Zootopia 2 scores the fourth-biggest opening in box office history: Here’s how much the animated sequel earned

Zootopia 2, in the first week of its release, has already reached half of what the first film earned during its theatrical run. As of this writing, the movie has earned $556 million worldwide, making it the fourth-largest global debut in box office history.

The animated film is co-directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, with the former also writing it. Jason Bateman, Ginnifer Goodwin, Shakira, and more return in the voice cast, with new additions including Ke Huy Quan, Andy Samberg, Danny Trejo, and more.

Like the first film, it has secured a score of 90% on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. The critics' consensus reads,

"Cleverly layering a thoughtful message onto another crackerjack caper while solidifying Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde as one of the most endearing buddy pairings in ages, Zootopia 2 more than justifies a return trip to the big city."

The story in Zootopia 2 continues a week after the events of the first film. Nick (Jason Bateman) and Judy (Ginnifer Goodwin) are now partners at ZPD, though they still share their differences and aren't exactly buddies.

However, the events of the film do bring them closer after they investigate a reptile breach in the city. People of Zootopia aren't fond of reptiles, but there's more to the story that connects with the foundations of the place where all these anthropomorphic animals live.

Zootopia 2 did better than its predecessor on its domestic opening

This is a long weekend, due to Thanksgiving, so that the numbers may be confusing to some. But rest assured, Zootopia 2 has performed better than the first film at the box office on opening weekend.

If we consider the normal three-day weekend, Zootopia made $75 million at the domestic box office. In contrast, its sequel opened with $96.8 million. Though that is lower than another Disney film released earlier this year, Lilo & Stitch, which opened with $146 million, considering the normal weekend, and $186.6 million considering the Memorial Day weekend.

Can Zootopia 2 become another billion-dollar hit this year?

Given the reception it is getting from the audiences, the chances of the film reaching the billion-dollar mark are really high. Only two movies have reached this height this year: the Chinese film Ne Zha 2 and Disney's Lilo & Stitch.

Lilo & Stitch is sitting at just above a billion dollars in global box office earnings, while Ne Zha 2 is close to $2 billion. A re-release might be all that the Chinese film needs to reach the couple of billion dollar mark.

Only six other films, including Avatar (2009), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), Titanic (1997), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), and Avengers: Infinity War (2018), have achieved this feat.

For billion-dollar global hits, the list is long, but a few of them include Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), Joker (2019), Jurassic Park (1993), and more. Zootopia 2 is likely to join them by the end of its theatrical run, too.