After a record-low opening for Pixar, Elio just achieved a major box office milestone. Pixar’s latest release tells the story of the тιтular Elio (Yonas Kibreab), as he is taken 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.

Elio had an underwhelming box office, earning just $35 million worldwide during its debut weekend. That’s considering the movie has a budget of $150 million at a low estimate. While Elio‘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. Per ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, Elio earned $3.2 million domestically on Friday and is expected to have a three-day total of $11-12 million. With just 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 of Lightyear (2022), but it has also seen surprising comebacks. Elemental (2023) opened to just $29.5 million at the box office, but long legs and positive word-of-mouth ensured a $400 million rebound. Elio needs to match that impressive recovery to succeed.

Unfortunately, the movie has not yet displayed Elemental‘s survival skills, as it is still struggling to match those totals. Its 48% drop is larger than Elemental‘s 38% sophomore weekend, and it has already started with a lower box office opening. Elio will 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, as the studio is forced to acknowledge its recent failures. While Inside Out 2 (2024) was an astounding success, Pixar missed the opportunity to see Soul, Turning Red, and Luca perform in theaters when they were all released via streaming during the pandemic. That is only compounding the issues that Pixar’s original movies are facing today.

Our Take On Elio’s Second Weekend

This Could Be The Start Of A Recovery

Pixar’s best original movies certainly push boundaries, and Elio is no different. With an 83% Tomatometer score and a 91% Popcornmeter score on 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.

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 see Elio now.

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. Elio still has a chance to succeed, but it desperately needs some extra support.

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Source: ᴅᴇᴀᴅline