Two months ago, I mentioned that Ratatouille was seen as something of an “underperformer” by Pixar standards. Now that the movie is coming out on DVD tomorrow, I figured a little update might be in order.
It is true that, of the eight films produced by Pixar to date, the rat movie ranks way down at #6 in terms of domestic box office. The film has grossed $205.6 million in North America, which would ordinarily be considered pretty good, but every other Pixar movie since 1999 has grossed between $244.1 million and $339.7 million. What’s more, Pixar films have been earning less and less ever since the studio peaked with Finding Nemo in 2003. So you can see why a cloud might hang over the current film.
However, Variety reported yesterday that Ratatouille has been #1 overseas for the past five weeks, and has so far raked in $371.8 million from outside North America — making it the #2 Pixar hit of all time internationally, after Finding Nemo, which made $524.9 million overseas in 2003.
Put the two figures together, and Ratatouille has so far grossed $577.4 million worldwide — making it the #3 Pixar hit of all time worldwide, after Finding Nemo (2003; $339.7 million domestic + $524.9 million overseas = $864.6 million worldwide) and The Incredibles (2004; $261.4 million domestic + $370 million overseas = $631.4 million worldwide).
So take heart, Ratatouille fans. The film is doing quite well, all things considered. Though I guess the naysayers can always grumble that it hasn’t done much business in the way of merchandising.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In