In a lackluster summer, who is to blame? No one really. Summer 2014 has delivered 7 $200+ million grossers and 14 $100+ million grossers. But none have hit the $250 million mark and none have come close to the heights of Iron Man 3 or Despicable Me 2 from last summer (even Man of Steel's $295 million final gross may be unreachable). And the top-grossing film of the set won't be a sequel, in fact, it will be a movie that very much outperformed expectations (Guardians of the Galaxy).
Perhaps there is someone to blame in the midst of all this. Pixar. For the first time in nine years, they are sitting out a year with no movies (Illumination Entertainment and Sony Pictures Animation are also sitting out 2014). Their last movie, Monsters University, was one of the summer's biggest hits at $265 million domestically and $750 million worldwide. And Brave was also a success back in 2012, earning $235 million stateside and $540 million worldwide.
So why is one of the guaranteed summer smash studios sitting out? Despite commercial success, Pixar has struggled critically with their films. Cars 2 was their first movie in 13 years to miss the $200 million mark stateside, and also their first negatively-received movie (38% on Rotten Tomatoes despite a few high marks). Brave fared a lot better, and won the Best Animated Feature Oscar (to many's surprise though), but was one of Pixar's lowest-grossing titles internationally (at just over $300 million overseas, whereas many Pixar movies earn at least $400 million). And, in a revived fairy tale age for Disney, Brave fell far away from the critical acclaim of Frozen and Tangled.
Monsters University had very solid, but unspectacular reception from critics, and unexpectedly ended up on the outside looking in for the Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Animated Feature. That was when Pixar decided to try and regroup, as I would call it. They delayed The Good Dinosaur by a year and a half and made 2015 a year for two Pixar movies (with Oscar-winner Pete Doctor up next with Inside Out next June), sort-of a make-up for 2014.
So, how are they going to "rebound", as some would say? Well, Pixar, in my opinion, hasn't lost its luster. Brave and Monsters U were great movies, even if they fell short of the best. But, I think they need something genuinely original and interesting, instead of trying to enter a familiar field, such as fairy tales or sequels (3 of the last 4 Pixar movies have been sequels/prequels).
Luckily for animation fans, Pixar's next two movies are original before reverting back to the sequel route. And that sequel thankfully is one fans have been waiting for (Finding Dory, which I will likely be in line that Thursday night for (June 16, 2016)). Pixar also is in development on a sequel to The Incredibles as well as a third Cars. And many rumors abound for a Toy Story 4 and numerous original ideas.
Pixar's break was a wise move on their part, but not a wise move on yearly business' part.
