Toy Story 5 crossed $1 billion in July. Disney announced its third round of layoffs that month, and Deadline reported Pixar was among the divisions hit hardest.
Toy Story 5 passed $1 billion worldwide in late July.
Disney announced several hundred job cuts that same month, its third round of the year. Deadline reported Pixar was among the divisions hit hardest.
How big Toy Story 5 actually got
The numbers are the best Pixar has recorded.
The film opened to $159.7 million domestically on June 19, the biggest debut of 2026 and a franchise record. Globally it opened at $312 million, Pixar’s largest worldwide opening ever.
Its first day, including previews, brought $71 million, finishing just under “Incredibles 2’s” record for an animated film at $71.2 million.
It has grossed roughly $1.136 billion worldwide, making it the third-highest-grossing film of 2026 and the tenth-highest-grossing animated film ever released.
Only six Pixar films have reached $1 billion
Half of them are the same toys.
Toy Story 3 got there in 2010. Toy Story 4 followed in 2019. Toy Story 5 is the third.
That concentration says something about where Pixar’s commercial weight actually sits.
Woody has been working since 1995, which makes him older than a substantial share of the parents buying tickets.
What happened to Hoppers
Hoppers, directed by Daniel Chong, opened at No. 1 in March with $45.3 million, the strongest launch for an original Pixar film since “Coco.”
Its worldwide total is reported as either roughly $389 million or close to $500 million depending on the source, against a $150 million budget.
By either figure, it made money.
FanBolt made the argument directly: the tidy conclusion is that Pixar sequels print money while originals flop, and the numbers refuse to cooperate with the second half. Hoppers succeeded. It simply earned about half what Toy Story 5 did, and the restructuring followed that gap rather than the result.
Pixar’s original films have been uneven
The recent record explains why the studio is under scrutiny even in a good year.
“Elemental” finished at $496.4 million in 2023 after a $29.6 million opening. “Elio” managed $153.8 million in 2025 from a $20.8 million debut.
“Lightyear” opened at $50.5 million in 2022, with the decision to cast Chris Evans over Tim Allen widely cited as a factor.
Some in the business attribute the softness to the pandemic, when “Soul,” “Luca” and “Turning Red” went directly to Disney+, which arguably trained audiences to wait.
Pixar sequels almost always break records
The pattern on the other side is remarkably consistent.
The most recent Pixar sequel that failed to set a franchise box office record was “Cars 3,” nine years ago in 2017.
Every sequel since has topped its predecessors.
Toy Story 5 is the worst-reviewed film in the franchise
The film holds 92 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, Certified Fresh by a comfortable margin.
It is still the lowest score of any theatrical Toy Story entry apart from Lightyear at 74 percent. Toy Story 4 sits at 97, Toy Story 3 at 98, and both Toy Story 2 and the original at 100.
Competing against a perfect score is a difficult standard.
Where this leaves the 2026 box office
Family films carried the year.
Rentrak put 2026’s domestic total at $4.4 billion by midsummer, 14.2 percent ahead of the same point in 2025.
Summer 2026 tracked within $35 million, under 2 percent, of where summer 2019 stood at the equivalent date.
Toy Story 5 reaches Disney+ on September 23.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
FanBolt (July 2026), the layoff timing, the Deadline citation on Pixar being hit hardest, the Hoppers analysis and the six-film billion-dollar count
Deadline, the opening day figures, the previews comparison and the Pixar opening history
Variety, the billion-dollar milestone and the Hoppers assessment
ScreenRant, the Rotten Tomatoes comparison, the budget figure and the Cars 3 record note
Wikipedia, the worldwide total and all-time rankings
IndieWire, the Rentrak year-to-date figures and the summer 2019 comparison
Box Office Mojo, the exact domestic opening figure and release dates