Disney’s “Brave” Takes Home Box Office Win
When Pixar puts out a new film, the people come.
The trend continued this weekend with Disney‘s Pixar studio film “Brave,” about a strong-willed young Scottish princess who shuns traditions and must use her skills and cunning to undo a curse.
Reuters reports the animated film brought in $66.7 million at domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday and another 13.5 million overseas, surpassing expectations.
“Brave” is the 13th consecutive No. 1 box office film for 17-year old Pixar. The 12 preceding films from Pixar brought in more than $7.2 billion, with 2010 hit “Toy Story 3” alone accounting for $1.1 billion.
“Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted,” had been No. 1 until being bumped to No. 2 by “Brave.” “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” fished third.
Entertainment Weekly reports that “Brave” follows in the footsteps of “The Hunger Games” and “Snow White and the Huntsman,” two recent hit films to feature a female protagonist.
“Girls kick butt,” Dave Hollis, Disney’s EVP of distribution, told Entertainment Weekly. “There’s a universal love of this brand,” he says, praising their “consistency [as] classic storytellers.”
The film’s success lies both with viewer trust in the Pixar brand, as well as Disney’s clever marketing. Ads targeting boys focused on the humorous hijinks of the film, where ads targeting girls focused on the central character, Merida, voiced by Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald.
Based on historical performances of Pixar films, “Brave” will likely see small declines over the next few weeks while raking in around $200 million. “Brave” cost about $185 million to make and its debut was the fifth-best ever for a Pixar film.
