The summer box office season got off toa worrying startthis year, but picked up the pace gradually, beforeexploding over the last month or so. And one studio has experienced the entire gamut of emotions, having released four movies that encapsulate the spectrum of hits and misses across the summer. This weekend,Disneybecame the first studio to pass the $3 billion mark in global box office revenue this year, with only four wide releases to its name.
The studio began the summer with the notorious horror under-performerThe First Omen, which represented a time when alarm bells were going off in the industry thanks to notable misfires such asThe Fall GuyandFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga. Many had already written obituaries for the lucrative box office season beforeKingdom of the Planet of the Apescame along and breathed fresh life into the marketplace, with help from Sony’sBad Boys: Ride or Die. This phase of minor stability was followed by the year’s first billion-dollar-grossing blockbuster,Inside Out 2, which laid the foundation for the success ofDeadpool & Wolverine.
Curiously, three of these four movies are essentially 20th Century Studios titles, released by Disney after its takeover of the former 20th Century Fox and its assets. Combined, they’ve contributed to over $3.1 billion in global box office revenue. Directed byArkasha Stevenson,The First Omen— a prequel to the classic 1976 horror film —ended its run with just $54 million worldwideagainst a reported budget of $30 million.Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, directed byWes Ball, hasso far made $396 million worldwide, against a reported budget of $160 million. But it wasn’t until the release ofInside Out 2that things began to take off. The hit sequel hasgrossed over $1.56 billion globally, having cemented itself as the top-grossing animated movie of all time, and one of the top 10 highest-grossing movies in history.
Disney Can Look Forward to Billions More Later this Year
Image via Empire Magazine
Shawn Levy’sDeadpool & Wolverinehasgenerated $824 million worldwideso far, and is set to pass the $1 billion mark by next weekend. The superhero blockbuster is already the year’s second-biggest hit, and the third-biggest R-rated movie in global box office history. Combined, Disney spent approximately $600 million on producing these movies, and many more millions to promote them. What also unites these four films is the fact thatthey’ve all receivedpositive reviews. WhileThe First Omenholdsan 81% score on Rotten Tomatoes,Kingdom of the Planet of the Apeshasan 80% score,Inside Out 2hasa 91% score, andDeadpool & Wolverinehasa 78% score.
The studio hasmore potential blockbusters lined up for releasein the second half of the year. In a couple of weeks, Disney — once again via 20th Century Studios — will launchAlien: Romulus, the latest installment in the long-running science-fiction franchise. In November, the studio will releaseMoana 2, a sequel to the hit 2016 animated film, followed by another animated sequel,Mufasa: The Lion King, in December. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Wolverine joins the “merc with a mouth” in the third installment of the Deadpool film franchise.
