‘How to Train Your Dragon’ tops the US box office as ‘Elio’ marks a new
low for Pixar
[June 23, 2025]
By JAKE COYLE
NEW YORK (AP) — Neither Pixar nor zombies were enough to topple “How to
Train Your Dragon" from the No. 1 slot at North American box offices
over the weekend. The Universal Pictures live-action remake remained the
top film, bringing in $37 million in ticket sales in its second weekend,
despite the sizeable new releases of “Elio” and “28 Years Later.” ,
according to studio estimates Sunday. “How To Train Your Dragon” has
rapidly amassed $358.2 million worldwide.
Six years after its last entry, the Dean DeBlois-directed “How To Train
Your Dragon” has proven a potent revival of the DreamWorks Animation
franchise. A sequel is already in the works for the $150 million
production, which remakes the 2010 animated tale about a Viking boy and
his dragon.
Pixar's “Elio” had a particularly tough weekend. The Walt Disney Co.
animation studio has often launched some of its biggest titles in June,
including “Cars,” “WALL-E” and “Toy Story 4.” But “Elio,” a science
fiction adventure about a boy who dreams of meeting aliens, notched a
modest $21 million, 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.”
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This image released by Universal Pictures shows Mason Thames, as
Hiccup, riding Night Fury dragon, Toothless in a scene from "How to
Train Your Dragon.", (Universal Pictures via AP)
 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.
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