Toy Story 5 scores record opening weekend for franchise

Disney’s Toy Story 5 racked up the animated franchise’s best ever opening weekend, with ticket sales of more than $300m (£227m) globally.

Released on 19 June, the fifth installment of the Toy Story saga follows Woody, Jessie and Buzz Lightyear as they face their toughest rival yet – a tablet computer.

Its strong box office performance is a return to form for Disney and Pixar after a series of challenges in recent years.

It is estimated to be this year’s second-biggest opening weekend globally, after The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. That film is currently the highest grossing film of the year, taking in more than $1bn.

Toy Story 5 grossed over $160m in North America and more than $150m internationally in its first weekend in cinemas

With an estimated production budget of $250m, it will need to make at least twice that amount to cover the additional costs of marketing and other expenses.

Disney’s Pixar films have historically recouped their budgets – often comfortably – with many titles bringing in three times as much as they cost to make and promote.

A handful of its films – especially sequels like The Incredibles 2 and Inside Out 2 – have crossed the $1bn mark.

But some of the storied studio’s more recent titles, like the alien adventure Elio and Toy Story spin-off Lightyear, have bombed at the box office.

The Mandalorian and Grogu, Disney’s latest big-budget Star Wars spin-off, has yet to double its $165m cost.

Overall box office revenues have declined since the Covid-19 pandemic, as studios struggled to draw people back to cinemas as the industry has seen a shift towards streaming services like Netflix and Disney+.

Big-budget blockbusters in particular have suffered, with many films underperforming at the box office.

Still, the Toy Story series is one of Pixar’s most lucrative franchises, having raked in more than $3bn at the global box office since audiences were introduced to Woody and Buzz in 1995.

The original movie, set in a world where toys come to life, revolutionised the use of computer-generated graphics and propelled Pixar into the ranks of leading animation studios.

The series’ third and fourth instalments each made more than $1bn at the box office.