Disney / Pixar’s space-fantasy “Elio” stumbled to an estimated $22 million debut in the United States and Canada, marking the lowest wide-release opening in the studio’s 29-year history and falling below industry tracking that had already set modest expectations.
The three-day total follows $3 million in Thursday previews and a $9 million Friday, results that placed the film fourth for the weekend behind Sony’s “28 Years Later” at about $30 million and DreamWorks’ “How to Train Your Dragon,” which retained the top spot with roughly $35 million in its second frame.
“Elio” now replaces 2023’s “Elemental” ($29.5 million) as Pixar’s weakest domestic launch, a metric analysts link to lingering audience confusion after several pandemic-era releases skipped theaters in favor of Disney+. Chief creative officer Pete Docter warned last year that the studio would have to “radically rethink” its business if theatrical performance did not rebound, a comment underscored by a 14 percent staff reduction during Disney’s 2024 cost-cutting drive.
The new film, directed by Academy Award winner Domee Shi, follows 11-year-old Elio Solis after he is mistaken for Earth’s ambassador by a galactic council; reviewers have been kinder than ticket buyers, giving the picture an 81 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Still, exhibitors report lighter family turnout than for sequels such as “Inside Out 2,” suggesting Pixar’s original stories face steeper climbs amid crowded summer schedules.
Independent box-office consultant Scott Mendelson noted that “Elemental” legged out to nearly half a billion worldwide despite its slow start, leaving open the possibility that strong word of mouth could soften “Elio’s” blow.
Yet the studio’s profit calculus has tightened: analysts point out that “Elio” carries a reported $175 million production budget alongside a global marketing push and now must overperform internationally to avoid a writedown, a task complicated by lower-than-usual presales in key European markets.
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With Pixar already pivoting to fewer releases and longer development cycles, the film’s performance will likely inform Disney’s next moves as it balances streaming, franchise reliance, and the search for fresh stories that can still lure families to multiplexes.
