In early December, Disney became the first studio in history to cross the $10B mark globally. Now that 2019 has drawn two a close, the numbers have jumped even higher. For the calendar year, The Walt Disney Studios has posted a combined global gross of $13,151.7M across both Disney and Fox releases. That reps $4,328.3M domestic and $8,823.4M at the international box office.
While these are incredible numbers, most industry folks agree this was a banner year whose likes may not be soon seen again. Think Avengers: Endgame making history witth a billion-dollar+ opening weekend and an eventual haul that saw it overtake Avatar to become the biggest movie of all time. Then the releases of such marquee franchise titles as Toy Story 4 and Frozen 2, combined with The Lion King and surprise summer hit Aladdin. Goosing it all up a bit, Fox contributed Ford V Ferrari, among others.
For 2019, given that Disney’s acquisition of Fox occurred partway through the year, the studio maintained separate tallies for Disney and Fox grosses. In 2020, grosses will be combined.
Here’s a rundown of the 2019 highlights:
– Globally, Disney (sans Fox) surpassed the $11B mark for the first time in industry history, besting the previous industry record of $7,605.3M (set by Disney in 2016) by more than $3.5B. Final global grosses for 2019 were $11,119.1M. This is the third time Disney has passed the $7B mark (2016, 2018, 2019).
– International grosses of $7,354.3M represent an industry record, surpassing the $4,604.4M set by Disney in 2016. This is the fourth time Disney has surpassed the $4B mark (every year since 2016).
– Domestic grosses of $3,764.8M represent an industry record, surpassing the $3,092.3M set by Disney in 2018. It’s the third time Disney has surpassed the $3B mark (2016, 2018, 2019).
– In 2019, Disney has released a record six films (from four different studios) surpassing the billion-dollar mark globally: Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, Aladdin, Toy Story 4, The Lion King, Frozen 2. Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker is on its way to the club.
– Included therein are two of the Top 10 global releases of all time (Avengers: Endgame and The Lion King); and seven of the Top Nine films of the year to date globally. Marvel Studios produced three of the Top 5 films of the year globally (Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home (Sony), Captain Marvel).
– Disney posted an industry record for yearly box office in EMEA with over $2.75B. The Lion King was the No. 1 release of the year in the region with $562M, followed by Endgame with $535.5M. Despite currency issues, Disney also set the industry record for yearly box office in Latin America with over $1.09B. Endgame was the top title of all time across the region, while Toy Story 4 became the highest grossing animated film ever there. In Asia-Pacific, Disney grosses surpassed $3.098B and Endgame became the highest grossing release eve across the region.
Here’s a deeper breakdown of Disney highlights:
Avengers: Endgame (Marvel Studios) – $2.798B global, $858.4M domestic, $1.94B international; A+ CinemaScore, 94% Rotten Tomatoes; highest grossing film of all time globally and the second highest grossing film of all time domestically (behind only Star Wars: The Force Awakens) and internationally (behind Avatar); Set all-time domestic, China, international, and global debut records ($357M domestic, $330.5M China, $866.5M international, $1.22B global); fastest film to $1B (5 days) and $2B (11 days); 10 weeks in domestic top 10; 8th Marvel Studios release to surpass $1B, 2nd to surpass $2B
The Lion King (Disney) – $1.657B global, $543.6M domestic, $1.11B international; A CinemaScore; No. 7 highest grossing film of all time globally; No. 11 all time domestically; No. 2 highest grossing film of the year globally and domestically; highest grossing Disney Live Action release of all time (domestic, international, global); 11 weeks in domestic top 10.
Frozen 2 (Walt Disney Animation Studios) – $1.26B global, $435.2M domestic, $825.3M international (still in release); A- CinemaScore; No. 2 animated film of all time globally; No. 3 highest grossing movie of the year globally and domestically; top global animated opening of all time ($358.4M).
Captain Marvel (Marvel Studios) – $1.13B global, $426.8M domestic, $702.9M international; A CinemaScore; No. 5 highest grossing film of the year globally and domestically; nine weeks in domestic Top 10; 7th Marvel Studios release to surpass $1B worldwide.
Toy Story 4/ (Pixar) – $1.074B global, $434M domestic, $640.1M international; A CinemaScore, 97% Rotten Tomatoes; No. 4 highest grossing movie of the year domestically, No. 6 of the year globally.
Aladdin (Disney) – $1.05B global, $355.6M domestic, $695.4M international; A CinemaScore; No. 8 highest grossing movie of the year domestically and globally; 11 weeks in domestic Top 10.
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker (Lucasfilm) – $815.7M global, $407.8M domestic, $407.9M international (still in release, represents just 15 days of grosses); No. 12 all-time debut, No. 3 biggest opening of 2019 and of December all-time ($177.4M); No. 9 movie of the year globally/No. 6 domestically
Other 2019 releases also include Maleficent: MistressOf Evil (Disney) with $490.7M global, $113.4M domestic/$377.3M international (still in release), and Dumbo (Disney) with $353.2M global, $114.8M domestic/$238.4M international. The year also saw $175.5M in grosses from 2018’s Ralph Breaks The Internet; $164.8M from 2018’s Mary Poppins Returns; and $136.5M from the international release of Glass.
Fox films from Big Fox and Searchlight saw combined global grosses of $2,032.6M, including $563.5M domestic and $1,469.1M internationally.
Twentieth Century Fox’s top global releases of 2019 are Alita: Battle Angel with $404.9M, Dark Phoenix with $253.1M, Ford V Ferrari with $202.6M, Terminator: Dark Fate with $148.5M (international only), and Ad Astra with $127.6M. Most of those did not deliver on their promise, though Ford V Ferrari is firmly in the awards-season conversation. In addition, Spies In Disguise has just begun its rollout with $59.1M globally to date. The year also included grosses of $197.2M earned during 2019 by last year’s $900M global smash hit Bohemian Rhapsody.
Commenting on the year, Walt Disney Studios Co-Chairman and Chief Creative Officer Alan Horn and Co-Chairman Alan Bergman said, “We are very proud of our studios team and the extraordinary slate of films they delivered to fans all around the world in 2019. This was a year like no other! We both know that these achievements would not have been possible without both the imaginative and compelling storytelling from the talented filmmakers and production teams across all of our film labels, and the exceptional work of our marketing, distribution, and operations teams and everyone at The Walt Disney Studios.”