The 13-year gap between 2003’s Finding Nemo and its 2016 sequel didn’t seem to be a problem for the Disney’s Pixar juggernaut.
Once again, Disney finds itself atop the weekend box office for the eleventh time this year. Disney’s Finding Dory made huge box office waves this weekend, setting a new opening weekend record by an animated motion picture bringing in $136.2 Million from 4,305 theaters for a $31,634 per theater average. It’s an opening comparable to the 90+% bumps both sequels in the Toy Story franchise saw over their predecessors with Dory‘s opening weekend serving as a 93.8% bump over Finding Nemo‘s $70.2 million opening back in 2003.
The release is another 2016 animated hit for the studio on the heels of Zootopia, as Dory exceeded expectations pulling in over $54 million on Friday, including $9.2 million from Thursday night previews (also a record for an animated feature), Finding Dory handily bested the previous animated weekend record holder, 2007’s Shrek the Third, by around $15 million (unadjusted for inflation).
Dory also scored an “A” CinemaScore and played to an audience that was 45% male vs. 55% female. The age breakdown saw 65% of the audience being made up by families and 32% of the overall audience made up of children 12 and under.
The Nemo brand has ballooned over the years, the film has spawned video games, merchandise, and theme park attractions around the world, making it a time-tested, modern icon among Disney’s filmography.