‘Finding Dory’ on track to smash box-office record for animated films

By Stephanie Topacio Long Updated June 18, 2016

box office the girl on train finding dory pixar — Pixar Animation Studios

Disney and Pixar have again created what looks like box office gold. Finding Dory, the much belated sequel to 2003’s Finding Nemo is on its way to an impressive record: The film is expected to garner over $130 million at the domestic box office this weekend, which would make it the biggest debut to date of an animated flick, according to Deadline.

There are good indicators that Finding Dory will crush earlier records. Estimates put its first-day earnings at between $50 million to $52 million, which would top the $46 million brought in by current opening-day record-holder Minions (set July 10, 2015). The Nemo sequel’s Thursday previews were also unprecedented; Finding Dory grossed $9.2 million, yanking away yet another honor from Minions, which grossed $6.2 million, according to THR.

Assuming Finding Dory performs as projected, the film’s ticket sales would be enough to dethrone current animated top dog, DreamWorks Animation’s Shrek the Third, which opened to $121.63 million in 2007. Dory would also boast the best opening ever for any Disney-Pixar flick; Toy Story 3, which was released in 2010, is the reigning champ with its $110.3 million debut.

Finding Nemo, of course, deserves immense credit for building the foundation for Dory‘s popularity now. The film was received with enthusiasm in 2003, opening to $70.25 million and ultimately grossing $380.84 domestically, according to Box Office Mojo data. Its critical response was also notable. Not only did Nemo win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, it was nominated in three other Oscar categories as well.

Finding Dory brings back the characters made popular by its predecessor: Dory, a forgetful Pacific royal blue tang (voiced by Ellen DeGeneres); Marlin, a clownfish and concerned father (Albert Brooks); and Nemo, Marlin’s son (now voiced by Hayden Rolence, who replaces Alexander Gould). The trio’s adventure this time around is finding Dory’s family. The voice cast also includes Diane Keaton, Ed O’Neill, Eugene Levy, Kaitlin Olsen, and Ty Burrell.

Topics

Stephanie Topacio Long

Contributor

Stephanie Topacio Long is a writer and editor whose writing interests range from business to books. She also contributes to…

Entertainment

The best animated movies on Netflix right now

A cat points a bat at another cat in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.

While Nimona has been the big Netflix original animated film of the summer, it's far from the only addition to the lineup. Netflix is making sure that animation fans are well served in August with the first two Despicable Me movies, Bee Movie, and Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2. However, Netflix's biggest recent addition is one of 2022's biggest animated hits: DreamWorks' Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.

Netflix's deals with Sony Pictures Animation, DreamWorks Animation, and Universal Pictures have given it a powerhouse library of animated films. And that's before we even get into Netflix's impressive originals like The Sea Beast. To help you keep track of what's new and what you can stream right now, we've updated our list of the best animated movies on Netflix.

Entertainment

From Barbarella to Howard the Duck: the 7 cheesiest sci-fi movies ever

Howard the Duck in "Howard the Duck."

The science-fiction genre has a vast smorgasbord of cheesy films stretching way back to the early days of cinema. Such pictures are known for their weird stories, unrealistic dialogue, low-budget productions, and exaggerated acting.

While many of these films have been panned by critics and audiences alike, some of them have garnered success for being "so bad, they're good." Whether or not they have been held up by a dedicated fan base, these seven movies stand out as the cream of the cheesy sci-fi crop.
Flash Gordon (1980)

Entertainment

10 best Batman stories ever, ranked

Batman Year One cover

Bounding from rooftop to rooftop, the Dark Knight never misses his mark. He operates like a well-oiled machine tracking bad guys, beating them to a bloody pulp, and throwing them in the slammer - or Arkham Asylum should they be anyone of Gotham's notable supervillains. As the brainchild of Bob Kane and Bill Finger, an artist and writer duo, Batman has been pounding the pavement of Gotham ever since his debut in Detective Comics in 1939. He's undergone a number of changes since his original conception ultimately becoming the brooding powerhouse we know today.

Most understand the basic tenants of Batman these days. His parents were murdered before his young eyes leading him down this path of personal vindication and pursuit of justice. Batman, in most iterations, never resorts to killing -- the one crime that separates his outlaw vigilante operations from the real criminals. Of course, it wasn't always that way. In Batman's earliest days, he had no qualms about ending the lives of baddies on the streets. Even now, some stories and films like Tim Burton's gothic take on the character depict him looking on with cold and uncaring glares as criminals meet their end. Regardless, Batman is mostly a well-established hero simply seeking justice and there are countless stories of the Caped Crusader. Let's take a look at the best among them.
10. Hush