Are you headed to the local movie theaters to see Frozen this holiday weekend? Did you already check out Thor: The Dark World, or maybe Pixar’s latest, Monsters University. Then you have helped Walt Disney to an historical year, and that’s no exaggeration.
According to a release (posted to Deadline), The Walt Disney Studios on Tuesday, Nov. 26, passed the $4 billion mark on the global box-office charts "for the first time in [studio] history." Disney points to the powerful box-office performances of its Marvel Studio partners, including Iron Man 3 and the second Thor. But the studio also had a surprise hit in the spring with Oz: The Great and Powerful, which banked an impressive $234.9 million domestically and nearly $500 million worldwide.
Disney has been passing several milestones all year long. Back in July, it became the first studio to cross the $1 billion domestic mark for 2013. One month later, it soared past the $2 billion mark internationally "for the fourth year in a row." And then on Nov. 12, Disney official broke its own all-time box office record by passing the $3.791 billion mark – its previous high-water mark.
The funny thing is, Disney isn’t even finished yet. Frozen has the potential to outgross Monsters, which banked $268 million domestically earlier this summer. Frozen is getting across-the-board positive praise, meaning it might soar past the $200 million earned by Disney’s Tangled a few years back. And before the year ends, the studio will unleash the amazing crowdpleaser Saving Mr. Banks, which leans on Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson to tell the rocky road Mary Poppins took to the silver screen. I have been lucky enough to see Mr. Banks. I think it has the potential to earn a gazillion dollars … give or take a few here and there.
No matter how you slice it, this has been a banner year for Disney. The acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel over the years have only boosted the studio’s overall bottom line. And their latest partnership with a little company called LucasFilm should guarantee that these box-office records will only grow and expand in the years to come.
