It may seem counterintuitive, but the addition of anxiety, embarrassment, ennui and envy seemed to be exactly what was needed at the box office as “Inside Out 2,” which saw its teenage main character introduced to emotions for the first time, grossed $155 million in its first few days to become the year’s best opening—and the second best opening ever for a Pixar animated film.

Film Review - Inside Out 2
A scene from “Inside Out 2.” © 2023 DISNEY/PIXAR. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

KEY FACTS

“Inside Out 2” was expected to turn the summer box office season around, but the reality of its draw blew its $90 million projection out of the water and broke records along the way.

The movie, a sequel to the 2015 film, grossed a massive $155 million domestically and grossed another $140 million overseas, the best-ever opening for an animated film in like markets, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The opening was the highest grossing of summer—a relatively lackluster summer at the box office until “Inside out 2”—the best of 2024 and the second-best domestic opening for an animated film ever (“Incredibles 2,” also from Pixar, holds the crown).

“Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” which also blew past expectations when it opened last weekend, was in the No. 2 slot with an additional $33 million gross, followed by “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” ($5.2 million), “The Garfield Movie” ($5 million) and “IF” ($3.5 million).

BIG NUMBER

21%. Gross sales of the summer box office season, which runs the 15 weekends from the first Friday in May through Labor Day, have hit $847.8 million according to Box Office Mojo, about 21% of the $4.03 billion reported at the box office last summer.

SURPRISING FACT

The films with the best opening weekends so far this year have all been sequels. “Inside Out 2” overtook the $82.5 million opening of “Dune: Part Two,” which now sits in second place. “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” sequel to “Godzilla vs. Kong,” is in third place with an $80 million opening, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” is fourth ($58.4 million) and “Kung Fu Panda 4” had the fifth best opening of the year ($57.9 million).