Disney (and others) at the Box Office - Current State of Affairs

[Farerb]

Huh? Virtually all of the live action remakes of Disney animated films cleared a billion. It would’ve been entirely realistic to expect this film to match or exceed that.

This isn't true. Only four did. Alice in Wonderland because it pushed the 3D in marketing which was a huge trend back then thanks to Avatar, and Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King because those are literally the most successful films from the '90s who have also had successful Broadway stage musicals that have run for years.

Moana has a potential to gross a billion (though the sequel might have hurt its chances a bit). Tangled and Frozen have that potential too if they ever make those. Snow White never did. Neither will Lilo and Stitch or Hercules or any of their B-tier films from the '70s like Aristocats or Robin Hood.

 

[erasure fan1]

Tangled and Frozen have that potential too if they ever make those. Snow White never did. Neither will Lilo and Stitch

I'd say stitch has a better chance than tangled at a billion. Maybe it's just where I am, but stitch merch is in demand and selling. It seems there's a lot more nostalgia for stitch than tangled. But it wouldn't shock me if went the other direction.

 

[Ghost93]

I'd say stitch has a better chance than tangled at a billion. Maybe it's just where I am, but stitch merch is in demand and selling. It seems there's a lot more nostalgia for stitch than tangled. But it wouldn't shock me if went the other direction.

I think the 20-30 year gap between animated originals and their remakes allows Disney to maximize profit off of nostalgia.

I think a Tangled remake would generate more money in the 2030s than in the 2020s.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

This isn't true. Only four did. Alice in Wonderland because it pushed the 3D in marketing which was a huge trend back then thanks to Avatar, and Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King because those are literally the most successful films from the '90s who have also had successful Broadway stage musicals that have run for years.

Moana has a potential to gross a billion (though the sequel might have hurt its chances a bit). Tangled and Frozen have that potential too if they ever make those. Snow White never did. Neither will Lilo and Stitch or Hercules or any of their B-tier films from the '70s like Aristocats or Robin Hood.

Jungle Book came close at $967 million. Probably the best a Walt-era remake could hope for.

 

[Mr. Sullivan]

Huh? Virtually all of the live action remakes of Disney animated films cleared a billion. It would’ve been entirely realistic to expect this film to match or exceed that.

I’m not sure where you got that from, but the vast majority of them have not crossed or even come close to the billion mark. Now, were they still successes? Yes, absolutely because they were mostly budgeted smartly and received decently. Snow White however is coming at a time when these films are not promised hits but rather hit and miss, and its evident with all the insane discourse here around this one that it’s going to be a financial miss. It’s been nothing but negative since the film was even announced.

 

[Disney Analyst]

 

[Disney Irish]

I don’t know that these decisions are as popular as you’re implying. They’re capitulations to attitudes that the majority of people (according to data anyway) do not hold.

Call it what you want, but editing out content for the sake of the overall business has been something that many studios including Disney has done for many decades. I understand it’s not an artistic decision but sometimes one must do what’s best for the business overall in order to continue to produce content longer term.

 

[Dranth]

Disney spent a record $290.9 million last year to make ANDOR Season 2, which makes it the highest-ever annual spend for a Star Wars production

This takes the total budget of ANDOR Seasons 1 and 2 to $645 million

Universal spent $350 million on both Wicked movies combined (Marketing cost not included)

Kind of apples and oranges here.

This is comparing roughly 19 hours worth of runtime for a premium TV show to around 5 hours of theatrical releases. Per minute, Wicked costs twice as much as Andor.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Call it what you want, but editing out content for the sake of the overall business has been something that many studios including Disney has done for many decades. I understand it’s not an artistic decision but sometimes one must do what’s best for the business overall in order to continue to produce content longer term.

Had this position been applied in the 60s and 70s, African-American representation in films would never have increased. Groundbreaking films like Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner would never have been made.

What we are seeing right now is unprecedented in American history and antithetical to the country’s ideals. Even those individuals uncomfortable with LGBTQ content should be outraged by the circumstances surrounding its removal.

 

[Disney Irish]

Had this position been applied in the 60s and 70s, African-American representation in films would never have increased. Groundbreaking films like Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner would never have been made.

What we are seeing right now is unprecedented in American history and antithetical to the country’s ideals. Even those individuals uncomfortable with LGBTQ content should be outraged by the circumstances surrounding its removal.

This isn’t industry wide and certainly isn’t in all content so I disagree.

 

[Disney Analyst]

 

[Disney Analyst]

Haven’t paid much attention, but looks like Moana 2 needs 167 more million to hit 1 billion.

Do we think it has the legs?

 

[DisneyWarrior27]

Haven’t paid much attention, but looks like Moana 2 needs 167 more million to hit 1 billion.

Do we think it has the legs?

Yes

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

Haven’t paid much attention, but looks like Moana 2 needs 167 more million to hit 1 billion.

Do we think it has the legs?

No. Too much other stuff out there now to take the kiddies to.

 

[DisneyWarrior27]

No. Too much other stuff out there now to take the kiddies to.

And yet Moana is probably gonna hit $900M WW on New Year’s Eve.

 

[BrianLo]

Haven’t paid much attention, but looks like Moana 2 needs 167 more million to hit 1 billion.

Do we think it has the legs?

It needs to be comfortably 950+ million by next Sunday. Which is two weekends and a holiday week.

 

[DisneyWarrior27]

Not the same… Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was created for an adult audience, explicitly designed to challenge societal norms and foster meaningful dialogue on racial equality. Comparing it to the recent removal of a transgender storyline from a children’s show like Win or Lose ignores the vastly different audience and purpose.

Disney’s decision was not about removing LGBTQ representation. The company has stood firmly behind inclusivity, as evidenced by Strange World, which features an openly gay lead character—unchanged and fully intact on Disney+.

However, Disney has chosen to respect parental preferences, acknowledging that many families prefer to address complex topics, such as gender identity, on their own timeline.

What’s happening now is not unprecedented nor antithetical to the country’s ideals. It’s a nuanced approach to representation that balances inclusivity with the developmental needs of young audiences. Representation remains a priority, but context and audience matter just as much.

Is it really gonna matter if censoring art will soon hurt the quality of the movie?

 

[MagicMouseFan]

Is it really gonna matter if censoring art will soon hurt the quality of the movie?

I don’t think it’s about ‘censoring art’ so much as it is about ensuring that content is fit for the audience it is targeted at. In the past, Disney has aimed its stories at families and if it decides to alter content to make it consistent with that goal, then it is simply maintaining the company’s image. It doesn’t have to be a bad thing if the storytelling is done properly and with a lot of thought. Spokespeople for Disney and Freeform have explained that altering content for younger audiences isn’t about censorship, but rather helping parents feel comfortable discussing certain topics with their kids. This seems almost tailor-made for Disney+ to implement a function that would enable parents to enable or disable certain elements of a show, thereby allowing Disney to continue to tell complex stories and give parents the power to decide what their kids watch. So, everyone wins: art will not be censored, and families will be able to determine what is best for their family.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

It needs to be comfortably 950+ million by next Sunday. Which is two weekends and a holiday week.

If Moana 2 finishes with $450 million domestically, it would have made about 50% of that during its first 5 days of release

Disney animated movies tend to have much better holds than that. Frozen 2 made about 1/3 of its US gross during its 5-day opening weekend (also a record at the time).

That after such a massive opening we're not 100% sure it will hit a billion worldwide is indicative of less than amazing word of mouth. Moana is clearly popular, and there was demand to see a sequel, but this is what happens when you throw together a sequel at the last minute, and it will probably hurt the live-action remake an inevitable Moana 3.

 

[Disney Analyst]