Animation has been bringing big dollars to the box office this year, holding two of the top five highest box office spots. Though 2018’s Incredibles 2 ($608.5M) still holds the trophy for the highest-grossing animated film of all time, this year’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie collected a speed boost at the box office, taking the runner-up spot on the list. It’s currently the second highest-grossing film of 2023, while Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is third.
Here are the top five animated films of 2023 so far, ranked by domestic gross. Note: this article will be updated as the year goes on.
#1: The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Universal Pictures
Release Date: April 5th
Opening Weekend: $146.3M (4,343 theaters)
Domestic Total: $574.9M
The first billion-dollar global earner of 2023—and only the fourth since 2020—The Super Mario Bros. Movie leveled up at the box office, surpassing Frozen II as the biggest global animated opener of all time. On the domestic front, Mario‘s release weekend helped lead Cinemark and AMC to their single best post-pandemic days since the onset of the pandemic; that same weekend, AMC Theatres had their third-best weekend over the same time frame. After just five days, the film became the top video game adaptation of all time and Illumination’s highest grossing release.
#2: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Sony / Columbia Pictures
Release Date: June 2
Opening Weekend: $120.6M (4,313 theaters)
Domestic Total: $381.3M
Sony’s animated superhero sequel crossed the $100M mark on opening weekend, opening to more than three times the debut of its 2018 predecessor, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse ($35.3M). On opening, the film achieved second-biggest global animated opening of all time in IMAX, with its $20M debut in the format coming in just behind The Super Mario Bros. Movie‘s $21.6M. Holds have been strong for the film, which returned to number one at the domestic box office in its fourth weekend of release. Read Boxoffice PRO’s interview with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse co-director Kemp Powers.
#3: Elemental
Pixar / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release Date: June 16th
Opening Weekend: $29.6M (4,035 theaters)
Domestic Total: $154.4M
The Disney/Pixar original animated film had a rough start, giving Pixar its second-lowest global opening of all time–ranking just barely ahead of the studio’s first feature film, 1995’s Toy Story. Since then, things have been looking up, positioning Elemental as a cautionary tale against snap judgments of a film’s success based solely on opening weekend numbers. Positive word of mouth has led to strong holds for the film; after six weeks in release, the mild -37.7% drop Elemental had leading into its second frame remains the steepest it has experienced thus far.
#4: Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Dreamworks / Universal Pictures
Release Date: December 21, 2022
Opening Weekend: $12.4M (4,099 theaters)
Domestic Total: $129.8M in-year; $185.5M total
Despite an 11-year gap since the first Puss in Boots stand-alone film, itself a spinoff of the Shrek franchise, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish hit it big at the box office, exceeding the domestic total of its 2011 predecessor by more than $36M. As the first IP-driven animated film to hit theaters since DC League of Super-Pets in July of 2022, The Last Wish was a breath of fresh air for families searching an opportunity to return to the cinema.
#5: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Paramount Pictures / Nickelodeon
Release Date: August 2
Opening Weekend: $28.0M (3,858 theaters)
Domestic Total: $118.6M
Paramount’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles revival hit theaters during a particularly crowded time for the domestic slate, with mid-July releases Barbie and Oppenheimer still dominating the top five (and premium format screens), independent film Sound of Freedom bringing in counter-programming dollars, and sophomore release Haunted Mansion aiming for the same family/nostalgia crowd as TMNT. Despite debuting at the number four spot—behind Barbie, fellow new wide release Meg 2: The Trench, and Oppenheimer—Mutant Mayhem’s $28M bow by no means casts the film as a box office disappointment, placing it right in line with pre-release expectations. Like Haunted Mansion, it will be hoping for strong holds as family audiences enjoy a few more weeks of freedom before the beginning of the school season.
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