AceShowbiz - Hoppers is making a splash at the box office with a commanding debut. Pixar's latest original film is a sci-fi adventure focused on a wildlife researcher who transfers her consciousness into a robot beaver, sparking an unexpected animal uprising. The movie features a star-studded voice cast including Meryl Streep, Dave Franco, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, and several Saturday Night Live veterans such as Bobby Moynihan, Vanessa Bayer, Melissa Villaseñor, and Ego Nwodim.

According to Deadline, as of Saturday morning, Hoppers is projected to open at No. 1 in the U.S. domestic box office with an impressive three-day total of $40 million. This figure significantly outpaces the other new release this weekend, The Bride!—a Maggie Gyllenhaal-directed take on the Bride of Frankenstein—estimated to earn between $8 million and $10 million domestically in its opening weekend.

This strong opening makes Hoppers the biggest domestic debut for a Pixar original film in the 2020s so far. It surpasses the openings of Onward ($39.1 million), Elemental ($29.6 million), and Elio ($20.8 million), as well as the COVID-affected releases Turning Red ($578,047), Soul ($431,840), and Luca (data not available). The only Pixar original movie in this decade to have opened larger domestically was the Toy Story spinoff Lightyear, which debuted with $50.6 million.

Overall, Hoppers is set to become Pixar’s 11th highest-grossing original domestic debut, surpassing the $39.1 million launch of 2015’s The Good Dinosaur. Below is a look at the studio’s top 10 original domestic debuts of all time:

• Inside Out (2015) - $90.4 million debut; $858.3 million worldwide
• The Incredibles (2005) - $70.5 million debut; $631.4 million worldwide
• Finding Nemo (2003) - $70.2 million debut; $871 million worldwide
• Up (2009) - $68.1 million debut; $735.1 million worldwide
• Brave (2012) - $66.3 million debut; $539 million worldwide
• WALL·E (2008) - $63.1 million debut; $521.3 million worldwide
• Monsters, Inc. (2001) - $62.6 million debut; $528.8 million worldwide
• Cars (2006) - $60.1 million debut; $462 million worldwide
• Coco (2017) - $50.8 million debut; $814.6 million worldwide
• Ratatouille (2007) - $47 million debut; $623.7 million worldwide

The strong box office performance for Hoppers is supported by highly positive reviews. The film currently holds a Certified Fresh score of 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, paired with an equally impressive 94% Verified Hot audience score on Popcornmeter. In addition, it earned a near-perfect CinemaScore of A, far exceeding the C+ rating given to The Bride!

Animated features typically experience steady growth over time at the box office. If Hoppers follows a similar multiplier to Pixar’s Elemental, which eventually grossed $496.4 million worldwide, it could potentially reach over $650 million globally by the end of its theatrical run.

This outcome would comfortably exceed the movie’s estimated break-even point of $375 million, necessitated by its substantial reported budget of $150 million. The combination of a strong opening weekend, positive critical reception, and solid audience response positions Hoppers as a significant contender for box office success in 2026.

Hoppers was released on March 6, 2026, with a runtime of 105 minutes. It is directed by Daniel Chong, who co-wrote the screenplay alongside Jesse Andrews. Nicole Paradis Grindle produced the film, which stars Piper Curda as the voice of Mabel Tanaka, also known as Mabel Beaver.