Elio Flopped. So Disney's Blaming Audiences Instead of Themselves.
Pixar just called out its own audience for not supporting original films. Yes, really.
Following the worst opening weekend in Pixar's entire history, Elio crashed into theaters with a pathetic $12.5 million domestic debut, despite a summer release and zero school in sight. The film, which cost around $150 million to make, didn't just underperform — it faceplanted.
So what does Pixar do? Take the L quietly and regroup? Nah. They posted a video on their official Instagram, where a creator bluntly scolds viewers for whining about a lack of originality in Hollywood while refusing to show up for non-sequel films like Elio.
The tone wasn't subtle. The message? If Elio flopped, it's your fault. Not the studio's. Not the marketing team's. Yours.
Cue the chaos in the comments.
- "Pixar revenge era."
- "Maybe release a GOOD original movie then?????"
- "This is either really cute… or really sad and desperate."
- "This is wild on the official Pixar account but I'm here for it."
Others pointed out that Elio had basically zero momentum going in. Marketing was minimal. The film had been delayed, merchandise like Happy Meal toys came and went before the movie even hit theaters, and the promotion felt scattered at best.
Meanwhile, How to Train Your Dragon — a live-action remake from DreamWorks — is soaring, thanks to the one thing Elio didn't have: name recognition. Even decent reviews couldn't save Elio. Critics called it "charming" and praised its original premise, but it wasn't enough.
This is the exact problem Pixar claimed to be solving. After years of sequels (Toy Story 4, Finding Dory, Cars 3), Elio was supposed to be a return to original storytelling. A passion project. A cosmic coming-of-age story with heart.
Instead, it's turned into a cautionary tale about what happens when a studio blames its audience rather than looking at its own broken hype machine.
To date, Elio barely cracked $50 million. And with Pixar's next big push focused on Toy Story 5, it's clear where the studio's priorities are heading.
So yes — audiences do want original stories. But maybe, just maybe, they don't want to be guilt-tripped into seeing them. Especially when the trailer dropped like two years ago and the studio forgot to tell anyone the movie was actually out.