When you think of family films, the studio that probably comes to mind is Disney. But Paramount has had its fair share over the years too. From 2006 – 2012, Paramount distributed DreamWorks Animation movies. They topped the studio’s yearly box office results in 2006 (“Over the Hedge”), 2007 (“Shrek the Third”) and 2012 (“Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”).
Fellow DreamWorks features “Bee Movie”, “Kung Fu Panda”, “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”, “Monsters vs. Aliens”, “How to Train Your Dragon”, “Shrek Forever After”, “Megamind”, “Kung Fu Panda 2” and “Rise of the Guardians” also made Paramount’s Top 5 list for each of their respective years. (The only two that didn’t: “Flushed Away” and “Puss in Boots”).
The sole non-DreamWorks G or PG rated movie on Paramount’s Top 5 list from 2006-2012 was the live-action version of “Charlotte’s Web” in ’06. Other family flicks released by the studio during this period of time include Nickelodeon co-productions “Nacho Libre”, “Barnyard”, “The Spiderwick Chronicles”, “Hotel for Dogs”, “Imagine That”, “The Last Airbender”, “Rango” and “The Adventures of Tintin”. Paramount also opened Martin Scorsese’s Oscar winner “Hugo” in 2011.
When DreamWorks shifted their distribution plans to 20th Century Fox in 2013, Paramount began to rely even more on their action franchises. “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run” did well for PAR in 2015. Though Nickelodeon was also behind the two “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” installments, those were PG-13. Other PAR releases that featured families (“Daddy’s Home” 1 & 2 and “Instant Family”) were also PG-13.
The “Transformers” franchise has also drawn families despite the consistent PG-13 ratings, whether the installments starred Shia LaBeouf, Mark Wahlberg or (in the case of “Bumblebee”) Hailee Steinfeld.
Paramount began to slowly shift back to G or PG offerings. In 2017 there was “Monster Trucks”. In 2018: “Gnomeo & Juliet” sequel “Sherlock Gnomes”. In early 2019: “Wonder Park”. “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” and “Playing with Fire” also performed well in theaters later in ‘19. “Sonic the Hedgehog” was the one of the last major releases to open before the pandemic began in early 2020. “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run” did well in Canada during the first summer of the pandemic pandemic and has been a hit on Paramount+ this year.
“Paw Patrol: The Movie” earned $40 million at the domestic box office while also streaming on Paramount+. PAR is using the same strategy for their latest family film, the live-action/CGI “Clifford the Big Red Dog”, which drops in theaters and on PAR+ next Wednesday November 10th. I’m sure the studio is hoping “Clifford” does even better than “Paw Patrol”, whether families stay home or safely head to theaters.