Amy Poehler and Maya Hawke lend their voices to Joy and Anxiety, respectively, in Disney and Pixar's “Inside Out 2.”
Disney | Pixar
Disney and Pixar's “Inside Out 2” is the newest member of the billion-dollar club.
The animated film has grossed $1.014 billion worldwide as of Sunday, making it the highest-grossing movie of 2024 and the first film since Warner Bros.' “Barbie” to surpass $1 billion at the global box office.
“On behalf of movie theater owners across the country and around the world, we want to congratulate Disney's 'Inside Out 2' for grossing $1 billion faster than any animated film in history,” said Michael O 'Leary, president and CEO of the National Association of Theater Owners. “The film's surprising global success illustrates once again that audiences around the world will respond to compelling and entertaining films, and will want to enjoy them on the big screen.”
The billion-dollar milestone is a much-needed triumph for Pixar, Disney's animation powerhouse. Pixar, a studio that once enjoyed prolific success, has suffered at the box office as a result of the pandemic. Much of its difficulties have been due, in part, to Disney opting to release a handful of animated features directly on the Disney+ streaming service during movie theater closures and even once theaters had reopened.
As a result, before “Inside Out 2,” no Disney animated feature film, made by Pixar or its Walt Disney Animation studio, had generated more than $480 million at the global box office since 2019.
“Inside Out 2” has also shown how vital the family audience is to the box office. This underserved audience represented more than 70% of attendees during the film's national debut, according to data from EntTelligence.
While this audience came en masse to see “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” from Universal, which generated more than $1.36 billion at the global box office, had little to feast on until the recent releases of sony “The Garfield Movie” and From Paramount “YEAH.”
“Inside Out 2” also brought the coveted teen demographic to theaters, with 14 percent of foot traffic coming from 13- to 17-year-olds. This younger generation has been largely absent from the market in recent years.
This group, which is the future of cinema, is especially important for the industry. Getting them back on the big screen has become a priority for studios and theater operators.
The next film for families and teens is Universal and Illumination's “Despicable Me 4,” which will be released in theaters over the July 4 holiday weekend.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.
