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” ($62 million). The third “Sonic” adventure doesn’t open at the international box office until Dec. 25.

China was the biggest market for “Mufasa” with $7.8 million to start, followed by France with $7.7 million, Mexico with $7.1 million and the United Kingdom with $5.5 million.

Barry Jenkins, best known for his Oscar best picture winner “Moonlight,” directed “Mufasa,” a prequel about the formative years of the future ruler of the Pride Lands. It takes place prior to Favreau’s “The Lion King,” which delivered a mighty $1.66 billion at the global box office despite mixed reviews.

“Mufasa,” which also has to overcome so-so critical sentiments, features music by “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda as well as the voice cast of Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Mufasa and Scar, Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Mads Mikkelsen and Blue Ivy Carter round out the starry ensemble. The film carries a huge price tag above $200 million, so Disney needs “Mufasa” to stick around through the new year to justify its cost and continue the studio’s box office streak of “Inside Out 2,” “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Moana 2.”

“Moana 2,” meanwhile, added an additional $32.8 million from 52 territories over the…