‘Lightyear’ underwhelms at box office as ‘Jurassic World’ steals thunder

Pixar’s ‘Lightyear’ fizzled out on its opening weekend, garnering a dull box office collection of $51 million from the 4,255 North American theatres it was screened at.

The spinoff film, which belongs to the ‘Toy Story’ universe, failed to woo family audiences, despite belonging to a brand that has given the key demographic some iconic releases such as ‘Up’, ‘Finding Nemo’, and ‘The Incredibles’ in the past.

Film analysts speculated that ‘Lightyear’, which cost about $200 million for production and tens of millions for marketing, would make at least $70 million during the weekend. 

However, what they did not see coming was Universal Pictures’ behemoth ‘Jurassic World Dominion’, which stomped all over the spinoff with its mighty dinosaur claws.

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“This is a soft opening for a spin-off of one of the most successful animation series of all time,” said David A. Gross the owner of film consulting company Franchise Entertainment Research. 

“‘Toy Story’ defied gravity at the box office during its 24 year run, each episode topping the last, the last two clearing a billion dollars worldwide. But like all spin-offs, the ‘Lightyear’ story is narrower now,” Gross said, according to Reuters.

‘Lightyear’ is the first Pixar film to hit theatres worldwide after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, the studio released three films: ‘Soul’, ‘Luca’, and ‘Turning Red’, that dropped on the OTT platform Disney+. 

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This pattern has left analysts wondering if Disney has subconsciously trained its viewers to relish the art of animations in the comfort of their homes, which could be another factor contributing to Lightyear’s underperformance.

Meanwhile, Universal’s ‘Jurassic World Dominion’ continues to rule the box office with a collection of $58.6 million from 4,697 theatres on its second weekend. The sum brings its total collection to a whopping $259 million.