The Era of Box Office Dominance Shifts: A New Reign Begins
Move over Disney, a new reign has begun in the worldwide box office! For the first time since 2015, a new king has emerged, capturing global audiences with an unprecedented success
Mario and Luigi have managed to surpass the reign of Disney's Mickey Mouse at the global box office. In 2023, Universal claimed the top spot, displacing Disney for the first time since 2015, thanks to the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer.
According to Variety, Universal's 24-film lineup for the year brought in a total of $4.907 billion at the box office. The Super Mario Bros. Movie alone accounted for $1.3 billion, outperforming Frozen and ranking as the third-highest-grossing animated film ever. Meanwhile, Oppenheimer earned $950 million and claimed the top spot as the highest-grossing biopic, as well as the second highest-grossing R-rated movie.
Disney was not far behind Universal, distributing only 17 movies in 2023 and earning $4.827 billion in global ticket sales. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 led the way with $845 million, although this figure was surpassed by Mario and Oppenheimer. However, the rest of the MCU slate for 2023 underperformed, with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania earning $476 million against a production cost of $200 million to $250 million, and The Marvels having the worst box office debut in MCU history.
Warner Bros. claimed the third spot in 2023 with $3.84 billion, achieving its biggest success with Barbie, which became the studio's highest-grossing movie ever, bringing in $1.4 billion. Barbie was also named Our Website's Movie of the Year for 2023.
Sony and Paramount lag behind the top three studios. According to Variety, they did not report final figures, but both are said to have earned at least $2 billion last year. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was Sony's top earner, while Mission: Impossible -- Dead Reckoning Part One led the way for Paramount.
Editor's P/S
As a Gen Z netizen, I am thrilled to witness the rise of Universal and the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer. It's refreshing to see new players shaking up the box office landscape and challenging the dominance of Disney. The success of these movies demonstrates that audiences are open to diverse content and are not solely reliant on established franchises. I hope this trend continues, allowing more original and creative stories to reach the big screen.
On the other hand, I can't help but feel a bit disappointed with Disney's performance in 2023. While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 performed well, the underperformance of other MCU movies, such as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels, is concerning. It seems that audiences are becoming more discerning and are demanding higher-quality content. Disney needs to step up its game and deliver more compelling stories to recapture the hearts of moviegoers.
