2026 Is Days Away From Its First $1 Billion Movie

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So far, 2026 has been a great year for movie ticket sales, and one film is on track to be the first to earn $1 billion. Overall, movies are performing very well, and the summer season is expected to be especially strong. While several films will likely try to reach $1 billion in sales, this particular movie is predicted to be the first to do so.

Throughout much of the 2010s, movie studios focused on creating blockbuster films aiming to earn over a billion dollars. The box office reached its height in 2019, with nine movies surpassing that milestone, led by Avengers: Endgame, which briefly became the highest-grossing film ever. But achieving this level of success has been significantly harder since the pandemic began.

Only 13 movies have earned over $1 billion worldwide in the last six years. 2025 saw a boost with four films reaching that milestone – the most in a single year since 2019. Despite strong showings from films like Project Hail Mary, China’s Pegasus 3, and Michael, none have crossed the billion-dollar mark yet. However, that’s expected to change soon.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie, from Universal, Illumination, and Nintendo, is about to reach a major milestone: earning $1 billion at the box office. As of today, the animated film has already made $889 million worldwide after being in theaters for a little over a month. It’s expected to surpass $1 billion this month, making it the first film of 2024 to achieve this impressive feat.

Why The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Will Be The First To Hit $1 Billion In 2026

Honestly, I wasn’t surprised at all when The Super Mario Bros. Movie hit $1 billion. It had Nintendo’s incredible brand behind it, and they smartly included a ton of fan-favorite characters like Yoshi, Rosalina, and even Fox McCloud, which just amplified the excitement. After the first movie made a whopping $1.4 billion, everyone was hoping for a similar success, and it definitely delivered!

The way Illumination made the animated sequel also helped The Super Mario Galaxy Movie do well in theaters. Illumination is known for creating popular family films, and because kids need adults to take them to the movies, these films generally attract a larger audience and sell more tickets.

I’ve been so impressed with how well The Super Mario Bros. Movie is doing! It really helped that it was the first big animated release in ages – after Hoppers, there just hadn’t been anything else to compete with. And honestly, with no other major family films coming out until June, it’s given Mario and the gang almost two whole months to be everyone’s go-to choice at the cinema. It’s fantastic to see!

Although critics didn’t like the sequel as much as the first film (42% vs. 59% on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences enjoyed it almost as much (88% vs. 95%). This has led to positive buzz and people wanting to see it again, both of which are important for a movie to reach $1 billion in earnings. The Super Mario Bros. Movie is now the 61st film ever to achieve this milestone.

Other 2026 Movies That Could Earn $1 Billion At The Box Office

We can expect several movies to earn over $1 billion in 2026, and it would be a surprisingly poor year if The Super Mario Bros. Movie was the only one to achieve that milestone. Looking at films already released, both Michael and The Devil Wears Prada 2 have the potential to reach $1 billion thanks to strong initial box office numbers and international appeal. However, Michael currently seems more likely to get there.

If the upcoming Michael Jackson movie doesn’t reach $1 billion in ticket sales, the next film to do so likely won’t be until June. That’s when The Mandalorian and Grogu movie is expected to hit that mark, following its release on May 22nd. Pixar’s Toy Story 5, also debuting in June, is another strong contender and could quickly surpass $1 billion as well.

Throughout the rest of the summer, the live-action remake of Moana is expected to be a major success. Minions & Monsters could become Illumination’s second film this year to earn over $1 billion. Universal is also optimistic that Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey will perform well, potentially surpassing the box office results of Oppenheimer.

Marvel is the most likely studio to release a superhero film that earns over $1 billion at the box office. Both the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday are expected to easily reach that mark. Dune: Part Three could also join the billion-dollar club if it lives up to expectations, creating competition. While The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is predicted to be the first film of 2026 to hit this milestone, it won’t be the only one.

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2026-05-07 23:40