After a record-low opening for Pixar,Eliojust achieved a major box office milestone. Pixar’s latest release tells the story of the titular Elio (Yonas Kibreab), as he istaken to the galactic Communiverse. He is forced to try to save the Communiverse from a devastating warlord, while also learning more about friendship and the universe itself.
Eliohad an underwhelming box office, earning just $35 million worldwide during its debut weekend. That’s considering the movie hasa budget of $150 million at a low estimate.WhileElio’s 84% Rotten Tomatoes score was impressive, its box-office performance needed to improve.
Despite opening to a painful tally domestically, week 2 saw a relatively low drop for the family-friendly flick. PerDeadline,Elioearned $3.2 million domestically on Friday and is expected to have athree-day total of $11-12 million. Withjust a 48% drop, it should finish the weekend at around $42 million, if it achieves the higher end of projections.
What This Means For Pixar And Elio
Elio Still Has A Chance Of Success
Pixar has faced significant challenges at the box office recently, partly driven by the disappointment ofLightyear(2022), but it has also seen surprising comebacks.Elemental(2023) opened to just $29.5 millionat the box office, but long legs and positive word-of-mouth ensured a $400 million rebound.Elioneeds to match that impressive recovery to succeed.
Pixar is now planning to alternate between original titles and sequels.
Unfortunately, the movie has not yet displayedElemental’s survival skills, as it is still struggling to match those totals.Its 48% drop is larger thanElemental’s 38% sophomore weekend, and it has already started with a lower box office opening.Eliowill need to have a longer run in the weeks to come to ensure that it can still achieve profitability.
This could also be a crucial moment in Pixar’s history, asthe studio is forced to acknowledge its recent failures. WhileInside Out 2(2024) was an astounding success, Pixar missed the opportunity to seeSoul,Turning Red, andLucaperform in theaters when they were all released via streaming during the pandemic. That is only compounding the issues thatPixar’s original moviesare facing today.
Our Take On Elio’s Second Weekend
This Could Be The Start Of A Recovery
Pixar’s best original moviescertainly push boundaries, andEliois no different. With an83% Tomatometer score and a 91% Popcornmeter scoreon Rotten Tomatoes, it is difficult to deny that it connects with audiences and critics alike. Knowing that, it is surprising that it took two weekends to reach the $40 million milestone.
Considering the cost of marketing and other expenses, it will likely need to earn around $375 million to break even.
Part of the problem, unfortunately, has to do with Disney+. Releasing movies on a streaming platform, rather than in theaters, ensured that audiences would begin to accept that they no longer needed to visit the cinema. They can instead save money by waiting just a few short months, which means that they do not need to seeElionow.
That philosophy is certainly hurting Pixar, as its $150 million movie is being celebrated for simply reaching the $40 million mark. Considering the cost of marketing and other expenses, it will likely need to earn around $375 million to break even, which appears to be unlikely.Eliostill has a chance to succeed, but it desperately needs some extra support.
