Inside Out 2 is expected to earn back its budget and more from its opening weekend estimates. According to some, the second outing into a teen Riley’s mind is expected to earn about $80 to $90 million when it debuts.
Pixar has struggled in the past couple of years to keep up with most of its competition with its releases’ subpar box office earnings. While they have garnered plenty of critical acclaim, movies like Lightyear and Elementals have fallen behind in the theatres while others like Turning Red pushed onto the then-new Disney+ streaming service. The latter films did find success as soon as they became more accessible to families, especially with the pandemic reaching its peak. However, theatre-exclusive films ended up with low opening box office numbers, from Onward’s final run earning $114 million to Lightyear tapping out at $226 million.
Many film experts have been shocked by this year’s shockingly low earnings for the summer season, even with films that were expected to be a hit. Furiosa, for example, was expected to make it big at the box office due to its recognizable property and ambitious vision. However, when it opened, it only earned about $31 million over Memorial Day weekend, putting it in a surprising battle for first place with The Garfield Movie. Box Office Theory founder Shawn Robbins noted that Furiosa was a film aimed more toward fans of the Mad Max franchise than a wider audience. “It reaffirms that prequels with recast characters are tough sells to casual audiences,“ he explained.
Despite these past failures and current trends, Pixar remains optimistic about its projected earnings for Inside Out 2, citing its charm and humor as perfectly calling back to the original film. In addition to its $90 million domestic estimates, the film is expected to earn about $50 million in its overseas distribution, putting it on track to earn as much as, if not more than, its predecessor.
Inside Out 2 will open audiences to their mind’s inner workings this Friday, June 14.
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