Inside Out 2 Sets Historic Box Office Record With $295 Million Global Debut

Update 16/06/24: With overseas numbers and Saturday domestic numbers in, the success of "Inside Out 2" has reached astonishing new levels. In North America it's now on track for a $155 million opening weekend, which combined with $140 million from foreign markets makes for a $295 million global debut. According to The Hollywood Reporter, this is "the biggest opening of all time for an animated film in like-for-like markets when accounting for exchange rates." In Latin America it scored the second-biggest opening weekend for any movie, behind only "Avengers: Endgame." 

The headline has been updated. Original article follows.

If last week's release of "Bad Boys: Ride or Die" was an oxygen mask for the struggling summer box office, then Pixar's "Inside Out 2" is a rescue helicopter. The animated sequel set inside the brain of a teenage girl is currently on track to gross $140-$150 million in its opening weekend, the biggest debut of any movie in 2024 by a massive margin. Now in a distant second place is "Dune: Part Two," which scored an $82.5 million opening weekend at the start of March. Director Denis Villeneuve recently commented that he was "disappointed to still be number one" because of what it said about the state of the box office, adding, "I hope, sooner or later, that this summer box office will be much better."

Well, now there's good news for Villeneuve, for movie theaters that have been struggling in the sluggish summer, and also for Pixar, whose box office track record has been shaky recently. "Inside Out 2" soared above expectations by grossing $62 million on Friday (including $13 million from Thursday previews). Some rival studios believe it could pass $150 million and even climb as high as $160 million this weekend (per The Hollywood Reporter). Boxoffice Pro's forecast earlier this week had it pegged for an $85-$115 million opening, which makes this a very pleasant surprise for Pixar. It also highlights an ongoing trend of industry analysts struggling to track movies accurately in the turbulent post-pandemic, post-streaming wars market.

Right now, "Inside Out 2" is looking likely to claim the second-biggest domestic opening ever for an animated movie, behind Pixar's "Incredibles 2" ($182.6 million). The No. 2 spot is currently held by last year's "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" ($146.3 million), so it'll be a tight race for "Inside Out 2" to knock it down — but the holiday weekend could give it a boost.

"Inside Out 2" recently got a promotional spot specifically targeting audiences looking to celebrate Father's Day (it's tomorrow, in case you need to run out quickly and buy a card). The release is certainly well-timed for this particular holiday, since the "Inside Out" movies explore communication struggles between kids and their parents, and how everyone has a battle of emotions going on inside their head. One soundbite from the first movie that became a meme was Amy Poehler's character, Joy, asking, "Do you ever look at someone and wonder: what is going on inside their head?"

The marketing for "Inside Out 2" has leaned into that family dynamic. The main trailer sees Riley lamenting "I'm the worst!" and bursting into tears, as her mother's internal anthropomorphized Anger comments, "Well, that's a preview of the next 10 years!"

The box office is also being helped along by strong buzz. "Inside Out 2" is a hit with critics, currently holding a score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. According to PostTrak stats (via Deadline) the movie's surprise success is primarily driven by walk-up business, in particular led by Hispanic and Latino audiences, who made up 40% of audiences on opening day. And if the near-perfect A CinemaScore is any indication, "Inside Out 2" is bringing people a lot of joy.