Movies

‘Lilo & Stitch’ beats Tom Cruise and ‘Mission: Impossible’ in record Memorial Day weekend box office

BBG News

Over the Memorial Day weekend, the action-packed adventures of an out-of-this-world, chaotic blue creature and Tom Cruise’s thrilling stunts skyrocketed the box office to unprecedented levels, providing a much-needed boost for theater owners who are still grappling with audience apathy due to the post-pandemic slump.

As a movie enthusiast, I can’t help but express my awe at the staggering success of Walt Disney Company’s live-action reimagining of “Lilo & Stitch.” Over the Memorial Day weekend in the U.S. and Canada alone, this heartwarming tale garnered an astounding $183 million, according to studio reports. This impressive haul not only secured its position as the number one movie but also established it as the highest-grossing Memorial Day opening of all time, without any inflation adjustments. It outshone the 2022 debut of “Top Gun: Maverick,” which initially earned $160.5 million. Simply put, “Lilo & Stitch” has set a new benchmark for Memorial Day box office success.

As a movie enthusiast, I must say that Paramount Pictures and Skydance Media’s “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” was a blockbuster hit, earning an impressive $77 million domestically and securing the second spot on the box office chart this weekend. The top five films were rounded out by “Final Destination: Bloodlines,” “Thunderbolts,” and “Sinners.” What a thrilling cinematic experience!

Both the latest releases from our studios – “Lilo & Stitch” and “Mission: Impossible (Eight in the series)” – were successful on a global scale as well. The former grossed an impressive total of $341.7 million worldwide, with domestic box office sales accounted for. On the other hand, “Mission: Impossible” accumulated $190 million globally.

Historically, this holiday has been one of the busiest weekends for moviegoers, kickstarting the bustling summer season. However, due to the 2020 pandemic and screenwriters’ and actors’ strikes in 2023, it’s no longer a dependable measure of box office success.

According to Eric Handler, a media and entertainment analyst at Roth Capital, the calendar has become less crowded, especially after the pandemic. Previously, it had more variety, but now it seems thinner. However, it’s encouraging to note that there are two major movie events scheduled for this year.

Movies like “Lilo & Stitch” and “Mission: Impossible”, appealing to distinct groups of viewers, reduced the chance of audience conflict over comparable films. It’s been observed that box office earnings tend to be stronger when a theater offers a variety of genres.

It’s been said that the production budget for “Lilo & Stitch” amounted to $100 million, whereas the estimated costs for “Mission: Impossible” range from $300 million to $400 million, making it one of the most costly films in history.

The impressive performance over Memorial Day weekend contributes to a robust spring performance at the movie theaters. With films like “A Minecraft Movie” from Warner Bros. Pictures and Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” the total domestic box office revenue for April reached approximately $875 million, nearly matching the average of $886 million from 2015 to 2019 for the same month, according to Handler.

In May, the films “Thunderbolts” from Disney and Marvel Studios, as well as “Final Destination Bloodlines” by Warner Bros. Pictures, continued to generate consistent box office revenue in cinemas.

Kimberly Owczarski, an associate professor from Texas Christian University’s film department, stated, “This year’s spring box office success indicates a promising summer ahead.” She explained that unlike last year, there were no major blockbusters during April and early May. These films typically kick off the season, and their absence suggests that people are eager to go to the movies again.

Reflecting on last year’s holiday season, I found myself astonished by the box office earnings, as it marked one of the lowest Memorial Day weekends in almost three decades with a total take of approximately $132 million. In stark contrast to the usual blockbuster performances during this period, movies like “Mad Max: Fury Road” and “The Garfield Movie” managed to rake in around $30 million each, a significant departure from the monumental figures traditionally seen on Memorial Day weekend.

Last year’s sluggish beginning to the crucial summer film season left both distributors and cinema owners feeling uneasy. However, it wasn’t until Disney-Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” premiered in mid-June that the box office began to pick up speed again.

This summer, a collection of popular blockbusters that appear promising to many has sparked confidence among those within the film industry.

At the end of this month, Sony Pictures will release “Karate Kid: Legends,” followed by Lionsgate’s spin-off of “John Wick” titled “Ballerina” in early June. Some highly anticipated upcoming films include Universal Pictures’ live action adaptations of “How to Train Your Dragon” and “Jurassic World Rebirth,” Disney-Pixar’s original animated film “Elio,” Warner Bros.’ “Superman,” and the Disney and Marvel Studios collaboration, “The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

That’s boosted hopes for a stronger overall theatrical business this year.

Experts predict that the domestic box office in 2025 could potentially earn between $9.2 billion and $9.5 billion, marking an increase from last year’s revenue of $8.7 billion. Notably, this figure surpasses the 2023 box office total of $9 billion, suggesting a continued upward trend and a “real recovery,” as Handler put it.

Nevertheless, these figures are far from the colossal earnings seen at the box office before the pandemic, such as the $11.4 billion grossed in 2019 and $11.9 billion in 2018.

Before the pandemic, cinema attendance was already experiencing a downtrend, which worsened significantly when people began to prefer staying at home and streaming movies instead. As the pandemic and strikes reduced the number of films in cinemas, and the gap between a film’s initial release in theaters and its availability for home viewing narrowed, traditional theaters saw a significant loss of business from casual moviegoers.

Handler stated that when the content is engaging, it attracts an audience. Currently, the content loop is working well for us, and we hope this positive trend persists over the next two years.

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2025-05-25 19:01

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