Toy Story 5 tops $1 billion to lead 2026 global box office

Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5 has crossed $1 billion at the global box office, becoming the first Hollywood release of 2026 to hit the mark and the year’s highest-grossing film worldwide.

The animated sequel has earned $1.022 billion worldwide after a little over a month in cinemas, adding another commercial milestone to one of Pixar’s most durable franchises. It has also moved ahead of every other 2026 release at the worldwide box office after a franchise-best opening weekend.

Franchise return delivers another major hit

Directed by Andrew Stanton and written by Stanton and Kenna Harris, the film is the fifth main instalment in the Toy Story series and a follow-up to Toy Story 4 from 2019. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen return as Woody and Buzz Lightyear, with Joan Cusack also reprising her role alongside Conan O’Brien, Scarlett Spears, Greta Lee, Shelby Rabara, Mykal-Michelle Harris and Craig Robinson.

Set two years after the fourth film, the story follows Jessie, Woody, Buzz and the other toys as they confront Lilypad, a tablet that becomes Bonnie’s favourite plaything. The plot centres on children’s growing reliance on technology and the toys’ effort to show that traditional play still matters.

Big budget, strong reviews and new technology

With a reported budget of $250 million, Toy Story 5 ranks among the most expensive animated films ever made and among the costliest films overall. It premiered in Los Angeles on June 9, 2026, before opening in US cinemas on June 19.

The film is now the highest-grossing release of 2026 and the third-biggest earner in the franchise, behind Toy Story 4 and Toy Story 3. It also became Pixar’s biggest worldwide opening weekend on record. Critical reception has been positive overall, with praise for its visuals, performances, humour and themes, though some reviewers criticised the script.

Pixar also introduced new production tools on the film, including its RenderMan XPU renderer on a feature for the first time. The studio said the system allowed artists to view interactive, full-frame rendering at “nine times faster speeds”. The Luna extension for Pixar’s Presto animation system was also expanded for the film, while a horse character named Daffodil took more than a year to build, rig and simulate.

The box-office success comes shortly after Pixar underwent layoffs, giving the film added significance for the studio as it continues to rely on one of its best-known properties nearly three decades after the original Toy Story debuted in 1995.