Disney has been on a roll recently, remaking animated classics into live-action films. In fact, 2017’s Beauty and the Beast ranks as the highest-grossing live-action musical of all time.
With two more ’90s classics being released in 2019 (one already in theaters), it begs an interesting question — which of these will reign supreme at the box office, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, or The Lion King?
According to Forbes, Beauty and the Beast made almost $175 million domestically in its opening weekend.
In total, Beauty and the Beast grossed more than $504 million domestically and $1.26 billion worldwide. It was the second-highest grossing movie in 2017, losing only to Star Wars – The Last Jedi.
Disney’s second ’90s remake, Aladdin, debuted earlier this year over Memorial Day weekend. Reports say for the long weekend it grossed just over $112 million domestically — not too shabby for a street rat.
But still… not enough to beat Belle’s opening weekend — and it seems safe to guess it’s not going to catch Beauty and the Beast’s total.
This is a little surprising, though not entirely shocking. Both originals had strong box office figures, with Aladdin ($504 million) beating Beauty and the Beast ($425 million) in worldwide gross.
But Beauty and the Beast boasted a LOT of big stars in the remake, including Emma Watson, Kevin Kline, Sir Ian McKellen, Josh Gad, Ewan McGregor and Emma Thompson. Whereas Aladdin had a relatively unknown cast — with the exception of Will Smith as the Genie. That may have something to do with Beauty and the Beast‘s success at the box office.
Or maybe people just prefer “Be Our Guest” to “A Whole New World”…
The real question comes in when the third ’90s remake is released in just a few weeks: The Lion King.
The Lion King is the highest-grossing traditionally animated movie of all time, and the ninth-highest overall. The 1994 film grossed more than $968 million worldwide.
Like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King has a lot of A-listers in the cast. The star-studded line-up includes Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, John Oliver, James Earl Jones, and BEYONCE. Plus, it’s being directed by Jon Favreau, who was the mastermind behind the remake of The Jungle Book (not to mention a little movie called IRON MAN.)
Will that be enough for Simba, Nala, and Mufasa to steal the crown from Belle, Gaston, and the Beast?
My guess is yes. I mean… Beyonce is in it, for crying out loud! Plus The Lion King is being released in the summer, which is historically one of the highest-grossing seasons for movies. That, plus the large fan base the movie clearly already has, and the incredible cast (with BEYONCE), makes me think it’ll topple over Beauty and the Beast.
But — we’ll have to wait until July to find out.
The Lion King comes out July 19, 2019. Aladdin is in theaters now!
Who do you think will reign box office supreme — Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, or The Lion King? Let us know in the comments!
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Aladdin will reign the box office.