A few days ago, we reported that The Little Mermaid, a movie that had faced a lot of hate on social media, had managed to establish a commendable record on Disney’s streaming platform. Today, we have to say that it didn’t last long.
Pixar’s latest movie, Elemental, joined Disney’s main streaming service on September 13th, ending The Little Mermaid’s brief reign as the most-watched movie on Disney Plus of all time.
According to The Walt Disney Company, Elemental was viewed 26.4 million times in its first five days on one of the world’s top streaming services. This is nearly double The Little Mermaid, which garnered 16 million views in its first five days on the platform.
What makes Elemental’s success even more impressive is that it’s the second time the record for the most-watched Disney Plus movie in seven days has been broken.
Before The Little Mermaid debuted on Disney Plus on September 6th, Hocus Pocus 2 had held the title of the most-watched movie on the platform for 11 months. The Little Mermaid swam to the surface to establish a new record for Disney Plus movies, displacing Hocus Pocus 2 in the process.
Now, however, the film starring Hailee Bailey has been surpassed by Elemental.
Elemental’s rise in the Disney+ movie charts is indeed an incredible turnaround for the film directed by Peter Sohn. Pixar is known for creating movies with impressive visual effects, which could contribute to its success.
However, the animated film didn’t have a strong start in theaters. Reviews were mixed, and it faced competition from other highly anticipated movies like Indiana Jones 5, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and The Flash, which resulted in a slow initial ticket sale for Elemental.
However, it went on to become Pixar’s highest-grossing film, likely due to positive word of mouth, and concluded its theatrical run with a global box office of nearly $500 million. These numbers make it the ninth highest-grossing movie of 2023 to date.
