In the final week of July, Warner Bros. unleashed its new animated feature, “DC League of Super-Pets,” onto cinema screens.
DC League of Super-Pets: A New Animated Adventure
“DC League of Super-Pets” is adapted from the original comic book series. It tells the story of Krypto the Super-Dog, Superman’s best friend, who teams up with Ace the Bat-Hound, PB the pot-bellied pig, Merton the turtle, and Chip the squirrel to rescue the Justice League after they are kidnapped. The film boasts an all-star cast, with Dwayne Johnson voicing Krypto, and Kevin Hart, John Krasinski, and Keanu Reeves lending their voices to other characters. Veteran Warner Bros. director Jared Stern helms the project.
In North America, “DC League of Super-Pets” debuted at the top of the box office with over $20 million, becoming the first animated film to reach the summit since “Minions: The Rise of Gru.” However, this figure also marks the lowest opening weekend for a number-one film during the summer season, indicating a potential slowdown in the box office after a bustling three months.
Comic Adaptation Success Continues
According to The-Numbers, “DC League of Super-Pets” earned $2.2 million from its Thursday previews. The film opened in 4,314 theaters across North America, ranking as the 40th widest release in history, even surpassing Pixar’s “Lightyear” (4,255 theaters).
Despite the extensive theatrical distribution, this did not translate into blockbuster numbers. “DC League of Super-Pets” grossed $9.33 million on Friday, followed by a 17% and 23% drop on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The film’s opening weekend totaled $23 million, with a per-theater average of $5,332.
These figures pale in comparison to “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” which opened with over $100 million. Even within Warner Animation’s own catalog, the opening is comparable to 2018’s “Smallfoot” ($23.05 million). “Smallfoot” eventually grossed $83.24 million in North America, a target that “DC League of Super-Pets” may aim to reach. In its second week, “DC League of Super-Pets” fell 52% to second place. As of August 14, it has grossed $58.18 million, with an overall performance in line with expectations.
Critically, “DC League of Super-Pets” has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 71%, while its audience score stands at 88%. The film received an A- CinemaScore, which could help sustain its performance in the coming weeks.
Jordan Peele’s “Nope” has surpassed $100 million at the box office, becoming the highest-grossing horror film of the year, surpassing “The Black Phone.” Additionally, the critically acclaimed “Everything Everywhere All at Once” returned to 1,490 theaters with an eight-minute extended cut after a four-month run, experiencing a 612% increase in weekend box office revenue in late July and continuing its journey toward a $70 million cumulative gross.
Everything Everywhere All at Once
According to comScore, “DC League of Super-Pets” grossed $18.4 million internationally in its opening weekend, representing 76% of the international market. This brings the film’s global opening to $41.4 million. Given its $89 million production budget, “DC League of Super-Pets” still has a considerable distance to go before breaking even.
The sluggish opening of “DC League of Super-Pets” contributed to a 23% decline in the North American weekend box office, falling to $97.71 million. This ends a streak of nine consecutive weeks with over $100 million in revenue. The downward trend continued in the first two weeks of August, suggesting that the summer movie season is nearing its end. However, the North American box office for July closed at $1.133 billion, a 94.5% increase compared to last year, marking the first time it has surpassed $1 billion since December 2019. It remains to be seen whether the new releases in August, led by “Bullet Train,” can maintain this momentum after 16 consecutive months of year-over-year growth.
Warner’s Animation Business
As a return to form for Warner Animation, “DC League of Super-Pets” brings a fresh perspective to the market.
The North American animation landscape has long been dominated by the “Big Three”: Pixar, Illumination Entertainment, and Walt Disney Animation Studios. Most high-grossing animated films come from these three studios. DreamWorks and Blue Sky Studios, once successful underdogs, have faced challenges. DreamWorks has changed distributors multiple times before being acquired by Universal, while Blue Sky Studios was shut down after its parent company, 20th Century Fox, was acquired by Disney, becoming an unfortunate example of a smaller animation studio’s demise.
In fact, since 2008, only once has the annual animated film crown been taken by a studio outside the “Big Three,” and that was by Warner Animation’s “The Lego Movie.” In February 2014, “The Lego Movie” surprised audiences with a $69.05 million opening, eventually grossing nearly $257.8 million in North America, surpassing Disney’s “Big Hero 6” and becoming the highest-grossing animated film of the year.
The Lego Movie
However, this success did not last long. In February 2017, “The Lego Batman Movie” dropped to nearly $175.9 million, and in September of the same year, “The Lego Ninjago Movie” grossed only $59.28 million, indicating a decline in the series. Notably, Jared Stern, the director of “DC League of Super-Pets,” and John Whittington, the co-writer, previously wrote the screenplay for “The Lego Batman Movie.”
In addition to the Lego-themed films, Warner Animation has also released other mid-sized projects, including “Storks” and the aforementioned “Smallfoot,” both of which ultimately grossed around $70 to $80 million.
Smallfoot
“Batman: The Killing Joke,” another DC Comics adaptation, had a two-day special screening in 2016, grossing nearly $3.78 million in 1,325 theaters. It remains the only “DC Animated Movie Universe” film to be released on North American screens. Furthermore, “Teen Titans Go! To the Movies” earned $29.79 million in North America in 2018, and its global gross of $51.62 million was more than five times its production budget, making it a prime example of Warner’s low-budget DC animation efforts.
In comparison, Paramount’s “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank,” released in mid-July, grossed only $6.32 million in its opening weekend and has yet to surpass $20 million, placing it at a disadvantage in the battle of major studio animation departments. However, “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” is scheduled for release next year and may help Paramount Animation regain ground. Sony Animation, which also owns comic book adaptation rights, has chosen to avoid the competition for now and will release “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2” next year.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Backed by group resources and owning quality brands such as Lego and DC, Warner Animation has secured a place in the competitive market, providing diverse viewing options for animation fans as “Minions: The Rise of Gru” continues to dominate the box office.