Pixar’s latest animated effort, Elio, stumbled out of the gate with a rocky box office debut, pulling in just $14 million internationally and a modest $35 million worldwide. For a studio that once delivered genre-defining hits like Toy Story and Finding Nemo, this marks a historic low.
Before this, the underwhelming title belonged to 2023’s Elemental, which opened slightly stronger at $14.9 million abroad and $44.5 million globally. However, Elemental defied expectations thanks to strong word-of-mouth, eventually reaching a remarkable $496 million worldwide. Now, Disney is crossing its fingers that Elio, a story about a young boy mistaken for Earth’s intergalactic representative, can follow a similar path and find its legs in the coming weeks—especially considering the film’s hefty $150 million production budget (and that’s not counting its worldwide marketing push).
While Elio targets a similar family demographic as Universal’s How to Train Your Dragon, it faces limited animated competition until The Smurfs hits theaters on July 18. Meanwhile, How to Train Your Dragon continues to dominate. The live-action remake raked in another $53.5 million across 81 global markets in its second weekend. Its international haul now sits at $197 million, contributing to a $385 million global total after just two weeks.
Audiences are clearly still enchanted by Hiccup, Toothless, and the realm of Berk, first introduced in 2010’s beloved animated original. With momentum like this, Universal’s planned live-action sequel—How to Train Your Dragon 2, due out in 2027—seems like a smart bet.
Sony’s undead franchise returned with 28 Years Later, which clawed in $30 million internationally from 59 territories. Paired with an identical $30 million North American debut, the film’s global launch now sits at $60 million.
The film’s strongest performances came from the UK ($6.4 million), Mexico ($2.7 million), Australia ($1.7 million), and South Korea ($1.5 million). Continuing the grim legacy of 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, this third installment fast-forwards to a world still haunted by the rage virus. A group of survivors faces a new mutated threat that could devastate humanity once more.
With a $60 million budget, 28 Years Later is already on track to surpass its predecessors. Sony is banking on it to revive the series with a full trilogy. Directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland—the duo behind the original—the film was shot back-to-back with its sequel, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, slated for a 2026 release.
Despite Elio’s crash-landing, Disney has reason to celebrate. The live-action Lilo & Stitch continues to enchant global audiences, grossing a massive $523.6 million overseas and hitting an astounding $910 million globally in just five weekends. It’s now on pace to become 2025’s first billion-dollar blockbuster.