They were saying that Inside Out 2 was the biggest box office hit for an animated film. That was weeks ago when it passed the official list of cartoon movies. Now, however, the film has surpassed the CGI Lion King film by John Favreau. Thus in reality, Inside Out 2 has now topped the actual number one animated box office hit — and it’s likely a record Disney never believed it could achieve.
In yet another ascent, and on its 12th weekend of release, Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out 2 has now grossed $1.666B+ globally, overtaking 2019’s The Lion King to become the 9th biggest movie ever at the worldwide box office. The cume through Sunday is an estimated $1,666.2M.
— Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline
Inside Out 2 is not qualitatively remarkable in the way that the original Inside Out is. It isn’t on par with Pixar masterpieces like Toy Story, Wall-E, Ratatouille, Up or Coco. It’s certainly no Incredibles. But what Inside Out 2 has proven is the still-present desire from global audiences to enjoy a Disney Pixar animation treat if it is at least passably good. Heck, even average will do! And average is something that Inside Out 2 achieves if not more.
MEET ANXIETY — Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as a new Emotion shows up unexpectedly. And Anxiety, voiced by Maya Hawke, isn’t the type of Emotion who will take a back seat either. Directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen, “Inside Out 2” releases only in theaters Summer 2024. © 2023 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
It is a tremendous shift from the recent box office flops that Disney has accrued. Wish (2023) lost the company something like a hundred million dollars. It’s not easy to find Wish merchandise anywhere at big box retailers just ten months later. Strange World (2022) and Lightyear (2022) likewise were massive L’s for the company. So what is it exactly that has caused this vast delta in success? How can a company release movies that are qualitatively similar, animated equally-well by the same studios, with the same leadership… yet one is an all-time record breaker and the others are colossal flops?
The answer is something you likely won’t hear many places. It all comes down to the message in the films.
Clearly, families are not interested in any sociopolitical narratives in children’s content from any angle. They want to talk to their kids privately about these sorts of issues. When word breaks out that they’ll have to do an awkward explanatory conversation in the car after the movie theater experience, they decide to stay away. Inside Out 2 is devoid of almost any social commentary beyond universalisms and as a result, it’s now one of the greatest box office successes in movie history. That’s great for Disney investors — it’s not so good for those who want to use Disney as a means of influencing children in a partisan manner.
Character poster of Anxiety for Inside Out 2 (2024), Pixar
When Inside Out 2 was announced, many (including myself) were fearful that Disney would implement the Anxiety character in a way that promoted mental anguish in children. Even calling the character “anxiety” in America was problematic since “worry” is what most of the world used instead to call the character. And while Disney skirted up to the line in the movie at times, they never crossed over into something significantly controversial. It was the first time in many films for Disney that one of their animated movies didn’t really offend anyone.
Now the question will certainly be whether or not Disney and CEO Bob Iger can mitigate efforts to make children’s content divisive. Clearly the difference in box office returns is about a billion dollars of potential wiped out every time five minutes of controversial commentary is inserted. Even for major investment firms like Blackrock and Vanguard who might be interested in pursuing such ideas in children’s entertainment, it’s hard to see how that’s a profit-v-loss equation that they’re willing to challenge.
Disney has learned a valuable lesson with Inside Out 2. Make content most families can enjoy without a single blush and you’ll see a rush of revenue flooding back into Mickey’s coffers once more.
