While Pixar was hoping to rocket to success, Elio has not been quite as profitable as the studio had hoped. Pixar’s latest animated feature is a science-fiction epic about a young boy (Yonas Kibreab) who dreams of being abducted by aliens, only to be shocked when it actually happens. Elio has received astounding reviews, with ScreenRant‘s Rachel LaBonte calling it Pixar’s “best movie in years.” Unfortunately, despite impressive visuals, strong character work, and a strong sense of humor, the movie is struggling to draw viewers.
According to a report by Variety, Elio is disappointing both domestically and overseas. It debuted in third place at the weekend box office with a domestic total of just $21 million, which is the fourth-lowest opening total in Pixar’s history. The movie earned an additional $14 million overseas, which would add up to a global total of $35 million. That is the worst start in Pixar’s recent history and could be devastating, given the movie’s $150 million price tag.
What Elio’s Numbers Mean For Pixar
Pixar Has Been Through This Before
Pixar is a studio that is generally known for excelling at connecting with both children and adults. The best Pixar movies featured brilliant animation, excellent characters, and a relatable story. Unfortunately, despite building its reputation through movies like the Toy Story franchise and The Incredibles (2004), recent years have seen Pixar struggling. While Inside Out 2 was a $1.7 billion exception, Lightyear (2022), Luca (2021), and Onward (2020) were all box office disasters. Then, Pixar could excuse its mistakes by pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Elio is a significant issue and could force insтιтutional change at the studio.
Like Elio, original movies have generally been struggling at the box office since the pandemic began.
Elio has fallen short of the original Toy Story (1995)’s opening weekend, even without accounting for 30 years of inflation. Among Pixar’s slate, it only stands above Toy Story 3D Double Feature, Toy Story 2 (1999), and A Bug’s Life (1998), and the latter two movies did not have a widespread initial opening. While Elio will undoubtedly hope for an Elemental (2023)-like improvement at the box office, Elemental opened to $29 million domestically. Elio has strong reviews from critics and audiences alike, but the debut is worrying all the same and could represent a step in Pixar’s decline.
Our Take On Elio’s Disappointing Debut
Elio’s Run Isn’t Over Yet
There is still a chance for Elio to improve on this disappointing opening weekend, but it will be a difficult path. Given that it enjoyed a 91% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes, it could be the subject of extremely positive word-of-mouth outreach. Elemental had a paltry opening and still managed to gross nearly $500 million worldwide, thanks to strong reviews, and that is possible here as well. Elio will likely need $375 million to reach profitability, so success is still possible by that metric. It will need to have absurdly strong legs, but this run is not over yet.
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Source: Variety & The Numbers
