Who would have thought animated movies geared towards the young and young at heart would be massive hits? Sarcasm aside, some of the most popular movies of all time are animated features. In fact, quite a few of them even made more than $1 billion at the box office, be it a surprise hit like 2013’s Frozen, a highly anticipated sequel like its follow-up, Frozen II, or a video game adaptation like The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which had a little something for everyone.
But what are the most successful animated movies of all time and how did they become such box office juggernauts? Well, we’re about to break down the 10 highest-grossing animated movies and the various ways they eclipsed $1 billion at the global box office.
Frozen II ($1.453 Billion)
Before Frozen II was even released in November 2019, there were estimates that the Disney animated fantasy musical would make a ton of cash at the box office, and it did just that. According to Box Office Mojo, the sequel hit the ground running with a $130 million opening weekend in the United States. The movie made a staggering $358.2 million globally during its first few weeks, per Deadline.
By the time its theatrical run concluded in March 2020, Frozen II made $1.453 billion worldwide, with $477 million of that in the United States. And it wasn’t just because of the massive opening weekend, as the movie continued to bring in seven-figure daily totals more than two months after its debut.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($1.355 Billion)
It wasn’t hard to imagine a world in which The Super Mario Bros. Movie would make money hand-over-fist, considering Illumination was making a movie about the most iconic video game character of all time. However, what the movie was able to achieve in no time at all was nothing short of impressive. According to Deadline, the Chris Pratt-led animated movie made at least $377 million during its opening five-day weekend (Easter holiday), with more than $204 million of that here in the States.
The movie would eclipse the $1 billion-mark not even a month into its theatrical run, one that totals $1.356 billion ($547 million domestically), per Box Office Mojo, and it’s still in theaters at the time of this writing in August 2023. Also of note, Mario didn’t experience a weekend dropoff of more than 50% until nearly a month into its run.
Frozen ($1.284 Billion)
Disney’s Frozen brought in a total of $1.284 billion worldwide through its initial release in November 2013 and several re-releases in subsequent years, per Box Office Mojo. Though its sequel would have a better opening weekend six years later, Frozen drew in around $93.5 million during its first few days, and it would just continue to build up steam from there.
Be it the massive popularity of its signature song, “Let it Go,” charming story, or word of mouth, the all-time great Disney animated movie continued to be a massive hit in the United States, with eight-digit daily box office totals a common occurrence more than a month after its release; it finally left theaters (for the first time) in May 2014.
Incredibles 2 ($1.243 Billion)
Released in 2018, Pixar’s Incredibles 2 quickly became the studio’s most successful movie, pulling in an impressive $1.243 billion worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. Just like how it shattered trailer records in late 2017, the sequel to 2004’s The Incredibles became the first animated film to cross the $500 million-mark domestically (it would end up making $608.5 in North America; $1.243 billion worldwide).
Though there was a 53.7% dropoff between the first and second weeks, the movie wouldn’t dip more than 45% again until September, nearly three months after its initial release. Even more impressive is the fact it stayed in the top ten domestically for nearly two months.
Minions ($1.159 Billion)
The Despicable Me franchise was already a massive property by the time the Minions movie came out in July 2015, but it reached new heights (which haven’t been surpassed) with the animated prequel. Per Box Office Mojo, the movie brought in a stupendous $1.159 billion worldwide, with the vast majority of it, $823 million, coming from international audiences.
This isn’t to say Minions wasn’t a hit domestically, because it still made an impressive $336 million during its initial run back home. Its opening weekend alone made up $115.7 million of that total draw.
Toy Story 4 ($1.073 Billion)
Though not the best movie in the franchise, Toy Story 4 was still a massive hit with audiences and critics upon its release in June 2019, and its massive box office numbers are proof of that. According to Box Office Mojo, the Pixar movie made a total of $1.073 billion worldwide, with $434 million of that coming domestically. Interestingly enough, the spread between domestic and international is only about $200 million in this case, unlike other movies on this list.
Also of note, Toy Story 4 had a $120.9 million opening in North America and continued to bring in a ton of cash throughout its run, which didn’t come to an end until that December.
Toy Story 3 ($1.067 Billion)
Though released nine years before its slightly more successful sequel, Toy Story 3 was a booming success on multiple levels, and is still considered one of the top-tier Pixar movies more than a decade after the fact. Per Box Office Mojo, the third movie in the series brought in $1.067 billion worldwide, which was a lot of money back in 2010.
Like its sequel, the movie’s success was due to a number of factors including the familiarity of the franchise, that all-star cast, and incredibly emotional story, and the fact that it didn’t experience a dropoff over 60% until nearly three months into its run.
Despicable Me 3 ($1.034 Billion)
A couple of years after Minions became the first film in the franchise to cross the $1 billion-mark, Despicable Me 3 followed suit with an equally impressive box office return. Per Box Office Mojo, the Illumination movie brought in $1.034 billion worldwide, which more than covered its $80 million budget.
The movie benefited from coming out just before the Fourth of July holiday in 2017, which resulted in a $266 million worldwide gross during its first week, per Deadline. Of that, $98 million was domestic. That trend would continue throughout its run, with $770 million, or 74% coming from the international market.
Finding Dory ($1.029 Billion)
Released in what could be considered one of the best years for animated movies, Pixar’s Finding Dory had the heart, soul, and charm of its predecessor, Finding Nemo, and also made a ton of cash. At the time of its release, it was the highest grossing animated movie of all time at the domestic box office, and that doesn’t even touch on its international drawing power.
Overall, the movie made $1.029 billion worldwide, per Box Office Mojo. Of that total, $542.9 million, or just shy of 53%, came from theaters outside of North America. Back in the states, the movie just kept crushing at the box office, and it didn’t have its first major dropoff of 54% until nearly two months into its run.
Zootopia ($1.025 Billion)
Disney’s Zootopia was another massive hit with audiences around the world in Spring 2016. According to Box Office Mojo, the movie brought in a total of $1.025 billion internationally, with $341.2 million of that being domestic. It didn’t have the biggest domestic opening on this list, but a $75 million debut wasn’t all that bad either.
One of the most fascinating things about the movie’s run is the fact that several weekends more than two months after its release saw box office receipts eclipse $1 million, showing that it was a massive hit with its key demographic: kids (and their parents who were dragged along). Zootopia ran wild until early August that year, nearly five months after its debut.
BONUS: The Lion King (2019 Remake) ($1.663 Billion)
The 2019 remake of The Lion King technically made more money than any other movie on this list with a total take of $1.663 billion worldwide, per Box Office Mojo. However, since the 9th-highest grossing movie of all time blends live-action and CGI elements to tell its story, we’ll just have to leave it as an honorable mention.
This certainly has been a fun and stat-heavy project to undertake. However, expect to see some major additions to this list in the coming years, especially with upcoming Disney movies like Frozen 3 and Toy Story 5 in the works.
