Toy Story 5 - Disney's next hit.

Saw it last night, it might be a hit comercially, but not a hit for me personally. Didnt feel like "Toy Story 5", felt more like a Jesse spinoff or TV series for Disney plus.

"But, but, what´s wrong with a female protagonist??? You are a mysogynist!"

Nothing wrong with a female protagonist. I loved Frozen, Sarah Connor, Ripley, etc

But Toy Story should be about Woody & Buzz, at least for me. They didnt really do much in the movie. The writers must hate Woody or something; not only is he of very little consequence, they keep finding ways to make fun of him.

The previous movies had scenes that had a very emotional impact (including Jesse´s own flashback with Emily in the original sequel). This movie made me laugh here and there but unlike the previous movies, it didnt really make me feel anything.

Variety (06/17/26): "The latest entry in Disney and Pixar’s beloved animated franchise is targeting a debut of $145 million to $150 million from 4,400 North American theaters. Industry watchers believe that initial ticket sales could soar even higher — with some predicting a tally closer to $160 million to $175 million — given the goodwill toward the property as well as the sterling reviews from critics. After all, Disney’s recent animated sequels like 2024’s “Inside Out 2” ($154 million debut) and 2025’s “Zootopia 2” ($100 million debut) exploded at the box office, with $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion respectively by the end of their runs — and 'Toy Story' is the crown jewel of kid-friendly franchises."

And 'Moana' (LA) is waiting in the wings.

Moana may be waiting in the wings, but it’s probably better off staying there in my opinion. Look at the comments section for any of the trailers on YouTube and you’ll see the film getting roasted left and right. That never bodes well (i.e. Indiana Jones 5 & Snow White).

@ JT: "Moana may be waiting in the wings, but it’s probably better off staying there in my opinion."

Me: "Staying there"? Please.

'Hoppers' ($372 million), 'Devil Wears Prada 2' ($676 million), 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' ($317 million). That's 1.4 billion.

Just guessing but 'Toy Story 5' $500 million. 'Moana' (LA) $400 million.

Now follow me on this -- and give me some rope: I don't think box office performance (dollars and cents) has as much relevance as it has in the past. As these films transition to the streaming services (especially the ad based streaming platforms [Disney+ and Hulu]) they continue to generate revenue (ad sales and subscribers).

The five films I list here (two are estimates) represent $2.25 billion in gross box office. Beyond the theater money, that performance is a measurement of interest in the content. It seems reasonable to assume that the "let's wait until it's on Disney+" consumers will eventually show up.

And while streaming MAY NOT make as much cash (via subscriptions and ad revenue) as theater ticket sales, Disney does makes the lion's share of streaming funds. When the flick is in the multiplex, they split the cash with the theater owners. When it's in your living room ... well, that's all mouse money.

So no -- 'Moana' should not "stay" in the wings. She should show up at the theaters, and then on streaming services and then in the theme parks. To say otherwise seems very shortsighted.

Deadline (06/21/26): "With a $312M global weekend opening, Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story 5 is the second best for a Pixar movie (sans China) behind 2024’s Inside Out 2 which debuted to $384M".

'Inside Out 2' ended up making a billion bucks.

I will go later this week..

I am really looking forward to it.

Then Supergirl, I am a Fan of GOT so we will see how Milly Alcock does....

She was also in a show on Netflix called Sirens and did a decent job..

I'm not really planning on seeing it, but I think this points to a creative rut for Pixar. 5 toy story movies is too many.

V-Coaster: " 5 toy story movies is too many."

Me: I can give you 312 million reasons why you might be wrong.

(Chuckle)

'Hoppers' ($373 M), 'Devil Wears Prada 2' ($678 M), 'Mandalorian & Grogu' ($323 M) and 'Toy Story 5' ($353 M).

Walt Disney Studios gross box office revenue $1.7 Billion (March thru June).

'Moana' (LA) could push that total above $2 billion -- with 'Spider Man: Brand New Day' and 'Avengers: Doomsday' on deck.

Spiderman is technically a Sony Pictures property, so doesn't count towards Disney's box office. Also, Moana is currently tracking pretty poorly with the potential to be one of the more notable flops of 2026 despite the draw of The Rock. The hard core fans are screaming about some of the scenes shown in trailers for Doomsday, and the current phase of the MCU has significantly underperformed its predecessors. Both Moana and Doomsday are likely to fall well short of expectations when those films were given the green light.

@Russell: I posted a remark indicating that, when its receipts are added to the gross revenue of the four movies I listed, 'Moana' (LA) could push the total collected by all of those flicks could Top $2 billion.

Got a problem with that?

Regarding Spider-Man, it raises the visibility of the Marvel brand -- not a bad thing. And Disney, does, in fact, make some revenue. Foreign Policy (05/30/26): "Walt Disney (Studios) co-produces Spider-Man through Marvel Studios and collects producer fees."

As for your prediction regarding 'Avengers: Doomsday' (worldwide box office) I won't dabble in forecasting box office performance. There was a guy around here who once claimed that making box office predictions was more "art" than science.

I have to wonder if that same guy believed 'The Mandalorian & Grogu' would collect $323 million at the box office.

(Chuckle)

Story 5 is undoubtably a "hit," but some of your other assertions are wrong and aggregating the box office from multiple movies covers for the flops (looking at you Mando).

The Mandalorian and Grogu - According to Box Office Mojo, The Mandalorian and Grogu has grossed $321.7 million globally since its release on May 22, 2026. Given that it needed to make somewhere between $500 and $600 million to break even, the movie is far off course. To become successful, it has to make at least $200-$300 million more...not going to happen. (And I am a Star Wars fan, but this movie by any measure is a box office flop.)

Hoppers - Global Total: $372 million worldwide, which is very close to the movie's break-even point of $375 million. So, not a huge hit but it will spin a little bit of profit when ancillaries are factored in, but smash this was not. Anyone's kids asking for Hoppers toys? Was there even a fast food tie in? (Honest question, it is so far out of the pop culture after a few months, I have no idea...)

Devil Wears Prada 2 - Inarguably a hit, and probably covers the loss The Mandalorian and Grogu.

Moana - Tracking indicates a domestic opening range between $80 million and $105 million, but there is a lot of competition, and this movie will need legs. The upcoming Moana is predicted to receive a 60% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The number is right on the borderline between a movie being considered 'Fresh' or 'Rotten' on the popular review site. This could hamper box office. The film carries an estimated production budget of over $200 million, and will need to gross more than $500 million globally just to break even.

So... the aggregate box office looks impressive, but behind the numbers, there are two hits (Toy Story 5, and Prada) one major flop (sorry Mando), a break even (Hoppers), and a giant question mark (Moana).

@MLB: The assertion that a film's success is based solely on box office earnings from theatrical release is antiquated. In an era of ad revenue based streaming platforms, the money generated by clicks on line continues over the long term. Your analysis doesn't take that into account. And while that streaming cash may not be as great as multiplex ticket sales, studios don't have to split the money with theaters.

I also find it funny that you question the merchandise windfall of 'Hoppers' and then glide past 'The Mandalorian & Grogu' without asseasing the impact those toys and t-hirts might have on that film's ROI.

Oops.

The same can be said about 'Toy Story 5' and 'Moana'. Or maybe you also have great faith in a Rotten Tomatos prediction on sales of Pua plushies.

One last thing, when I listed box office stats about four films and claim that a fifth could (not would) push combined revenue over $2 billion, it was never framed as a qualitative assessment of the Walt Disney Studios performance. It's just benign information. The closest thing I make to a positive assertion on the WDC's behalf is when I wrote "Regarding Spider-Man, it raises the visibility of the Marvel brand -- not a bad thing."

I'll play along TH...

"Walt Disney Studios gross box office revenue $1.7 Billion (March thru June).

'Moana' (LA) could push that total above $2 billion -- with 'Spider Man: Brand New Day' and 'Avengers: Doomsday' on deck."

In 2025, Disney scored a global box office haul of $6.58 billion. Disney will need to more than double what they've done over the first half of 2026 in the next 6 months to simply equal what the company made last year.

@Russell: Okay ... Random, but okay.

"Random, but okay."

No more random than saying Disney was @$300 million away from hitting $2 billion on June 25th.

Yeah, but you started by saying "I'll play ..." All I did was list some Disney flicks and their box office receipts. I never claimed the studio was on pace for a record year. I posted benign information. I didn't make any qualitative assessments regarding the studio's performance.

I have no idea why my original post demands any sort of response or anyone declaring that they'd like to "play along".

Sure TH, but your whole line of comments on this thread that was specifically about Toy Story 5 has centered around Disney's other box office results and upcoming releases, mentioning Moana three separate times and sidetracking challenges to its poor box office tracking with ancillary revenue streams. All I've done is point out that Disney's 2026 box office results (including TS5) are going to have to really pick up in the second half of the year to approach what Disney achieved last year, which is typically not viewed favorably by Wall Street.

Besides the box office though, can we all admit that a fifth toy story movie, another Spider-Man movie, and a moana live action remake are all signs of a creatively bankruptcy within Disney? At the very least their film division (which directly affects the parks)?

@velocicoaster: I saw and loved Toy Story 5. The first 3 spider-man films under the production of marvel studios were all stellar in my opinion. I will definitely agree however that the Moana remake looks dead on arrival. The “live-action animated remake” should have been put to pasture a loooong time ago. Outside of a couple of rare gems, they’ve been mostly cinematic tripe.

"Outside of a couple of rare gems, they’ve been mostly cinematic tripe."

Definitely agree with that. Lilo and Stitch was awful, and borderline blasphemous to the original animated film. Alice in Wonderland is the only one worth the bandwidth it takes up on Disney+. I read somewhere that Disney/Pixar were seriously considering a live action of Toy Story, but I'm hoping that was a fake story.

@russell: i read a story that de-bunked said story. But that also could have been a fake story

Updated with link:

https://comicbookmovie.com/disney/toy-story-5-stars-tom-hanks-and-tim-allen-reveal-why-a-live-action-movie-cannot-be-done-a228302

Creative bankruptcy or not, all I ask is that the movies are good. I don’t care how many Toy Story films we’re at by now since there hasn’t been a bad one yet (not counting that stupid Lightyear film).

We may not like how many sequels and remakes get made these days, but this is what people respond to. Disney made a pretty good original film last year with Elio; nobody saw it. But everyone showed up in droves for remakes of Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon that were deemed inferiors to the originals.

The best part about this thread is how it completely undermines NB's assertion that TPI and its regs are in the tank for all things Disney.

Nursing a beer in Detroit Airport.

Home in awhile. Stay tuned.

With 'Toy Story 5' reaching a box office haul of $623 million (going into a 3-day weekend), that means the combined take of TS5, Hoppers' ($372 million), 'Devil Wears Prada 2' ($676 million) and 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' ($328 million) is north of $2 billion.

'Moana' (LA) is on deck. TS5, Mando and 'Moana' merch will generate more revenue and then all five flicks will end up on the ad supported Disney+ platform.

BOOM! 'Toy Story 5' has reached a box office total of $764 million. That means the combined take of TS5, Hoppers' ($372 million), 'Devil Wears Prada 2' ($676 million) and 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' ($328 million) is now north of $2.1 billion.

And (again) 'Moana' (LA) is on deck. TS5, Mando and 'Moana' merch will generate more revenue and then all five flicks will end up on the ad supported Disney+ platform.

By no.means should this be regarded as a prediction regarding its box office performance.

But ...

Hollywood Reporter, David Rooney (07/08/26): "There’s been some online indignation — when isn’t there? — about it being too soon to remake a widely adored film from 2016. In principle, I would agree, but the new Moana is a captivating family entertainment that deserves to find an audience — brimming with visual interest, vibrant color, gorgeous design elements (the fine detailing in Liz McGregor’s costumes is exquisite) and alluring tropical settings. Principal location shooting was done on O’ahu, Hawaii’s third-largest island. The joyfully moving final act almost makes it feel almost like a vacation there."

Owen Gleiberman - Chief Film Critic at Variety (07/08/26): "But I know that 'Moana' never makes live action more captivating than animation. On some level these movies will always be unnecessary. The remake of 'Moana' can’t, and shouldn’t, replace the original. But it earns a place alongside it".

Well if we're gonna open those floodgates:

Jonathan Sims, ComingSoon.net: "There are tons of incompetently made movies that are significantly worse than the live-action Moana, and yet, I respect those films and filmmakers so much more than I respect this."

Kevin Maher, The Times UK: "Mostly, though, the film provokes only an exquisite form of agony."

Alison Willmore, New York Magazine/Vulture: "To devalue their own output this way feels like pulling the material to its breaking point, testing its tensile strength in hopes that it can hold for another round."

Sorry but I really don't want this movie to succeed. Mediocrity rewarded only invites more mediocrity.

@JT: I get what you are saying. I get why you "really don't want this movie to succeed". No argument.

I'm just curious about how it will fare. This entire thread is rooted in a previous TPI discussion that points out how Josh D'Amaro and Dana Walden were taking over the company at a time when its divisions/products (including the content coming from the studio) were in an especially optimal state.

Regarding the reviews you reference: I Listened to Kevin Maher's review. At no point in his presentation does he criticize the film's visuals, nor does he imply that a family with children/tweens would not enjoy the film. The same can be said about Alison Wilmore's perspective.

Their thoughts do not refute the Hollywood Reporter's take ("... the new Moana is a captivating family entertainment that deserves to find an audience — brimming with visual interest, vibrant color, gorgeous design elements").

And regarding Jonathan Sims' assessment ... I mean, really? This guy actually wrote, "I want you to think about the best movie remakes: you might think of John Carpenter’s The Thing, David Cronenberg’s The Fly, Brian De Palma’s Scarface, or Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s 11 ?"

He's comparing a remake of 'Scarface' to a re-make of 'Moana'? My God.

Then he asks, "Why would I pay money to watch a movie in theaters and laugh less when I can stream the same movie at home and laugh more"?

In my opinion, unless Sims identifies as a 12 year-old girl, I don't think he would/should buy a ticket for the movie -- nor do I believe that Disney expects him to.

And again, like Maher and Wilmore, he does not criticize the film's visuals, nor does he imply that a family with children/tweens would not enjoy the film.

Is 'Moana' LA an attempted (and lazy) cash grab? Absolutely! Was it a wise business decision? Time (along with box office performance, Disney+ ad revenue and merchandise sales) will tell.

Let's be honest Disney fans will pay money to sit in a cinema to watch a blank screen with a Mickey ears template and think it is marvellous as many are institutionalised on all things Disney. At the core of THC's stats is regardless of quality and story the Disney/Pixar film making brands are still very strong with their fanbases and continue to generate serious dollars for the company and this is why they will continue to milk each franchise dry as it is easy revenue with minimum creativity.

^ What he said ^

As long as you're willing to admit the remake is a lazy cash grab, I'll take the win there.

I am old enough to remember TH crowing about the Disney box office, and all of their huge hits "with Moana waiting in the wings." I cautioned about aggregating box office results for multiple films and warned that Moana might not be a huge hit...

MLB: Moana - Tracking indicates a domestic opening range between $80 million and $105 million, but there is a lot of competition, and this movie will need legs. The upcoming Moana is predicted to receive a 60% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The number is right on the borderline between a movie being considered 'Fresh' or 'Rotten' on the popular review site. This could hamper box office. The film carries an estimated production budget of over $200 million, and will need to gross more than $500 million globally just to break even.

Well, well well... I'll just let deadline make my points because they said it very well: "a 3-day between $40M-$45M — well below the $60M-plus that was hoped for on the horizon. That puts the island princess at unfortunately the same level as Disney disaster Snow White, a film with a whole other set of baggage, saddled by star Rachel Zegler’s public remarks and political leanings, which led to a first day/previews of $16.2M and an awful $42.2M opening. At $40M-$45M stateside and sporting a $250M production cost before a hundred million more or so in P&A, not even a prayer to Maui himself will save this film, unless families decide to take the time to do so Saturday. But no rival studio is seeing anything even near a $50M 3-day."

From near $80 million to barely half of that... Moana will not be a hit, even if they sell a few toys. This was a cash grab, and I for one am happy they got their hand slapped back. What did they expect after moving the Disney + tv show into a movie that was a $1 billion hit!?!? Less than two years later a nearly frame by frame live-action remake was always bound to fail.

@MLB: So if 'Moana' LA eeks out $100 million at the box office that means the total take for 'Hoppers', 'Devil Wears Prada 2', 'The Mandalorian & Grogu', 'Toy Story 5' and 'Moana' LA is just over $2.2 billion in a little more than four months?

That's an academic question.

Again, you're aggregating box office receipts. It's literally the equivalent of selling a widget at a dollar loss per unit, and saying that you're going to make up for it on the volume of sales. You'd have a better argument talking about the mega hit that is TS5, it is undeniably a box office hit. And again, the way that you're
aggregating the box office from multiple movies covers for the flops (looking at you Mando and now Moana).

Here we go again:::

The Mandalorian and Grogu - According to Box Office Mojo, The Mandalorian and Grogu has grossed $340 million globally since its release on May 22, 2026. Given that it needed to make somewhere between $500 and $600 million to break even, the movie is far off course. To break even, it has to make at least $200-$300 million more...not going to happen. (And I am a Star Wars fan, but this movie by any measure is a box office flop, and an even bigger flop than Solo.)

Hoppers - Global Total: $372 million worldwide, which is very close to the movie's break-even point of $375 million. So, not a huge hit but it will spin a little bit of profit when ancillaries are factored in, but smash this was not. Anyone's kids asking for Hoppers toys? Was there even a fast food tie in? (Honest question, it is so far out of the pop culture after a few months, I have no idea...)

Devil Wears Prada 2 - Inarguably a hit, and probably doesn't even cover the loss The Mandalorian and Grogu because this film had no legs at the BO.

Moana - They were hoping for an $80M opening...it was about half that. The film carries an estimated production budget of over $200 million (some are saying it is $250M), and will need to gross more than $600 million globally just to break even. Not a chance that happens. This movie will lose at least $100-$125M minimum according to deadline.)

So... the aggregate box office looks impressive, but behind the numbers, there are two hits (Toy Story 5, and Prada) TWO major flops (sorry Mando and Moana), a break even (Hoppers).

As an example, so you can understand why just looking at the BO doesn't tell you anything. Let's take the 5th highest grossing movie of 2023, sounds like a massive hit. Now I tell you that it grossed Just under $715M, gotta be a huge hit, right? Nope... Fast 10 cost $380M to make (How is that even possible...) plus marketing costs, and it failed to break even, and is the reason the series is (finally) coming to an end (before the tv shows start.)

@MLB: From March through June, Walt Disney Studios released five films that generated $2.2 billion. And I am making no representations about the impact that has on the Walt Disney Company -- positive or otherwise.

Wait- what!? Did you say Fast X cost $380mil to make!?! Jiminy Harold Christmas that’s a lot of schlamola for a big pile of fertilizer…

Then what is it that you're trying to say TH? Inquiring minds want to know what the purpose is to note that Disney passed $2 billions of revenue without analyzing how much it cost them to hit that milestone? I know that as a PM, it doesn't matter how much revenue I make for my firm, if I don't hit the projected margin, I'm in deep trouble. If it's true that Moana projects to lose $100 million or more, that's a tough pill to swallow or to somehow be absorbed by Disney+ revenue when it hits the streaming service in a couple of months.

@Russell: The film will run on Disney+ through perpetuity. What's your hurry? Additionally, there is always a Disney park(s) open and operating somewhere in the world, at any given hour. And the 'Moana' merch is selling at those parks. Maintaining the franchise's visibility via the LA flick provides an opportunity to close that gap.

I'm glad Moana is losing money. What an artless project.

"The film will run on Disney+ through perpetuity. What's your hurry?"

Sure, but maybe you can tell that to Wall Street, which demands instant satisfaction and ROI. There's nothing wrong with playing the "long game", and Disney has set itself up well as a company to slowly profit from projects long beyond their initial release. However, making up $100+ million here (plus another $100+ million from Mando) is a lot of money that has to come from somewhere. Even though the theme parks are the company's golden goose, executives may be tempted to trim budgets or try to squeeze more revenue from that division to balance the books because of these massive losses.

I also doubt making a literal shot for shot big-budget live-action remake was needed to keep the Moana IP in the public consciousness - they could have done a Disney+ spinoff for a fraction of the cost. If anything, this project is damaging the IP just as the live action Lilo and Stick did for that IP (makes you wonder if Disney somehow got some sweetheart deal to film 2 movies within a year of each other on the Islands or has some type of publicity obligation with Hawaii to operate Aulani). All I know is that there is some serious fatigue going on right now in Hollywood (Minions and Supergirl are also seriously underperforming, so it's not isolated to Disney), and studios need to recalibrate expectations and projects to avoid digging holes any deeper than they already are. Simply hitting some arbitrary revenue milestone won't change the overall financial picture.

@ Russell - Lest we forget that the IP didn't exactly need a refresh in the public consciousness, less than two years ago there was an actual sequel. This shot for shot remake is doing actual damage to the IP. If you go on social media, there are tons of influencers and others dissecting different scenes from the cartoon to the live action. The live action looks "cheap" even though it was an expensive production. The songs sound flat and the colors even more flat. How you can make a movie about a tropical paradise, and use muted colors is beyond me. Don't get me started on the awful wig...yikes. Maybe they could have taken a couple hundred bucks and got a better wig from a second hand store. Someone did a shot by shot comparison of the "you're welcome" scene/song. The live action was embarrassing.

@ Fattyattkin - I had to double check that budget for Fast 10...DANG! Right!?!?!

Russell: "Sure, but maybe you can tell that to Wall Street, which demands instant satisfaction and ROI."

Me: Okay. What's their cell number? Actually, when it comes to movie studios and theme parks Wall Street is likely more concerned with who will be the new parent company of NBC/Universal. My money is currently on Arch "Beaver" Aplin III and Don Wasek -- the owners of Buc-ee's.

(Chuckle)

And while everyone is commenting on the mistake Disney coughed-up by pursuing a live action 'Moana', let's remind ourselves the decision to greenlight the flick was made by the previous (Iger) administration. I suspect Wall Street is all-too-aware of that.

DIS is up on the NYSE today.

If there is any justice in the world, then we will let the upcoming Tangled remake flop too.

And for the record, Universal does not get a pass from me for the new How To Train Your Dragon 2 either. I am rooting against that one as well.

If Wall Street wants to take notes, then they should look at the massive successes of Obsession and Backrooms. Those films made a ton and a half of cash at the box office on shoestring budgets. Hopefully Hollywood gets the message (I doubt it) that if you come up with an engaging story and craft a good movie, audiences will respond accordingly. That includes Toy Story 5, which is currently legging its way to $1 billion worldwide thanks to positive word-of-mouth in a crowded summer market.

@JT: Okay, now you're completely off the rails. 'Moana' LA is a family movie. While I will admit (and have admitted) it's a "cash grab, I find it ridiculous to assert that any amount of love it gets from the investment community (Wall Street) somehow impedes the development of other projects.

Earlier, you actually quoted a review from a guy named Jonathan Sims. This Mensa candidate actually attacked the recycled 'Moana' LA (a shot-for-shot remake) by comparing it to remakes of 'Scarface', 'The Fly' and 'The Thing'.

That's just ridiculous.

And now you are asserting that somehow big dumb popcorn flicks -- like the Disney live action movies -- are preventing the production of films like 'Obsession' and 'Backrooms'? I mean, back when Hannah Montana was selling CDs by the truckload they were still paying Lou Reed to show up in a recording studio.

Let's get a grip, people.

The Wrap (07/14/26): "The one positive sign that Disney is holding onto is that those who did see "Moana" are giving it a positive reception with an A- on CinemaScore and a 90% Rotten Tomatoes audience score".

That's almost as high as the audience score related to the remake of "Scarface"!

(Chuckle)