5 Upcoming Animated Movies That Could Beat Zootopia 2’s All-Time Box Office Milestone

January 19, 2026

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Disney has a record-breaking hit on its hands with Zootopia 2. A year after setting the all-time animated movie box office record with Inside Out 2 (and shortly after China’s Ne Zha 2 obliterated the tally), the sequel to 2016’s $1 billion hit has done even better. Currently, Zootopia 2‘s box office totals $1.7 billion worldwide.

That’s good enough to move Zootopia 2 into the top 10 all-time box office chart, with it now sitting in ninth. It’s claimed additional records as Disney’s biggest animated movie and the highest-grossing animated film made by an American studio.

Considering both records were only a year old, the strength of animated films at the box office suggests Zootopia 2 could be dethroned before too long. Several upcoming animated movies could potentially surpass the final gross of the sequel.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

There’s a chance Zootopia 2‘s record only holds for a few months, as The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is positioned as a huge threat. Universal and Illumination’s sequel brings back Nintendo’s biggest character and adds in other fan-favorites with the hope that it will outperform The Super Mario Bros. Movie‘s $1.36 billion haul from 2023.

The studios are certainly expecting a greater financial return, as is common for sequels. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie needs a 25% increase from its predecessor’s performance to beat Zootopia 2‘s current total. That’s a decent jump, but one that is not impossible for Mario and friends (and enemies).

Toy Story 5

Disney remains on top of the Hollywood animated movie charts with Zootopia 2 beating Inside Out 2, so if anyone is going to beat the new record holder, they’ll want it to be themselves. That could come to fruition with Toy Story 5‘s release this summer. This is a $3.2 billion franchise. And while this includes two $1 billion performers, the fifth entry will need to catch on like never before to challenge Zootopia 2.

The highest-grossing Toy Story movie is Toy Story 4 ($1.073 billion). That puts it over $600 million behind where Zootopia 2 currently stands. Toy Story 5 will need to make around 60% more than any movie in the franchise has made before if it wants to become Disney’s biggest animated movie. That might seem impossible at first glance, but Toy Story 5‘s box office tracking gives it juggernaut potential.

Frozen 3

Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, and Sven in Frozen 2

While I wouldn’t fully rule out Toy Story 5‘s chances, Disney’s best bet of beating itself lies with Frozen 3. The first two films are modern phenomena that each previously held the record for the highest-grossing animated movie of all time. Frozen 2 finishing with $1.4 billion in 2019 gives the threequel a great shot of setting the record when it comes out in 2027.

Frozen 3 only needs a 17% increase from Frozen 2‘s total to beat Zootopia 2‘s current total. That’s just a few percentage points (which translates to a few hundred million dollars) more than the jump that occurred between the first two Frozen films. Even as Zootopia 2‘s total keeps increasing, there should be no shortage of interest when Anna and Elsa come back to theaters.

Minions 3

If it doesn’t happen with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Illumination is hoping it can claim the record later this year when Minions 3 comes out. The Minions and Despicable Me movies have been cash cows for the studio, with the original spinoff following the yellow sidekicks earning a franchise record $1.1 billion in 2015.

This does present a challenge for Minions 3 if it wants to beat Zootopia 2. It’ll need a nearly 50% increase on the franchise’s 11-year-old box office record. That could be difficult to do with a film that is so geared towards kids, but if it can find its own viral moments and get the full support of Gen Z and Gen Alpha, then maybe the Minions can do it.

Shrek 5

DreamWorks could have a chance to beat Zootopia 2‘s record in 2027 when Shrek 5 is released. That suggestion seems far-fetched at first, considering no film in the franchise has ever even crossed the $1 billion milestone. But nostalgia is a powerful tool, especially when talking about movies that can pop big at the box office, and it’s been 16 years since Shrek, Fiona, and Donkey have been together.

The anticipation of seeing these beloved characters back on the big screen is already high, and that should keep growing over the next year. Shrek 5 will have to basically double the franchise’s record (Shrek 2‘s $932 million) to beat Zootopia 2, which is not going to be easy. I expect DreamWorks to make this one feel special and appeal to millennials and Gen Alpha to create a massive hit.