Disney andPixar’s newest animated feature film,Lightyear, put forth a respectable effort over its three-day weekend debut but struggled to maintain its trajectory to beat out the previous weekend’s top-performing project. As a result, the animated film finished second at the domestic box office, falling slightly short of Universal/Amblin’sJurassic World Dominion.
Pixar’sLightyear, starring Chris Evans, Keke Palmer, and Taika Waititi, centered around the emblematic figure Buzz Lightyear and his committed attempt to return home after being stranded for years on an unknown planet. Unfortunately, Lightyear’s desire to complete the mission leads to life-altering changes, placing him in the path of an army of ruthless robots, commanded by the nefarious Zurg, who is attempting to steal the Space Ranger’s fuel source for his own distasteful agenda.
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Per Deadline, theToy Storyspin-off performed incredibly well on Friday, taking home $20.7 million to beat out the $15.7 millionaccumulated byJurassic World Dominion. The weekend, however, proved to be a dramatically different story for both highly-anticipated films.Lightyeargenerated $16.3 million on Saturday, losing to the dinosaur-driven journey, which earned $21.98 million. Sunday followed a similar path, resulting in a second straight domestic box office win for the Universal/Amblin film, which generated $58.66 million, holding off the $51 million earned by Disney/Pixar’s new offering.
Lightyear, however, has received more favorable reviews when comparing the two films, earning a 76% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and an 86% rating from audiences.Jurassic World Dominionearned a disappointing 30% rating from critics, making it the worst-rated film inthe entireJurassic Parkfranchise. The audience score, however, sits at 78% for the film, indicating that many seemed to enjoy the nostalgic adventure. Both films earned an A- grade from CinemaScore, highlighting their likeability, but it’s difficult to gauge why audiences failed to show up for the Disney/Pixar film.
The Father’s Day weekend is an element that could have played a role, pitting the family-centric film between two projects more tailored toward a demographic suited for a heavily male audience.Lightyearfinished second but narrowly fended offTop Gun: Maverick, which earned $44 million to close out its fourth weekend. The widespreadcontroversy surroundingLightyearis not foreign, but it’s unclear if it played any role in audience attendance.Lightyearwas banned in multiple Middle Eastern countries because it included a same-sex kiss scene, which leading star Chris Evans labeled as idiotic. How much of a role either of the two elements played is unclear, but theToy Storyspin-off struggled to entirely move audiences.
Despite the somewhat disappointing performance,Lightyearstill has time to reach brand-new heights as a fresh theatrical weekend approaches. Families looking to enjoy the theater may propel the Disney/Pixar film to the coveted box office top spot in its second weekend, but it’ll be interesting to see how Ethan Hawke’s highly anticipated filmThe Black Phonewill perform throughout its weekend debut. Disney/Pixar’s early projections had the film bringing in roughly $70 million, which would have easily won the weekend, but something pulled audiences elsewhere and away from the animated adventure.
