Universal overtakes Disney as most successful production house of 2023 | Hollywood

For the first time in eight years, another movie studio has beaten Disney at the game. In 2023, Universal has overtaken the film giant as the most successful film studio, having raised over $4.907 billion!

According to a report in Variety, the studios have released as many as 24 films, a few of which have become blockbusters. These include Christopher Nolan’s World War II epic Oppenheimer, the horror film M3GAN, and the Super Mario Bros. film. (Read also: Oppenheimer review: Christopher Nolan’s least accessible and most courageous film yet)

Who took what place?

Disney still takes second place with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Little Mermaid and 14 other films, 10 fewer than Universal, which the studios say is the reason behind its second place. Disney’s 2023 total reached $4.827 billion.

Disney also said in a statement that it still has the most titles in the top 10, four of the highest-grossing international releases and three of the highest-grossing domestic releases.

The first three spots were taken by Warner Bros. Barbie ($1.4 billion) and the Super Mario Bros. movie from Universal ($1.3 billion) and Oppenheimer ($950 million). With Marvel’s lackluster slate, and no Star Wars movie, this is the first time since 2015 that a Disney film hasn’t been at the top of the list. Their biggest money grab of the year was Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, worth $845 million.

Here is the drop-down list of the most important entries:

Barbie and Oppenheimer

The biggest movie of the year was Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, which was released on the same day as Nolan’s Oppenheimer. The double feature, as the Barbenheimer dubbed it, was the summer event of the year, with many watching back-to-back film showings on the same day.

Barbie stars Margot Raby as the titular doll and Ryan Gosling as her constant companion Ken. The film follows the adventures of Barbie and Ken as they leave Barbieland for the real world and learn some shocking truths about life.

Oppenheimer starred Cillian Murphy as the father of the atomic bomb, physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. It also starred Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh and others.