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Frozen 2 Sets Disney Animation Box Office Record In Opening Weekend
Frozen 2 sets a new Disney Animation box office record during its opening weekend. Though the Mouse House owns Pixar (and has made a killing off that subsidiary for a number of years), the studio continues to look towards their fabled in-house animation depart to keep churning out hits. This decade, Disney Animation experienced a new renaissance, bolstered by blockbusters like Zootopia, Moana, Wreck-it Ralph, and more. But of course, one of Disney's biggest titles of all-time is 2013's Frozen.
Thanks in large part to the now-iconic soundtrack, Frozen was a phenomenon, grossing $400.2 million domestically during its run that holiday season. Unsurprisingly, that kind of performance assured a sequel would be made, and this weekend audiences finally got a chance to see Frozen 2. While word-of-mouth for the followup isn't as enthusiastic as its predecessor, that doesn't appear to have an impact on its commercial prospects.
According to The Wrap, Frozen 2 grossed $127 million in the U.S. during its debut. That is by far a new all-time opening weekend record for Disney Animation, soaring past the $75 million Zootopia brought in back in March 2016. Frozen 2 also ranks in the top-five all-time opening weekends for November and animated movies, making this another tremendous success for Disney.
Frozen 2's arrival could not have come at a better time for Hollywood. This fall has seen more than its fair share of box office flops, most notably Terminator: Dark Fate, Doctor Sleep, and Charlie's Angels. Ideally, Frozen 2 is a sign the rough patch is over at last. In the next few weeks, the likes of Jumanji: The Next Level and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will hit theaters, both of which are expected to do very well. It would be nice to see the box office end 2019 on a high note. Even in the likely event that happens, this year's box office may not be able to live up to last year's totals. The Wrap notes at this point, the 2019 figures are 6.4 percent less than what they were in 2018 - and that's despite Avengers: Endgame going on its unprecedented run earlier in the year. Disney is really the only studio to have consistent success at the box office over the past 12 months.
Disney's already seen five 2019 releases hit the $1 billion mark, and Frozen 2 is poised to make it six. Globally, the sequel's already at $350.2 million, and it will have a monopoly on its target demographic over the next couple of weeks. There aren't any other high-profile animated films on the horizon (Playmobil doesn't count as a threat), so Frozen 2 will have strong legs. It's only a matter of time before Frozen 2 enters the top 10 for the year on the domestic charts, giving Disney six of those slots.
