🤑 Super Mario Crosses the $1 Billion Mark

Driven by the success of the sequel, the Super Mario film franchise’s cumulative gross has surpassed $2.30 billion after just two films. This achievement has propelled the property to the number-nine spot on the list of the highest-grossing animated franchises in global box office history. For Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri, this marks his third project in the top ten, alongside the Despicable Me and Shrek series.

The current top ten global animated franchises stand as follows:

• “Despicable Me” – $5.64 billion (6 films)
• “Shrek” – $3.98 billion (6 films)
• “Toy Story” – $3.28 billion (5 films)
• “Ice Age” – $3.22 billion (5 films)
• “Zootopia” – $2.89 billion (2 films)
• “Frozen” – $2.73 billion (2 films)
• “Inside Out” – $2.56 billion (2 films)
• “Kung Fu Panda” – $2.37 billion (4 films)
• “Mario” – $2.30 billion (2 films)
• “Madagascar” – $2.26 billion (7 films)

Super Mario Galaxy Movie debuted at number one on the global charts and maintained its leadership for three consecutive weekends across both domestic and international markets.

To date, the release has racked up $428.5 million in North America (the highest domestic box office result of 2026) and $571.5 million internationally. On a global scale, the project has become the second-highest-grossing video game adaptation in cinema history, trailing only its predecessor, The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Additionally, it marks the second Illumination and Universal project to cross the $400 million threshold in the US.