Elemental Continues Surprise Success Story After Disney+ Streaming Debut

Elemental was the biggest movie in all of streaming during its first full week on Disney+.

By Charlie Ridgely

Elemental, the latest film from Pixar Animation Studios, has been one of the most surprising success stories of 2023. After several Pixar movies were released exclusively on Disney+, and 2022's Lightyear offered disappointing returns compared to its high budget, Elemental delivered the worst box office opening for any Pixar film since Toy Story back in 1995. Things turned around quickly for Peter Sohn's animated adventure, however, as Elemental went on to gross $484 million at the box office. That success has continued into the world of streaming.

Elemental debuted on Disney+ in September and delivered the biggest opening streaming frame for any movie on Disney+ all year. It had the biggest Disney+ for any animated film since Turning Red. According to the latest date from Nielsen, Elemental's first full week on Disney+ was an even bigger success.

The latest numbers from Nielsen measure the biggest streaming titles from September 18th through September 24th. In that frame, Elemental was far and away the biggest movie in all of streaming, racking up over 1.3 billion minutes viewed. The second-most viewed film in that frame, The Little Mermaid, tallied just under 400 million minutes.

The only title to beat Elemental in its first full week of streaming was Suits, the biggest show in streaming all year. Needless to say, Elemental is continuing to make an impact on viewers now that it has made its way to Disney+.

Elemental's Major Influences

Ahead of Elemental's theatrical debut earlier this year, director Peter Sohn spoke with ComicBook.com about the filmmakers that influenced his unique Pixar love story.

"The visuals were definitely a combo of Gordon Willis and how he would shoot the cities between The Godfather and Manhattan and those movies, for sure. There was that. There was [Jean-Pierre] Jeunet. There's a lot of French love in this, for sure, in terms of how they made cities like postcards in some of their movies," Sohn explained. 

"We watched so many movies for reference, for culture clash. That was also a big part of it," added producer Denise Ream. "Romantic comedies, we watched. Sohn continued, "Yeah. There is a director, though, that I don't talk about a lot, but it was Norman Jewison. He did Fiddler on the Roof and Moonstruck. Oh, both of us, that's one of our favorite movies individually." 

Have you checked out Elemental since its Disney+ debut? What did you think? Let us know in the comments!

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