Box Office Report: Weekend Grosses and 2023 Studio Market Share
Box Office Report: Weekend Grosses and 2023 Studio Market Share
The weekend box office saw a mixed performance for major releases. 28 Years Later, directed by Danny Boyle and Alex Garland, debuted with a worldwide gross of $60 million ($30 million domestically and $30 million internationally). The film’s production budget was reportedly $75 million. In contrast, Disney/Pixar’s Elio had the worst opening weekend for a Pixar film, earning $21 million domestically and $35 million worldwide, against a reported budget of $150 million. How to Train Your Dragon (live-action remake) maintained its number one position with a $37 million second-weekend gross. Disney’s Lilo & Stitch earned $9.7 million, bringing its cumulative domestic gross to $386.7 million and worldwide gross to $910 million.
The release date of Elio was shifted from June 13th to June 20th, avoiding a direct competition with How to Train Your Dragon. This change also provides more space between Lilo & Stitch and The Fantastic Four: First Steps in Disney’s summer release schedule.
In broader market share news for 2023, Universal Pictures claimed the top spot in global box office revenue, surpassing Disney for the first time since 2015. Universal generated an estimated $4.91 billion in worldwide ticket sales from 24 films, compared to Disney’s $4.83 billion from 17 films. This close competition was evident both domestically and internationally. Universal’s success was attributed to a diverse slate of films, including Oppenheimer ($952 million globally), The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($1.36 billion globally), and Fast X ($704.9 million globally). Disney’s top performers included Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Little Mermaid, Elemental, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Further breakdown of 2023 studio market share reveals that Warner Bros. secured third place globally with $3.84 billion, followed by Sony ($2.09 billion) and Paramount ($2.03 billion). Lionsgate also reported exceeding $1 billion in global ticket sales for the first time in five years, driven by the success of films such as John Wick: Chapter 4. Disney’s CEO, Bob Iger, acknowledged the company’s missteps in 2023, citing a loss of focus, while Universal’s success was attributed to a balanced slate and strong marketing strategies.
Other Disney release date announcements include: Ella McCay, directed by James L. Brooks, scheduled for September 9, 2025; and Send Help, a Sam Raimi horror film, slated for January 30, 2026. Two untitled Disney projects previously scheduled for September 12, 2025, and January 16, 2026, have been removed from the release schedule.
In summary, the weekend box office results showcased varying degrees of success for new releases, while the year-end market share data highlighted Universal’s triumph over Disney’s long-held dominance in global box office revenue. Disney’s release calendar adjustments reflect a strategic recalibration for future releases.
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