30 Highest-Grossing Disney Animated Movies of All Time
Ever because it was based means again in 1928, Walt Disney Motion Pictures Studios has been an icon of mainstream cinema, with the manufacturing firm’s historical past in animated cinema defining the medium’s longevity and prosperity in Hollywood. As such, it ought to come as no nice shock that many Disney animated motion pictures have change into not solely on the spot classics, however monumental field workplace hits as effectively.
In reality, Walt Disney Animation Studios has produced seven movies which have gone on to gross over $1 billion to date, with the corporate’s popularity for wondrous tales, lovely visible spectacles, and charming household leisure solely enhancing as time goes by. Spanning from imaginative authentic hits to sensible variations, and sequels that allowed followers to enterprise again into the story worlds they love, these 15 motion pictures mark Disney’s best animated successes up to now.
30 ‘Chicken Little’ (2007)
Box Office: $314.4 million
Its comparatively paltry sum of $314.4 million, its largely unflattering important critiques, and its fade-out from public consciousness might paint Chicken Little as one of Disney’s larger misfires of the twenty first century, however it’s field workplace consumption truly halted a damning droop from Walt Disney Feature Animation that had been ongoing since earlier than the flip of the century. Crossing animated journey with alien invasion, sci-fi disaster, Chicken Little is a trendy and well-presented film extra so than an arresting story.
Cluck (Zach Braff) is a younger rooster who has a sure popularity round city when he wrongly proclaims the sky is falling, making a panic. When he stumbles upon a looming terror, he struggles to get the townsfolk to imagine him. It is a far cry from Disney’s greatest work within the wheelhouse of animation, however as a kid-friendly goof-off of cartoon chaos, it has some attraction to kids whereas additionally marking an essential turning level within the studio’s fortunes.
Chicken Little
- Release Date
- November 4, 2005
- Director
- Mark Dindal
- Runtime
- 80 minutes
29 ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ (1996)
Box Office: $325.3 million
There is a sure unevenness to Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, simply as there’s a fascinating visible type and an intriguing foundation on Victor Hugo’s traditional novel of the identical title. Above all else although, there appears to be a rising coalition of Disney followers who yearn to see the studio return to such darkness and depth with their animated exploits; in spite of everything, Quasimodo’s (Tom Hulce) story of woe and marvel stays an emphatic fan favourite.
Within its aforementioned uneasiness, there may be a formidable balancing act, even when an imperfect one. The arresting and upsetting story of isolation and woe is imbued with Disney’s trademark tune and dance, its ever-present eye for charming and honest characters that effortlessly pluck on the heartstrings with good humor and grounded sweetness. While there was some apprehension upon launch regarding whether or not the story’s themes can be acceptable for younger audiences, it didn’t cease the movie from raking in $325.3 million. Bear in thoughts that Disney animation was nonetheless in one thing of a lull throughout the 90s, and that monetary efficiency is rendered way more important than it might first seem.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Release Date
- June 21, 1996
- Director
- Gary Trousdale , Kirk Wise
- Cast
- Jason Alexander , Mary Kay Bergman , Corey Burton , Jim Cummings , Bill Fagerbakke , Tom Hulce
- Runtime
- 91 minutes
28 ‘Dinosaur’ (2000)
Box Office: $349.8 million
From the studio’s earliest days of animated journey, to its success within the superhero style of late, there have been a lot of Disney motion pictures which have coasted to success with visible grandeur and little else. Dinosaur is extra worthy than most to coast by off this asset, given it’s the first movie from Walt Disney Feature Animation to make use of 3D animated. Impressively, it’s not solely a feat of pioneering ambition, however a picturesque mastery of the craft as effectively.
Of course, there may be the query of making the dinosaurs look reasonable, of going to such nice lengths to depict authenticity, solely to then have an iguanodon talking plain English together with his adopted household of lemurs. Granted, audiences have been too transfixed by the visible deal with on show to seek out such pet peeves with the image, and understandably so. Its show genuinely imbues an in any other case monotonous story with a terrific sense of marvel. It helped the movie tick over $349.8 million on the field workplace, which truly noticed the movie fail to interrupt even towards its lofty manufacturing and advertising prices.
Dinosaur
- Release Date
- May 19, 2000
27 ‘Beauty and the Beast’ (1991)
Box Office: $424.9 million
A glistening gem of Nineteen Nineties animated cinema, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is, even at present, a defining hallmark of the animated studio’s impeccable means to mesh fantasy fairy story marvel with a romanticism that enchants kids and adults alike. Based on the famend folks legend and fairy-tale first penned by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, it follows the blossoming romance between a prince cursed to dwell his life as a heinous beast and the adventurous village woman who would possibly simply be the real love he must vanquish his horrific curse.
While its opening weekend efficiency garnered simply $9.6 million, Beauty and the Beast would carry out effectively in a field workplace marathon greater than a dash, ending its run in theaters with $145.9 million in U.S. markets and $331.9 million worldwide to be the third highest-grossing movie of 1991. Its field workplace fortunes have continued to soar over the many years with frequent re-releases, together with a 2012 3D re-release which garnered $17.8 million in its opening weekend, virtually doubling its efficiency upon preliminary launch.
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
- Release Date
- November 21, 1991
- Director
- Gary Trousdale , Kirk Wise
- Cast
- Paige O’Hara , Robby Benson , Angela Lansbury , Jerry Orbach , David Ogden Stiers , Bradley Pierce , Jesse Corti , Richard White
- Runtime
- 84 Minutes
26 ‘Tarzan’ (1999)
Box Office: $448.2 million
One of Disney animation’s hallmark motion pictures of the Nineteen Nineties, Tarzan hurries alongside at a brisk tempo because it realizes Edgar Rice Burroughs’ iconic forest-dwelling character in animated kind for the primary time. Orphaned and raised by mountain gorillas within the African wilderness, Tarzan’s (Tony Goldwyn) life modifications dramatically when explorers arrive within the space and he encounters Jane (Minnie Driver). Falling in love, Tarzan should resolve between following Jane, and embracing human civilization, or staying with those that raised him as they’re threatened by a hunter.
A progressive achievement in animation on the time of launch, Tarzan is ready to mix its action-packed journey story with spellbinding visuals to current, what was on the time, a uniquely fascinating movie expertise. As such, it was an enormous hit with each critics and followers, incomes widespread acclaim whereas amassing a formidable field workplace consumption of $448.2 million and furthering the legend of the well-known character.
- Release Date
- June 18, 1999
- Director
- Kevin Lima , Chris Buck
- Runtime
- 88 Minutes
25 ‘Wreck it Ralph’ (2012)
Box Office: $471.2 million
Incredibly enjoyable, a contact nostalgic, and imbued with the power to discover many various animation types by nature of its story, Wreck-It Ralph represents Disney animated enjoyable at its vibrant and accessible greatest. Wreck-It Ralph (John C. Reilly) is the villain of the arcade recreation “Fix-It Felix”, however rising pissed off in his bad-guy function, he embarks on a voyage to change into a hero. However, within the course of, he by accident releases a harmful enemy that threatens the existence of the whole arcade.
The narrative is imaginative and enjoyable, expertly mixing journey and comedy collectively in a wondrous and superbly crafted world of the arcade. It was a important success and even earned an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Film. It additionally thrived on the field workplace, the place it made $496.5 million.
- Release Date
- January 1, 2012
- Director
- Rich Moore
- Runtime
- 108
24 ‘WALL-E’ (2008)
Box Office: $527.4 million
One of essentially the most divine creative achievements within the historical past of Disney animation, WALL-E pays homage to a number of pivotal eras of cinema whereas nonetheless presenting a spellbinding sci-fi journey from Disney with a robust social message in addition. WALL-E (Ben Burtt) is the final of a wave of waste disposal robots left to scrub up Earth when humanity flee the decimated planet. When the curious robotic falls in love with EVE (Elissa Knight), a vegetation scanning robotic despatched to judge the situation of Earth, he’s whisked away on an intergalactic voyage that modifications the course of humanity.
A spectacular show of visible storytelling, WALL-E takes inspiration from every thing from silent cinema to the musicals of the Fifties and 60s to appreciate a narrative as pointed as it’s heartwarming. Given its enduring reputation and brilliance, it’s maybe a shock that it doesn’t even rank in Disney’s 20 most profitable animated movies. However, it nonetheless grossed $532.5 million, a big monetary triumph in its personal proper.
- Release Date
- June 22, 2008
- Director
- Andrew Stanton
- Runtime
- 103
23 ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’ (2018)
Box Office: $529.3 million
The well-liked sequel to Wreck-It Ralph, Ralph Breaks the Internet sees the eponymous arcade villain embark on a journey into the web alongside his pal and fellow misfit Vanellope von Schweetz (Sarah Silverman) with a purpose to save the existence of her arcade recreation, ‘Sugar Rush.’ Completely out of their depth, the duo should depend on the characters they meet within the World Wide Web to navigate the web and obtain their purpose.
The bigger story allows Ralph Breaks the Internet to not solely revisit the unimaginable visible show of its predecessor however develop upon it whereas delivering a heartwarming story that may attraction to audiences of all ages. This common attract is evinced by the film’s spectacular field workplace haul of $529.3 million, seeing it surpass its predecessor by over $50 million.
- Release Date
- November 21, 2015
- Director
- Rich Moore , Phil Johnston
- Runtime
- 112
22 ‘Brave’ (2012)
Box Office: $539 million
A spellbinding fantasy journey that excels at reinventing the thought of the Disney princess, Brave presents the studio at its wondrous greatest. Princess Merida (Kelly MacDonald) is a brave archer with a rebellious streak for journey that results in bother when her mom is become a bear. Desperate to make amends, Merida units out to reverse the monstrous curse earlier than it’s too late.
Set within the Scottish highlands throughout medieval instances, Brave embraces a unique aesthetic and tone to some of Disney’s traditional movies, evinced by the strong-willed protagonist and the grittier tone of the supporting characters. An enormous hit with the general public, even when the important response was solely lukewarm, Brave grossed $539 million by way of its theatrical launch.
- Release Date
- June 21, 2012
- Runtime
- 1h 33m
21 ‘Cars 2’ (2011)
Box Office: $559.8 million
While 2006’s Cars has change into a beloved traditional of Disney animation, Cars 2 has largely been forgotten as an inexpensive sequel. Sadly, as is commonly the case, the successor proved to be a extra profitable prospect, capitalizing on the recognition and appeal of the primary movie because it traded the straightforward, character-driven sports activities story for a world Grand Prix journey that even features a detour into international espionage.
Despite being a important catastrophe and faring solely marginally higher with most people, the animated journey proved to be a glimmering monetary success for Disney, grossing $559.8 million towards a funds of $200 million. Interestingly, Cars 2 is by far the highest-grossing film within the Cars franchise, not solely trumping its predecessor however outperforming its stronger successor, Cars 3, to the tune of over $150 million.
Cars 2
- Release Date
- June 18, 2011
- Director
- John Lasseter , Brad Lewis
- Runtime
- 106 minutes
20 ‘Monsters, Inc.’ (2001)
Box Office: $579.7 million
One of the studio’s most profitable and enduring cultural sensations, Monsters, Inc. stands as a beloved traditional that has loved a long-lasting attraction to followers whereas interesting to new generations of children as effectively. It famously follows two monsters who work collectively as “scarers” and enterprise into the human world to reap kids’s concern as an influence supply. However, their lives are fully upended when a younger woman travels into their world.
Not solely a monumental industrial success with its $579.7 million field workplace haul, Monsters, Inc. additionally gained over critics and moviegoers en masse. With its ingenious and intelligent premise that places an interesting spin on the monsters within the closet, the movie nonetheless stands as a glistening instance of Pixar animation’s means to current fun-loving and artistic tales that may appeal adults and youngsters alike.
- Release Date
- November 23, 2001
- Director
- Pete Docter , David Silverman , Lee Unkrich
- Runtime
- 92 minutes
19 ‘Tangled’ (2010)
Box Office: $592.4 million
When animated studios take to placing fun-filled spins on traditional fairy tales, the outcomes are sometimes nothing brief of iconic. That was the case when Disney launched Tangled in 2010, with the animated kids’s journey film providing a visually beautiful transforming of the traditional story of ‘Rapunzel’. Rapunzel (Mandy Moore) is an harmless woman locked in a tower whose hopes of escape are delivered to fruition when a infamous although good-hearted thief takes refuge in her tower.
With whiffs of screwball comedy, swashbuckling journey, and traditional fairy story appeal, the Disney movie has change into one of the corporate’s most celebrated hits of all time. In addition to successful widespread important acclaim, the film additionally carried out effectively on the field workplace, raking in $592.4 million (a great factor contemplating Tangled‘s huge funds) whereas garnering a lot of followers who would watch the film repeatedly through the years.
- Release Date
- November 24, 2010
- Director
- Nathan Greno , Byron Howard
- Runtime
- 100
18 ‘Ratatouille’ (2007)
Box Office: $623.7 million
Another of Disney’s most vibrant and energetic animated hits in latest many years, Ratatouille turned an on the spot success upon launch with a field workplace consumption of $623.7 million. It follows a Parisian rat with a refined palette who desires of at some point changing into a chef. While he’s oblivious to the best way humanity views rodents, he varieties an unlikely bond with a struggling, younger kitchen employee in a connoisseur restaurant.
While its fundamental premise is rife with sensible character comedy and enjoyable and interesting plot beats, Ratatouille’s true genius resides in its story of Remy’s (Patton Oswalt) pure love for the craft of cooking and the fervour with which he pursues his dream. Wonderful, wistful, and keen to coast on essentially the most unlikely but endearing of protagonists, Ratatouille continues to endure as one of Disney’s greatest movies this century, one which earned 5 Academy Award nominations, even successful for Best Animated Feature.
- Release Date
- June 28, 2007
- Director
- Brad Bird , Jan Pinkava
- Runtime
- 110
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17 ‘The Incredibles’ (2004)
Box Office: $631.6 million
Ahead of the curb in regard to the twenty first century’s superhero craze, The Incredibles manages to excel as each a playful comedy that riffs on superhero tropes and an earnest and thrilling style movie as effectively. Set in a world the place superheroes have been compelled to dwell as unusual residents, it follows a superhuman household as they’re lured again into motion by the emergence of a supervillain named Syndrome.
Imbued with an abundance of wit, genuinely participating motion sequences, and an enormous array of sensible characters, The Incredibles turned a cultural sensation, even happening to win two Academy Awards from 4 nominations, a formidable determine for an animated movie. Naturally, it performed effectively with audiences as effectively, with its field workplace earnings of $631.4 million making it an unimaginable industrial achievement.
The Incredibles
- Release Date
- October 27, 2004
- Director
- Brad Bird
- Runtime
- 121
16 ‘Big Hero 6’ (2014)
Box Office: $657 million
Excelling as an enthralling and emotionally highly effective marriage of superhero spectacle and Disney’s trademark animated appeal, Big Hero 6 was a putting journey outlined by its thrilling motion moments and its heartfelt story of love and grief. Loosely primarily based on the Marvel Comics character, it follows Hiro (Ryan Potter), a younger robotics engineer grieving the loss of life of his older brother who varieties a bond together with his healthcare supplier robotic, Baymax (Scott Adsit).
Desperate to avenge his brother’s loss of life, Hiro is joined by his pals to kind a brilliant squad of high-tech heroes as he rises towards the masked villain who brought about his brother’s loss of life. While the movie’s monetary success was spectacular in its personal proper, it has additionally endured as one of essentially the most celebrated animated Disney movies of the twenty first century to date, making it all of the extra baffling that Big Hero 6 nonetheless does not have a sequel.
Big Hero 6
- Release Date
- October 24, 2014
- Runtime
- 1h 42m
15 ‘Moana’ (2016)
Box Office: $687 million
Meshing journey pleasure and gratifying musical numbers with Polynesian mythology, Moana excelled as a contemporary and vibrant animated movie from Disney when it was launched in 2016. Set in historic Polynesia, it follows the younger daughter of a tribal chief as she ventures out to sea to reunite a robust relic with the goddess Te Fiti to stave off a curse that’s impacting her folks.
On her journey, Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) is joined by her beloved pet rooster and Maui (Dwayne Johnson), the temperamental trickster Demigod who incurred the goddess’ wrath to start with. Bringing the notion of the normal Disney princess into the trendy age, Moana was an empowering and fun-loving success that dominated the market as one of Disney’s greatest movies launched this century. Its field workplace triumph and lasting attraction have seen Moana earn a live-action remake.
- Release Date
- November 23, 2016
- Director
- Ron Clements , John Musker
- Runtime
- 107 Minutes
14 ‘Up’ (2009)
Box Office: $735 million
As one of Disney’s most critically acclaimed and universally admired motion pictures, one which had an on the spot influence as a gorgeous, heartfelt story, it’s fairly shocking that Up does not rank contained in the studio’s ten highest-grossing animated motion pictures of all time, however it nonetheless proved to be an almighty success. It famously follows a grieving outdated widower who ties balloons to his home to fly to his spouse’s dream vacation spot of Paradise Falls, solely to seek out he has been accompanied by a younger stowaway.
The animated journey turned a direct Disney traditional largely due to Up‘s devastating but tender opening sequence which depicted the historical past of Carl’s (Edward Asner) relationship together with his late spouse. It continues to be broadly regarded to be one of, if not the very best, animated movies of the twenty first century, a notion which is supported by the truth that it gained two Academy Awards from 5 nominations.
Up
- Release Date
- May 29, 2009
- Director
- Pete Docter , Bob Peterson
- Runtime
- 96 minutes
13 ‘Monsters University’ (2013)
Box Office: $743 million
Released in 2001, Monsters, Inc. quick turned an enormous sensation with its fun-filled twist on the notion of monsters in addition to its sensible story and characters. In 2013, followers of the fantasy journey have been in a position to return to the fantastic world of monsters with the prequel, Monsters University, which adopted a younger aspiring “scarer” in Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) as he enrolled in Monster University and befriended Sully (John Goodman).
Not dissimilar from the unique movie, Monsters University‘s largest energy, other than its inventive story world, proved to be its accessibility, with its attraction spanning from little children to adults who might have been conversant in its predecessor after they have been youthful themselves. While it does not surpass the primary movie, it does handle to be a rewarding and amusing animated journey.
- Release Date
- June 19, 2013
- Director
- Dan Scanlon
- Runtime
- 110
12 ‘Coco’ (2017)
Box Office: $814 million
Managing to be one of Disney’s most acclaimed and profitable animated movies whereas additionally being a considerably underrated film as effectively, Coco is among the many strongest movies the studio has launched previously decade. It follows a younger boy who defies his household’s long-running ban on music and pursues his ardour, venturing into the Land of the Dead the place he befriends an enthralling trickster and learns his great-great-grandfather was a famend singer.
The movie was wealthy with every thing that Disney does terribly effectively, from its attractive animation, charming characters, and wondrous story, to its sensible musical show and even the deft contact with which it explores the story’s darker components. The movie turned an enormous monetary success in Mexico significantly and in addition went on to win two Academy Awards.
- Release Date
- October 27, 2017
- Director
- Adrian Molina , Lee Unkrich
- Cast
- Gael García Bernal , Alanna Ubach , Anthony Gonzalez , Selene Luna , Jaime Camil , Edward James Olmos , Renee Victor , Sofía Espinosa , Benjamin Bratt , natalia cordova-buckley , Alfonso Arau
- Runtime
- 105 minutes
11 ‘Inside Out’ (2015)
Box Office: $858 million
One of Disney’s most insightful and artistic animated adventures from any time interval, Inside Out centered on the 5 major feelings of a younger woman as her household embarks on a troublesome transfer to San Francisco (with this problem being the movie’s summary antagonist). As Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) begins to develop indignant and upset concerning the transfer, the feelings in her head, led by Joy (Amy Poehler), battle to navigate her actions.
Interestingly, one of the administrators, Pete Docter, bought the story thought after noticing modifications in his personal daughter’s persona as she grew older. Its fantastic screenwriting and world-building completed by Docter actually stood out. Inside Out brilliantly transforms emotional battle as if it is an journey and provides a bodily purpose as to why we really feel the best way we do.
- Release Date
- June 19, 2015
- Director
- Pete Docter , Ronaldo Del Carmen
- Runtime
- 95 minutes