Three major family films are currently playing in theaters nationwide — Disney/Pixar’s “Toy Story 5” (which just became the highest grossing movie of 2026 in North America), Universal & Illumination’s “Minions & Monsters” and Disney’s live-action version of 2016 animated feature “Moana”. “The Odyssey” dominated the box office last weekend, but those three family movies brought-in a combined $48.6 million. In fact, their per theater averages were nearly identical: “Moana” with around $4,500, “TS5” with approx. $4,350, and “Minions” with about $4,200.
And over the next three and a half weeks, I think that trio will continue to make solid amounts of money, evenly splitting the family film group of moviegoers. That’s because they don’t have much competition… until a four-film summer finale.
It kicks off on Aug. 14 with “PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie”. It’s the third “PAW Patrol” theatrical film, following 2021’s “PAW Patrol: The Movie” (which earned $40 million despite a simultaneous Paramount+ debut) and 2023’s “PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie” (which opened at No. 1 and totaled $65M).
The very next Friday, Aug. 21, is fantasy dramedy “The Magic Faraway Tree”, based on the beloved books, starring Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy. It’s already been a hit overseas, with Vertical serving as the North America distributor. I’ve already screened the film (review embargoed til week of release).
Then on Aug. 28 comes the highly anticipated “Coyote vs. Acme” — the live-action / animated Looney Tunes comedy that WB didn’t want to release. Ketchup Entertainment (which distributed “The Day the Earth Blew Up” in 2025) stepped in to save the day. John Cena, Lana Condor and Will Forte lead the human cast, alongside the iconic hand-drawn characters.
And then on Labor Day weekend, it’s the 20th Anniversary re-release of my favorite Pixar movie “Cars”. A whole new generation has grown-up loving this film, with my generation (and older) excited to see it on the big screen for the first time in two decades. It’ll be a fun conclusion to a blockbuster summer season.