Summer is off to a hot start at the box office with successes like “Lilo and Stitch,” “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” and “How to Train Your Dragon.” This summer’s box office success is only expected to grow as more anticipated films hit theaters, including Disney and Pixar’s latest animated film, “Elio.”
What is ‘Elio’ about?
Originally scheduled to be released on March 1, 2024, “Elio” was delayed until June 13, 2025, due to director changes, and then delayed again to June 20. This choice was made to avoid competing with DreamWorks’ live-action “How to Train Your Dragon” on the same opening weekend, per Deadline.
The film centers on the story of a young boy, Elio (Yonas Ascunsion Kibreab), whose vivid imagination and desire to make friends cause him to call out to the universe. This leads to him being mistaken for Earth’s ambassador after being beamed into space. The story follows Elio’s adventures in space, making new friends and discovering who he is.
Pixar is bringing back a fan-favorite tradition of including a blooper reel at the end of its films. The tradition returns after nearly 24 years — the last Pixar film to feature a blooper reel was “Monsters, Inc.” in 2001, per Movieweb.
The marketing efforts for “Elio” have been relatively quiet, keeping expectations low for the films performance.
However, movie critic Dempsey Pillot recently praised the film on X. He wrote, “Pixar’s #Elio might be the biggest surprise of the summer. A macrocosmic exploration of loneliness, brilliantly told from the perspective of a child. Very reminiscent of some of the studio’s earliest with its rich animation, silly side characters & touching story. Bring tissues!”
How is it expected to do in the box office?
The last Pixar original movie in theaters was “Elemental” in 2023, which, despite a slow start during its opening weekend, ended up being a box office success, grossing $496.4 million worldwide, per Box Office Mojo.
Most recently, Pixar’s “Inside Out 2″ broke records at the box office, grossing $1.699 billion worldwide, surpassing “Incredibles 2″ and becoming the first animated film to hit $1 billion in ticket sales worldwide, according to Variety.
“Elio” is predicted to bring in $27 to $34 million in the domestic box office during its opening weekend, according to Box Office Theory.
