Eliohas not been a hit for Pixar, butthe new film is on the verge of doing something very surprising in the current theatrical landscape.Eliois among thelowest-grossing Pixar movies, and has to date only pulled in $138 million at the worldwide box office. This is a devastating total and, unfortunately, part of a recent pattern for Pixar.
While many hoped thatElio’s terrible opening at the box officecould rebound with strong legs, likeElemental, which was able to squeeze out $496 million during its theatrical run, this has not happened.Critics and audiences likeElioenough,but the film has failed to stand out in a crowded theatrical marketplace.
Strangely, despiteeverything that went wrong withElio,the film is on the verge of setting an unexpected record for 2025.While this will occur in the coming days, it is not a record thatEliowill be able to hold by the end of the year, but it does reveal some curious details about animation, theatrical releases, and more.
Elio Will Soon Become Hollywood’s Biggest Animated Movie At The 2025 Box Office
The Film Will Soon Overtake DreamWorks' Dog Man
Shockingly,Eliowill soon become the biggest Hollywood animated feature at the 2025 box office.Despite being a massive disappointment for the studio, the competition in this sphere has been surprisingly lax.Eliois currently only behind thebox office ofDog Man, a DreamWorks Animation film that was released in January.
Dog Manwas a much smaller-scale film.The movie was produced for $40 million, and is currently the 16th highest-grossing movie of 2025.Its $145.6 million box office take was strong for the film, and madeDog Manthe highest-grossing Hollywood animated film of 2025 with such a small share of the global box office.
All of this is a strange reflection on the theatrical makeup of 2025.Last year, four of the top ten highest-grossing movies, includingInside Out 2andMoana 2, were animated features,or five ifMufasa: The Lion Kingis included. In 2025, none of this year’s biggest films have yet come from Hollywood animation.
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Thunderbolts*
$382 million
Granted,Ne Zha IIhas been the highest-grossing releaseat the worldwide box office, and has even taken the record of the highest-grossing animated film of all time.Most of that film’s performance has come directly from China,with a US release planned for later this year.
A new dub ofNe Zha IIhas been put together with a voice cast led by Michelle Yeoh. The United States release begins on August 22, and will be distributed by A24.
Some of this may be concerning for Western animated features in general. While the Chinese box office is another beast entirely, Hollywood animated films have tended to be among some of the biggest of each calendar year.By this time last year,Despicable Me 4,Inside Out 2, andKung Fu Panda 4had already earned much more.
Instead, 2025 has seenlive-action remakesbecome the bigger earners among families.Lilo & Stitch, an adaptation of the animated film, is the first Hollywood movie to gross over $1 billion this year,and has been a huge hit for Disney. In addition, theHow to Train Your Dragonremake also performed strongly, earning more than $600 million.
Worryingly, this may reflect a trend. While animated features have been one of the most dependable properties in theatrical history,audience habits have continued to change over the years.With movies likeA Minecraft Movieperforming well, there is reason to worry that animated features may be becoming less of a theatrical draw.
Elio Is Destined To Lose Its Box Office Title
It Could Be Sooner Than Later Too
What seems more likely is simply thatthe first half of 2025 featured a less-appealing selection of theatrical animated films than most,which could seeEliolosing its crown to another film later this year. It has not faced much animated competition in cinemas, with only films likeSmurfsavailable as direct counterprogramming.
Streaming animated movies, meanwhile, have done quite well this year.KPop Demon Huntershas become Netflix’s biggestanimated hit, whilePredator: Killer of Killerswas a strong success for Hulu. Still, even with this in mind, there are several moreanimated movies in 2025, and at least one of them is bound to be huge.
The Bad Guys 2will release this weekand has the potential to take the top-grossing animated crown fromElioin the coming weeks.The first film made $250 million,and sequels have proven to be a much more dependable commodity in the theatrical landscape, especially among family films.
Whether or notThe Bad Guys 2overtakesElio, which is very likely,the highest-grossing Hollywood animated movie of 2025 will be released in November.Thetrailer forZootopia 2promises a fun return to this colorful and exciting world, and the film’s success in cinemas is inevitable following the first film’s $1 billion earnings.
Zootopia 2andThe Bad Guys 2have some surprising similarities, with both films featuring colorful animals confronting crime in urban settings. These similarities could hamperZootopia 2’s earnings later this year, but even factoring in the possibility of a massive underperformance,the new Disney film will surely earn much more than $250 million.
It is strange thatElio, one of Pixar’s biggest disappointments yet, will soon become the highest-grossing animated movie of the year, but this appears to mostly be a reflection on a weaker slate of animated releases in 2025. Fortunately, the box office will surely turn around later, withZootopia 2taking this title by the end of the year.
