Disney has yet another movie crossing the $1 billion mark at theglobal box office. The live-action adaptation ofBeauty and the Beasthas been raking it in ever since its release less than a month ago. And now, it’s already crossed a very significant milestone.Beauty and the Beastis by far thehighest-grossing movie of 2017, and the first of the year to cross the $1 billion mark. All this, despite the controversy over Disney’sfirst gay charactersurrounding the movie before its release.
According to Variety, directorBill Conden’sBeauty and the Beastwill cross the $1 billion mark today, meaning that this latest live-action adaptation is the latest in a string of similar successes for the studio. Last year their new take onThe Jungle Bookcame in just shy of $1 billion at the box office, bringing in a grand total of $966 million worldwide and becoming one of the highest-grossing movies of 2016. Disney also had success with their live-action version ofCinderellaandTim Burton’sAlice in Wonderland, which also managed to bring in more than $1 billion back in 2010. Though, that feat was much less common even just seven years ago.
Domestically,Beauty and the Beasthas brought in $435 million so far, easily making it the top U.S. performer of 2017. Most of the movies that seem to have a shot at beating it, such asGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2andStar Wars: The Last Jedi, are also Disney releases.Loganis the second-highest grossing movie domestically this year, but it isn’t even close to whatBeauty and the Beasthas managed.Loganhas brought in $218 million domestically and is nearing $600 million worldwide, which is still very impressive. But the mass appeal of something likeBeauty and the Beasthas really helped itskyrocket to tremendous levels of financial success.
Disney is regularly releasing movies that are capable of grossing $1 billion at the box office these days, as they seem to have mastered the art of mass appeal in the modern age. Last year,Captain America: Civil War,Zootopia,Finding DoryandRogue One: A Star Wars Storyall managed to cross that milestone and they were all very different movies. The Mouse House definitely has something figured out and thisnew Beauty and the Beast movieis further evidence of that.
Even with a pretty steep budget of $160 million,Beauty and the Beastis going to wind up turning a huge profit for Disney, which is probably why they have a lot of other live-action adaptations in the works. Next year will see a live take onMulan, but they also have new takes onThe Lion King,Dumbo,The Little Mermaidand many more at various stages of development.Beauty and the Beastis slowing down a bit but it will still be able to bring in some more cash before the end of its run. It very well could be the highest-grossing movie of 2017 when all is said and done. If not, it will probably be very close.
