Disney Created A Unique Box Office Record 4 Years Ago (& It Can Beat Itself Again In 2024)

Disney owns a unique box office record it set in 2019. But a highly anticipated 2024 sequel could help the studio beat its own record.

Disney set a unique box office record in 2019, and now the studio is positioned to beat that record in 2024. Superheroes, sequels, and familiar titles dominated the movies in 2019. However, that lack of originality didn't hurt any studios at the box office, as nine movies surpassed $1 billion in worldwide gross. And no studio cashed in quite like Disney did on the way to setting a new box office record. 2019 was a banner year for Disney and one it will want to replicate after the failures in 2023.

2023 has given Disney its fair share of box office disappointments. Several movies underperformed and failed to capture the attention of general audiences. The studio was left in the dust this summer as Warner Bros. and Universal cashed in with Barbie and Oppenheimer, respectively. But Disney will look to rebound in 2024, and one movie is all but guaranteed to help the studio beat its own box office record.

When Disney officially acquired 20th Century Fox in 2019, it also gained bragging rights over a notable box office record. The studio holds the record for the highest single-day box office gross in every rating category. Toy Story 4 (G), 2019's The Lion King (PG), Avengers: Endgame (PG-13), and Deadpool 2 (R) give Disney the record. The studio earned the R-rated title on a technicality since Fox released 2018's Deadpool 2, a year before Disney purchased it.

Regardless, it's an impressive record and an indication of how dominant Disney can be when firing on all cylinders. Massive IP films can still get audiences to buy tickets — if the storytelling and spectacle are up to the task. The same genre of superhero films, sequels, and live-action remakes that gave Disney its record in 2019 failed to draw in audiences in 2023. But that comes down to quality over superhero fatigue or clamoring for original stories. It's no surprise that Toy Story 4, The Lion King, and Endgame are considered among the best movies in their respective categories.

An argument could be made that Disney essentially bought the box office record, making for a nice add-on to its $71 billion purchase of 20th Century Fox's assets. However, the studio can properly earn the record in 2024 thanks to the release of one film: Deadpool 3. The first installment to be developed, produced, and released by Disney is set to hit theaters on May 3, 2024. While the ongoing strikes could push back Deadpool 3's release date, it would only serve to increase the hype around perhaps Marvel's most anticipated film since Endgame. It will have to earn over $53 million in a single day to beat out Deadpool 2.

The introduction of Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool to the Marvel Cinematic Universe would be enough to drive up Deadpool 3's box office numbers. But the return of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine is what should ultimately push the sequel past in predecessor in both single-day box office gross and total gross. Jackman was at his best in the R-rated Logan, helping it become one of the highest-grossing R-rated films of all time. Reynolds proved he could do the same not once but twice. Finally, pairing the two actors under the guidance of Kevin Feige's MCU should create a box office smash. And when that happens, Disney will properly have its record.