‘Inside Out 2’ launches to $13 million in previews, the most of any 2024 film

Move out of the way, Sadness: “Inside Out 2” just scored the biggest box office previews of 2024.

Disney and Pixar‘s latest animated outing grossed $13 million in Thursday previews domestically, plus $22.3 million internationally. The family-friendly sequel is projected to launch between $80 million and $90 million this weekend.

A debut on the higher end would give “Inside Out 2” the biggest opening of the year. Warner Bros. currently holds the top two spots of 2024 with “Dune: Part Two” at $82.5 million and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” at $80 million.

For reference, “Inside Out 2’s” $13 million in domestic box office previews outpaced last year’s “The Little Mermaid” ($10.3 million), “Minions: The Rise of Gru” ($10.8 million) and “Toy Story 4” ($12 million). It falls a bit short of recent animated superhero sequels like “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” ($17.4 million) and “Incredibles 2” ($18.5 million).

Outside of the U.S. and Canada, “Inside Out 2” did particularly well in Mexico, where it raked in $5.7 million in previews and scored the third-highest animated opening day in the country’s history. In Argentina, “Inside Out 2” scored the second-highest animated opening day, falling behind only “Toy Story 4.” Plus, the movie still has legs internationally, as it will play in various markets (like France, Italy, Spain, China, Japan and Brazil) after opening weekend.

The original “Inside Out,” which hit theaters in June 2015, opened to $90.5 million domestically after $3.7 million in previews. It went on to gross $356 million in North America and $858.8 million globally as families flocked to the surprisingly poignant coming-of-age film. With a $200 million budget, “Inside Out 2” should near the highs of the original.

The new film will also break the recent rocky streak of Pixar’s film openings. Last year’s “Elemental” had Pixar’s lowest opening with $29.6 million, and before that the “Toy Story” spinoff “Lightyear” had a $50.5 million opening. “Soul,” “Turning Red” and “Luca” all debuted on Disney+ amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and “Onward” had the misfortune of debuting just days before theaters shuttered.

“Inside Out’s” young protagonist Riley and her anthropomorphized emotions return in the sequel, including Amy Poehler as Joy, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, Lewis Black as Anger, Tony Hale as Fear and Liza Lapira as Disgust. Joining the group as Riley goes through puberty are Maya Hawke as Anxiety, Ayo Edebiri as Envy and Paul Walter Hauser as Embarrassment.

Last week’s box office champion, Sony’s “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” is looking to add around $28 million in its second weekend. With more than $125 million worldwide, the four-film franchise nears the $1 billion mark.

Variety