🤑 'Toy Story 5' Tops 2026 Global Box Office Charts
Disney and Pixar's animated blockbuster Toy Story 5 has crossed the $1 billion milestone at the global box office, reaching $1.022 billion ($448 million domestically and $573 million internationally).
The fifth installment of the franchise surpassed The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 ($1.001 billion) and the biographical drama Michael ($1.001 billion) to officially become the highest-grossing release of 2026 to date.
Launching in mid-June with a $160 million opening weekend, the feature delivered the strongest debut in the 31-year history of the franchise. Box office momentum was further boosted by Taylor Swift’s original track “I Knew It, I Knew You,” written specifically for the soundtrack. In the coming days, the project is expected to overtake the fourth entry ($1.07 billion) to become the highest-grossing installment in the series.
The success of Toy Story 5 signals a recovery of the global theatrical market toward pre-pandemic levels. Analysts project that 2026 will log a six-year high in the number of billion-dollar releases. Approaching the billion-dollar milestone is Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey ($639.6 million through two weekends), while the blockbuster Spider-Man: Brand New Day is set to hit theaters in late July.
However, the franchise’s triumph unfolds against the backdrop of ongoing restructuring at Pixar itself. Last week, Disney executed another wave of layoffs within the unit, a move industry experts attribute to volatile returns from original IP. Pixar’s original feature Hoppers, released in spring 2026, failed to sustain long-term box office legs despite a strong launch, reinforcing the market’s continued reliance on established franchises.
Source: Variety
