Pixar’s newest animated film Elio is doing poorly at the box office. Even though people love to complain online about how Hollywood makes too many sequels and remakes and not enough original films, they’re still flocking to see the How to Train Your Dragon remake instead of the original story Elio. Now, Pixar is fighting back against the public’s hypocrisy.
Pixar Says to “Stop Complaining”
Pixar’s official TikTok account posted a short video where a woman in a car says to someone offscreen, “Stop complaining that Disney doesn’t make original stories if you don’t show up to movie theaters and support them in the first place!” She then realizes that she’s being watched and holds up a poster for Elio, telling the viewer that there’s a new original story and that people should see it in theaters. The message is very clear: Pixar is tired of people complaining about sequels and remakes even though they won’t see anything else.
What is Responsible for Elio‘s Box-Office Failure?
Elio had the worst-performing opening weekend in Pixar history. As of the writing of this article, it has only made $78 million at the box office. In contrast, Pixar’s Inside Out 2 grossed well over $1 billion last year. While the trailer for Elio looked fun, it also didn’t scream that you would miss anything by waiting for it to come to Disney+. In addition, Disney focused most of their marketing attention on the Lilo and Stitch remake, which has been a box office phenomenon.
However, that doesn’t mean the public doesn’t share the blame for Elio’s failure. With rising prices at movie theaters, audiences have been more selective about what they see in theaters since the COVID-19 pandemic. Most people will choose something familiar over something untested, no matter how much they complain about the lack of originality online after they get home from seeing yet another Marvel movie.
What is Pixar’s Biggest Hit?
As of the writing of this article, Pixar’s top five highest-grossing movies – Inside Out 2, Incredibles 2, Toy Story 4, Toy Story 3, and Finding Dory – are all sequels. This sends a pretty clear message that audiences will throw their money at familiar franchises. Perhaps everyone can learn a lesson from Elio’s box office disappointment. Disney can learn to market their original movies better, and audiences can learn to support original movies when they happen.
