Can Zootopia 2 Give Disney Another $1 Billion Box Office Hit In 2025?

It's been an up-and-down rollercoaster of a year at the box office, but Disney has the potential to help the industry end the year on a high note. That's because the long-awaited "Zootopia 2" is set to hit theaters over the Thanksgiving holiday, which is poised to deliver one of the biggest openings of 2025 thus far. The first "Zootopia" was a massive $1 billion hit in 2016. The question is, can Disney capture that same lightning in a bottle once again with the sequel?

As of this writing, the numbers are very much on the side of "Zootopia 2" having a good shot at $1 billion worldwide. Directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, the sequel is currently expected to pull in between $102 and $122 million next weekend, per Box Office Theory. However, since the movie is opening mid-week, that number is expected to grow as high as $185 million for the full five-day Wednesday to Sunday stretch. Earlier estimates were slightly more conservative but still massive, coming in at $125 million or more across the full five days (per Deadline).

Either way, this is shaping up to be a stellar debut. The sequel will have some competition from "Wicked: For Good," which is set for a monster opening this upcoming weekend. Even so, we've seen time and time again that two big movies can exist at once. "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" in 2023. "Wicked" and "Gladiator II" last year. There's no reason these two blockbusters can't live side by side and rule the Thanksgiving box office.

The "Zootopia" sequel once again centers on cops Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman). This time, the pair are investigating a big mystery when Gary De'Snake (Ke Huy Quan) arrives in Zootopia, turning the animal metropolis upside down.

2016's "Zootopia" opened in March, debuting to $75 million domestically. It held incredibly well week-to-week and did gangbusters business overseas, which allowed it to get to $1.02 billion globally. It made $682.5 million — or nearly 67% of its money — internationally.

Things already look promising on that front. Pre-sales have been strong in China, where very few outside movies have success these days. "Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle" is more the exception rather than the rule. That's encouraging, given that the first movie did a staggering $236 million in China in its day.

For Disney, it figures to be the second year in a row that it rules Thanksgiving. "Moana 2" helped set a new Thanksgiving record, pulling in $225.4 million over the five-day stretch. "Zootopia 2" isn't threatening that record on paper, but it could be right in line with "Frozen 2" doing $125 million over that same stretch in 2019. "Moana 2" went on to earn over $1 billion while "Frozen 2" did a staggering $1.45 billion. That's also good news because long gaps between sequels can be a problem for certain franchises, but Disney animation tends to be an exception.

Disney is the only Hollywood studio with a $1 billion movie to its name in 2025, with "Lilo & Stitch" having passed that milestone over the summer. It's a reminder that audiences are pickier than they once were, but, in this case, everything is pointing to this sequel being a big success. It certainly helps that it can leg out all the way through Christmas, with very little direct competition in the family-friendly arena. So, yes, $1 billion appears to be very much on the table, if all goes well.

"Zootopia 2" hits theaters on November 26, 2025.