NEW YORK (AP) — Despite the charm of Pixar or the allure of zombies, “How to Train Your Dragon” firmly held its grip on the top spot at the North American box offices over the weekend. The Universal Pictures live-action remake retained its leading position with $37 million in ticket sales in its second weekend, overcoming the substantial new releases of “Elio” and “28 Years Later,” according to studio estimates Sunday. The film has quickly accumulated $358.2 million worldwide.
Six years after the last installment of the series, the Dean DeBlois-directed “How To Train Your Dragon” has successfully rejuvenated the DreamWorks Animation franchise. A sequel is already in development for the $150 million project, which offers a live-action remake of the 2010 animated story about a Viking boy and his dragon.
Pixar’s “Elio” faced a challenging weekend. The Walt Disney Co. animation studio, which has traditionally launched major titles in June, such as “Cars,” “WALL-E,” and “Toy Story 4,” saw its latest offering, “Elio,” a sci-fi adventure about a boy aspiring to encounter aliens, earn a modest $21 million, marking the lowest opening ever for Pixar.
“This is a weak opening for a new Pixar movie,” said David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm FranchiseRe. “These would be solid numbers for another original animation film, but this is Pixar, and by Pixar’s remarkable standard, the opening is well below average.”
“Elio,” originally set for release in early 2024, had a bumpy road to the screen. Adrian Molina — co-director of “Coco” — was replaced mid-production by Domee Shi (“Turning Red”) and Madeline Sharafian. Back at Disney’s D23 conference in 2022, America Ferrera appeared to announce her role as Elio’s mother, but the character doesn’t even exist in the revamped film.
Disney and Pixar spent at least $150 million making “Elio,” which didn’t fare any better internationally than it did in North America, bringing in just $14 million from 43 territories. Pixar stumbled coming out of the pandemic before stabilizing performance with 2023’s “Elemental” ($496.4 million worldwide) and 2024’s “Inside Out 2” ($1.7 billion), which was the company’s biggest box office hit.
“Elemental” was Pixar’s previously lowest earning film, launching with $29.6 million. It rallied in later weeks to collect nearly half a billion dollars at the box office. The company’s first movie, “Toy Story,” opened with $29.1 million in 1995, or $60 when adjusted for inflation. It remains to be seen whether “Elio’s” decent reviews and “A” from CinemaScore audiences can lead it to repeat “Elemental’s” trajectory.
With most schools on summer break, the competition for family audiences was stiff. Disney’s own “Lilo & Stitch,” another live-action remake, continued to pull in young moviegoers. It grossed $9.7 million in its fifth weekend, bringing its global tally to $910.3 million. .
“28 Years Later” signaled the return of another, far gorier franchise. Director Danny Boyle reunited with screenwriter Alex Garland to resume their pandemic apocalypse thriller 25 years after “28 Days Later” and 18 years after its sequel, “28 Weeks Later.”
The Sony Pictures release opened with $30 million. That was good enough to give Boyle, the filmmaker of “Slumdog Millionaire” and “Trainspotting,” the biggest opening weekend of his career. The film, which cost $60 million to make, jumps ahead nearly three decades from the outbreak of the so-called rage virus for a coming-of-age story about a 12-year-old (Alfie Williams) venturing out of his family’s protected village. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes co-star.
Reviews have been good (90% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) for “28 Years Later,” though audience reaction (a “B” CinemaScore) is mixed. Boyle has more plans for the zombie franchise, which will next see the release of “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” next year from director Nia DaCosta.
“28 Years Later” added another $30 million in 59 overseas markets.
After its strong start last weekend with $12 million, A24’s “Materialists” held well with $5.8 million in its second weekend. The romantic drama by writer-director Celine Song and starring Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans has collected $24 million so far.
Next weekend should also be a competitive one in movie theaters, with both “F1,” from Apple and Warner Bros., and Universal’s “Megan 2.0” launching in cinemas.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “How to Train Your Dragon,” $37 million.
2. “28 Years Later,” $30 million.
3. “Elio,” $21 million.
4. “Lilo & Stitch,” $9.7 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning,” $6.6 million.
6. “Materialists,” $5.8 million.
7. “Ballerina,” $4.5 million.
8. “Karate Kid: Legends,” $2.4 million.
9. “Final Destination: Bloodlines,” $1.9 million.
10. “Kuberaa,” $1.7 million.
