Disney's (DIS -0.93%) Frozen 2 hauled in more than $350 million in global box office receipts during its opening weekend, including $127 million in the U.S. alone. The film's debut places it on track to become one of the highest-grossing movies of all-time.
The movie continues the journey of Disney's popular characters Elsa, Anna, and Olaf. It also furthers a franchise that generated nearly $1.3 billion in box office sales and many millions more in merchandise profits.
Ticket sales for Frozen 2 are expected to remain strong in the weeks ahead, particularly during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, when children are off from school.
Disney's Frozen 2 is delighting moviegoers and shareholders alike. Image source: Disney.
Incredibly, Frozen 2 may not even be Disney's most exciting new movie launch. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the final episode of the extraordinarily popular nine-part Skywalker saga, is set to make its debut on Dec. 20. The previous two Skywalker-based Star Wars films grossed more than $2 billion and $1.3 billion, respectively.
These films should help to further fuel demand for the company's popular new streaming service, Disney+. More than 10 million people have already subscribed to Disney's on-demand video service, showing that the nearly 100-year old company is successfully adapting to new technologies and shifting consumer-viewing trends.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the success of its movie studios and new streaming platform, Disney's stock has surged in 2019. Shares are up nearly 40% so far this year, and they appear to be on their way to hitting new all-time highs in the days ahead.
