Disney and Pixar’s latest animated film, Hoppers, took the top spot at the North American box office this weekend, generating $46 million in domestic ticket sales. The film's global box office total reached $88 million, marking the highest opening for an original animated movie since Pixar’s 2017 hit Coco, according to studio estimates.
Key Takeaways
'Hoppers,' Disney and Pixar's new animated film, topped the box office this weekend with $46 million in domestic ticket sales. This marks the highest opening for an original animated movie since 'Coco' in 2017.
- 'Hoppers' generated $88 million globally, featuring a young environmental advocate who hops into a robotic beaver to stop a freeway expansion.
- Directed by Daniel Chong, known for 'We Bare Bears,' the film received positive reviews and strong audience scores.
- The success of 'Hoppers' is seen as a positive sign for original animated films, following recent dominance by sequels like 'Zootopia 2' and 'Inside Out 2.'
- Warner Bros.' 'The Bride!' had a disappointing opening with $7.3 million domestically, despite its high production budget.
- The box office is showing improvement compared to last year's first quarter, with domestic revenue up over 12%.
The zany adventure features a young environmental advocate who hops her consciousness into a robotic beaver and teams up with other woodland creatures to prevent a freeway expansion through their glade. Directed by Daniel Chong, known for creating the Cartoon Network series We Bare Bears, the film has been met with positive reviews and strong audience scores.
The robust opening of Hoppers, along with Sony Pictures Animation’s recent success with Goat, signals renewed interest in original animated films. This comes at a time when sequels have dominated theatrical returns since the pandemic, with Disney’s Zootopia 2 and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 grossing over $1.8 billion and $1.6 billion globally, respectively.
Pixar's original films are crucial to the studio's future, having built its reputation on hits like Toy Story (1995) and The Incredibles (2004). However, recent originals like 2025’s Elio, which brought in about $154 million worldwide, have underperformed compared to sequels.
Warner Bros.' The Bride!, a reimagining of the Bride of Frankenstein story directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal and starring Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale, debuted with $7.3 million domestically, far below expectations given its estimated $80 million production budget. The film received mixed to negative reviews and underperformed internationally, bringing in only $6.3 million outside the U.S. and Canada.
Other top films at the box office included Paramount’s Scream 7, which earned $17.3 million in its second weekend, Sony’s Goat with $6.6 million, and Warner Bros.’ Wuthering Heights with $3.8 million. The box office is showing signs of improvement compared to last year's dismal first quarter, with domestic revenue up more than 12% according to Comscore.
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