After its latest films came to Disney+ instead of theaters, Pixar’s Toy Story spin-off Lightyear is coming to theaters this weekend–and it’s expected to be a smash hit at the box office.
According to Deadline, Lightyear–which tells the origin story of Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Chris Evans–is expected to open with $72 million in the US this weekend. The site points out that spin-offs typically perform worse than the main franchise they are based on, and this is expected to be true for Lightyear.
For comparison, the last mainline Toy Story movie–2019’s Toy Story 4–made $120.9 million during its opening weekend in the US. The Father’s Day weekend in the US and Juneteenth being celebrated on Monday, June 20, could help improve Lightyear box office results, Deadline said.
Internationally, Lightyear is expected to make around $50 million this weekend, pushing the film’s worldwide results to about $135 million. The movie is not releasing in every international market, however, as it’s not coming to Middle East markets and theaters in Malaysia and Indonesia due to LGBTQ content.
Pixar’s last movies before Lightyear–including Turning Red, Luca, and Soul–released directly on Disney+ due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pixar’s Onward, which was released in theaters at the start of the pandemic in March 2020, made $142 million worldwide before being pulled due to the pandemic.
GameSpot’s Lightyear review scored the film a 9/10. Reviewer Chris Hayner said, “Lightyear is a huge win for Pixar after not seeing its movies be in theaters for over two years. It’s funny, heartfelt, beautifully made, and a great example of how to expand on an existing franchise without diluting it.”
Source: Gamespot
