The new movie featuring the lovable yellow characters has hit theaters, and although it managed to take the top spot at the U.S. box office, its opening weekend performance fell short of expectations. *Minions & Monsters*, the third spin-off from the *Despicable Me* universe , managed to remain the most-watched movie over the weekend, but it also set a record that Universal Studios surely would have preferred to avoid.
The film grossed approximately $36.4 million during the traditional opening weekend in North America, marking the lowest opening for a film in the Minions franchise in that market. Despite this, analysts believe the outlook is far from bleak, as the film’s performance in international markets could more than make up for its modest start in the United States.
The Minions’ disastrous box office debut, while Toy Story 5 dominates the charts
While domestic box office performance drew mixed reviews, the reception in the rest of the world was considerably more favorable. Since its international release, the film has grossed nearly $98 million in various territories, a figure that bolsters the studio’s commercial expectations.
Thanks to these results, *Minions & Monsters* has already grossed approximately $159 million at the global box office in just its first few days in theaters, establishing itself as one of the summer’s biggest family-friendly releases.
This international success confirms, once again, the enormous appeal that the Minions continue to hold for audiences in different countries, where the franchise remains one of the most successful in animated cinema.
Although *Minions & Monsters* managed to hold onto the top spot at the U.S. box office, the competition was much closer than expected.
In its fifth week in theaters, *Toy Story 5* once again demonstrated the strength of the legendary Disney and Pixar franchise by grossing nearly $31 million during that same period. The difference between the two films was just a few million dollars, reflecting the strong interest that the new adventure of Woody, Buzz, and company continues to generate.
Since its release, *Toy Story 5* has performed strongly both in the United States and around the world, setting new records for the franchise and establishing itself as one of the biggest box office hits of the year.
The competition between these two family-friendly movies is expected to continue over the next few weeks, especially as summer vacation continues in various countries.
A budget that works in Universal’s favor
Despite its modest debut in North America, the financial outlook for *Minions & Monsters* remains positive.
According to estimates published by various specialized media outlets, the production had a budget of close to $85 million, a relatively modest figure for an animated blockbuster of this caliber.
Given that global box office receipts have already far exceeded that amount, the film is poised to begin generating profits as it continues its run in theaters and revenue from digital formats, licensing, and merchandise is added.
While it is important to remember that studios do not receive all of the ticket sales—since exhibitors retain a significant portion of the revenue—Universal Studios’ strong international performance puts it in a favorable position to recoup its investment.
Although *Minions & Monsters* failed to match the spectacular opening weekends of previous installments in the United States, the response from international audiences shows that the popularity of the characters created by Illumination remains enormous.
For more than a decade , the *Despicable Me* franchise has built a loyal following around the world, becoming one of the most profitable animated franchises in recent film history.
Now, all eyes will be on the coming weeks to see if word of mouth and the holiday season will allow the film to maintain a strong box office pace and continue climbing the global box office charts.