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‘Toy Story 5’ rakes in Ksh40B in opening weekend, breaking franchise records
22nd June, 2026 03:48 PM
Woody and Buzz are back, and the world still cannot get enough of them.
Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story 5” dominated the global box office over the weekend of June 20 – 22, 2026, pulling in USD312 million (approximately Ksh40.6 billion) worldwide.
That figure breaks down to USD160 million from 4,425 North American theatres and USD152 million from international markets, making it the biggest opening weekend in the franchise’s 31-year history.
Records tumbling across the board
The animated sequel ranks as the largest opening in the “Toy Story” franchise, supplanting the record set by “Toy Story 4” in 2019, which debuted to USD 120 million.
It also scored the second-largest animated opening weekend in history, behind only 2018’s “Incredibles 2” at USD 182.7 million.
“Toy Story 4” had previously opened to USD 238 million worldwide in its first weekend. The new instalment more than doubled that figure on the global stage.
Audiences gave the film an A grade on CinemaScore exit polls, and critics were equally warm – the film holds a 94 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Directed by Pixar veteran Andrew Stanton, whose credits include “Finding Nemo” and “Wall-E”, the fifth instalment follows Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, and the rest of the toys as their owner Bonnie becomes addicted to a smart tablet called Lilypad.
Why family films keep winning
Industry analysts say the result was predictable for anyone watching the broader trend in Hollywood.
“Family moviegoing has been leading the industry since it came roaring back from the pandemic in 2023. A lot of the genre’s success is coming from sequels and live-action remakes,” David A. Gross writes in the latest box office newsletter FranchiseRe, continuing, “Pixar and Disney are particularly good at growing their series from episode to episode. It’s extremely impressive.”
Disney’s 2024 follow-up “Inside Out 2” and 2025’s “Zootopia 2” ended their respective theatrical runs with USD 1.6 billion and USD 1.8 billion worldwide. If “Toy Story 5” follows a similar trajectory, it is on course to surpass “Toy Story 4” as the highest-grossing entry in the franchise.
For the film, Taylor Swift released I Knew It, I Knew You, an original pop-country track inspired by beloved cowgirl character Jessie, which she wrote immediately after an early screening of the movie.
