Lightyear appeared to have all the ingredients to soar high at the box office ahead of its release earlier this month.
The Toy Story spin-off not only traded on the nostalgia that's proven so potent recently (see Top Gun: Maverick) but also marked the first Pixar movie to be released exclusively in cinemas since Onward in March 2020 and had a Marvel star (Chris Evans) in the lead role.
Unfortunately for Lightyear, the signs weren't good from the moment it failed to dislodge Jurassic World: Dominion at the top of the US box office, making it one of the few Pixar movies not to land a chart-topping domestic bow.
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So what exactly went wrong with Lightyear and why did it fail to take off at the box office? Let's investigate.
After its second weekend of release, Lightyear stands at $152.7 million worldwide with $89.3 million coming from the US and $64.1 million internationally.
That's after it set an unwanted record of Pixar's worst week-on-week drop of 64.1% at the US box office, discounting Onward (which opened just before the pandemic shut cinemas down). Minions: The Rise of Gru arrives this Friday (July 1) to provide more family competition, so a long run appears unlikely.
Lightyear hasn't been released in a number of overseas markets, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia, after the movie was banned. It's reportedly because of the same-sex kiss that the filmmakers refused to cut, but that hasn't been confirmed.
There's also doubt over its release in China (again, reportedly, due to Disney's refusal to make cuts), so the only major market left to open is Japan on July 1. It means we can't really expect a major uplift for Lightyear's overseas figures, assuming it continues to perform as it has done.
To put it into context, it's looking unlikely that Lightyear will even match Toy Story's $365.3 million box office haul from 1995. For a movie that reportedly cost $200 million (not including marketing costs), Lightyear is set to be a rare flop for Pixar.
There is always the chance that Lightyear could enjoy a second wind over the summer holidays, resulting in a longer box-office run than many expect right now. Even if it doesn't, its Disney+ release could boost the movie – but is that, in fact, part of the problem?
With Soul, Luca and Turning Red all skipping cinemas to be released directly on the streaming service, it's possible that many thought Lightyear would be released there instead. Even if it wasn't, as was the case, we all knew that it would eventually arrive on there for all subscribers, free of charge.
If you've got a Disney+ account, you'll have noted how major Disney releases arrive on the streaming service shortly after their cinema release. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is now available to watch after its release in early May, so why wouldn't Lightyear be?
Disney has yet to confirm Lightyear's Disney+ release, but we've been conditioned to expect it 45 days after its cinema release. Unless something unexpected happens, the movie will likely be on Disney+ by the end of July or maybe earlier if Disney goes with a 30-day theatrical window like Encanto.
Of course, this imminent Disney+ release didn't hurt the Doctor Strange sequel which currently stands at an impressive $950 million worldwide. The problem with Lightyear appears to be that it just didn't have the same appeal that you had to see it at the cinema.
It might not have been as well-received by critics as the Toy Story movies, but Lightyear's 75% Rotten Tomatoes rating isn't terrible and with an 85% audience score, it seems that the people who did see it liked it.
The problem wasn't necessarily the quality of the movie – it was what the movie was. Arguably up until its release, there was confusion about just what Lightyear was. Was it the story of a real-life astronaut who inspired Buzz Lightyear, the toy? Was it connected to Toy Story at all or was it totally separate?
As it turned out, the opening lines of the movie cleared up any confusion you may have had, but the damage was done. Without the draw of seeing our Buzz again, it's likely that Toy Story fans who may have been swayed by nostalgia actually stayed away.
Even if you did understand the concept of the movie, you might have questioned whether it was necessary. It's not like it could offer answers to long-running Toy Story mysteries as it was just a movie within the Toy Story world.
As prequels go, it could have felt less necessary to some fans than Solo: A Star Wars Story, and that's saying something. (Sorry Solo.)
It likely didn't help matters that Lightyear came out in a market that, for the first time in a while, had genuine competition. Top Gun: Maverick and Jurassic World: Dominion were both pulling in the crowds and, for the reasons already discussed, Lightyear just couldn't stand out despite being the only movie aimed at families.
Perhaps if Minions: The Rise of Gru suffers a similar fate when it arrives this weekend, it could be that the market hasn't quite recovered for family movies. Maybe families are likelier to wait for the inevitable streaming release, especially when it's clear there will be one imminently.
Sing 2 did well over Christmas with $407 million, but that was still a notable dip on the first movie's $634 million haul. It does suggest though that the audience is there if the movie proves enough of a draw.
Lightyear just didn't seem to be able to do that, as much as the Toy Story spin-off wanted to go to infinity and beyond.
Lightyear is out now in cinemas, while the entire Toy Story series is available to watch on Disney+.
![Lightyear [DVD]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1659454040-51fkFy9on0L._SL500_.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "Lightyear [DVD]")
![The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1556619274-1542275770-toy-story-4.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]")
Disney The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]
Couture Kingdom x Toy Story white gold-plated Woody boot necklace
Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
