“Elemental” is making waves on Disney+ as it secures the title of the top streaming debut for a movie on the platform this year. The journey of this animated film has been nothing short of intriguing. It started with a lacklustre opening at the box office, becoming the worst-performing Pixar movie to date in terms of openings. However, it defied the odds and gained strong momentum, ultimately amassing a global box office earnings of $484 million.
Disney reports that “Elemental” drew in an impressive 26.4 million views worldwide within its first five days of streaming on Disney+. To put this in perspective, that’s equivalent to the viewing time of that many complete showings of the movie. In comparison, Disney’s live-action adaptation of “The Little Mermaid” garnered 16 million views during its initial five days on the platform. The recent debut of the first episode of the Star Wars series “Ahsoka” brought in 14 million views over the same period.
This is a great great thing for Disney+ as it created and broke the same record within a fortnight with a much bigger number. Also, even the record breaking films at Disney+ are not big enough to hold a record for even a month.
“Elemental,” directed by Peter Sohn, transports viewers to Elemental City, a bustling community inhabited by Fire, Water, Earth, and Air residents. The film features the voices of Leah Lewis as Ember and Mamoudou Athie as Wade. The talented cast also includes Ronnie del Carmen, Shila Ommi, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Catherine O’Hara, Mason Wertheimer, and Joe Pera.
The success of “Elemental” couldn’t have come at a better time for Disney and Pixar. They faced challenges with “Lightyear” last year, leaving some to wonder if sending animated titles directly to Disney+ during the pandemic would impact their box office potential.