{"id":815184,"date":"2026-08-16T04:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T04:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/815184\/"},"modified":"2026-08-16T04:54:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T04:54:12","slug":"disney-poised-for-big-box-office-in-2028-with-x-men-tangled-d23","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/815184\/","title":{"rendered":"Disney Poised for Big Box Office in 2028 With ‘X-Men’, ‘Tangled’: D23"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe morning after an intoxicating D23<\/a> Friday night, which included a dancing spirit squad, Adam Driver and Inde Navarrette X-Men<\/a> surprises, Josh Gad crooning, Ryan Gosling, Anne Hathaway and confetti raining, it became really clear \u2014 Disney<\/a> is going to have a killer 2028 at the box office.<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd they haven\u2019t even filled out the entire year\u2019s slate yet. With the 2026 domestic box office racking toward an estimated $10 billion stateside, will people still be going to the cinemas two years from now? <\/p>\n

\n\tHell yes, if Disney has anything to do with it.<\/p>\n

\n\tDisney has 14 dates currently in the Rentrak system for 2028 \u2014 and that\u2019s not counting 20th Century Studios or Searchlight theatrical releases. Again, dates can always shed, but with the few tentpole dates that were announced last night at D23\u2019s The Ultimate Disney Fan Event at the Anaheim Honda Center, coupled with what we already know, it would not be shocking if 2028 has a shot at rivaling Disney\u2019s record global year at the B.O., which was 2019 with $13.15B (that\u2019s when they were fully merged with 20th Century Fox).<\/p>\n

\n\tRight now for 2028, if the studio can keep these productions on track, Disney has dated:<\/p>\n

\n\tPixar original Ghost Market<\/a> \u2013 March 10
Currently, no other wide release is dated against it. <\/p>\n

\n\tLive-action Tangled \u2013 March 31
Amazon MGM Studios has a Chosen movie already on the schedule which is counter-programming to this highly anticipated feature adaptation of the 2010 animated pic. Tangled arrives in theaters a week ahead of Sony\u2019s The Beatles \u2013 Four Films The Beginning on April 7, 2028.<\/p>\n

\n\tMarvel\u2019s untiled X-Men \u2013 May 5
The MCU returns to its formerly prized summer launchpad, three years after 2025\u2019s Thunderbolts*. Who dare date against this revival? In the hands of Feige, it\u2019s not like Bryan Singer\u2019s old stuff. From the looks of last night, per Hugh Jackman\u2019s beam-in, he ain\u2019t coming back as Wolverine.<\/p>\n

\n\tLive-action Lilo & Stitch 2 \u2013 Memorial Day weekend, May 28
Currently, Lionsgate has Resurrection of the Christ: Part Two on this date. Again, counter-programming skewing to an older adult religious demo. The two can co-exist, but depending on how successful Part One is (May 6, 2027), it would\u2019t be shocking if Lionsgate changes their mind in the face of a five-quad sequel to a billion-dollar movie.<\/p>\n

\n\tPixar\u2019s Incredibles 3 \u2013 June 16
Before D23, Disney already announced the Fathers Day weekend date for the threequel to one of the highest grossing animated movies of all-time (Incredibles 2 at $1.2B). The kids\u2014Violet, Dash and Jack Jack\u2014are the same height, but grown up in their superhero abilities as the conceit here is that they sneak out of the house more. No other major studio pics are versing Incredibles 3 yet.<\/p>\n

\n\tMarvel\u2019s Ghost Rider \u2013 announced for 2028 without a specific date on the Gosling starring, Shawn Levy directed feature, but a good guess is that it\u2019s going to July 28 that year as Disney has that weekend on hold in Rentrak. If it is July 28, well, that\u2019s the penultimate end of summer date where Deadpool & Wolverine, Brand New Day and Fantastic Four: First Steps have soared. You\u2019d be crazy to date against this movie.<\/p>\n

\n\tMarvel\u2019s Black Panther 3 \u2013 Dec. 15, 2028
Clearly, the Christmas event movie of the year. Universal has an untitled tentpole dated five days later on Dec. 20. <\/p>\n

\n\tThat\u2019s quite a killer lineup on paper alone, and more powerful from what\u2019s already on deck in 2027 for Disney, which we\u2019ll sift through below. Here\u2019s some takeaways from last night\u2019s fireworks:<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t(L-R) Maya Boyd, Inde Navarrette, Samara Weaving, Christopher Abbott, Kit Connor, Jake Schreier, and Sadie Sink speak onstage at the Disney Entertainment Showcase at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event on August 14, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Jesse Grant\/Getty Images for Disney)<\/p>\n

\n\tMarvel Cinematic Universe Movies Are No Longer in Superhero Fatigue<\/p>\n

\n\tWith three MCU titles dated for 2028, that\u2019s absolutely clear, and with MCU Boss Kevin Feige involved in the success of Sony\u2019s highest grossing movie of all-time, the Marvel Studios co-production Spider-Man: Brand New Day at $1.8B+, \u201cIt\u2019s not about IP,\u201d says one Disney executive talking about the success of that rival film. \u201cIt\u2019s about making great movies. Spider-Man: Brand New Day isn\u2019t successful because it\u2019s a Spider-Man movie, it\u2019s successful because it\u2019s an excellent, fun movie.\u201d That\u2019s the plan for MCU going forward: Reliable and fun-filled filmmakers and talent like Ryan Gosling and Shawn Levy involved in Ghost Rider, and a murderers\u2019 row of thespians in X-Men such as Driver, Obsession breakout Navarrette, Christopher Abbott and Samara Weaving, to name a few.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\tThere was some cynicism from fans over the Avengers: Doomsday trailer that was released around San Diego Comic-Con, which is to be expected. You can\u2019t spoil everything in a trailer for a highly anticipated sequel. Also, who isn\u2019t going to watch this upside-down universe MCU movie where Iron Man\u2018s Robert Downey Jr. is Victor Werner von Doom? The clip released last night shows this is a more complex, sinister strategist than Josh Brolin\u2019s crash-bang-boom baddie Thanos from the previous Avengers pics. Screams Pedro Pascal\u2019s Reed Richards, \u201cAnswer me, Victor! Why did you do this?\u201d Masses will want to know well into early 2027 in what\u2019s an optimistic start to Disney\u2019s 2027 box office year. Joker: Folie a Deux, this is not. And after the better-than-Barbenheimer success of The Odyssey and Brand New Day in the marketplace, it\u2019s clear we won\u2019t have a problem of two male fandom-charged properties like Doomsday and Dune: Part 3 getting in each other\u2019s way. Both battalion boats will rise at the B.O.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Kathryn<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tKathryn Hahn and Mother Gothel from \u2018Tangled\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tKathryn Wirsing\/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures<\/p>\n

\n\tLive Action Takes Of Disney Classics Aren\u2019t Going Away
While Honda Center denizens last night could only get excited by less than a minute\u2019s tease of Tangled, which showed Rapunzel\u2019s long blonde hair and Kathryn Hahn briefly as notorious Mother Gothel, Disney isn\u2019t bailing on bringing legacy animated classics into the flesh with even Moana recently falling off her surfboard with less than $300M at the global box office. Disney\u2019s plan per sources going forward remains, of course, spacing out animated sequels from their live-action counterparts, as well as finding a unique way into beloved vault titles (i.e. a Bridesmaids-like spinoff of Cinderella from Akiva Schaefer with Stepsisters, not shown yesterday), the still-in-development punk rock Cruella 2 from Craig Gillespie starring Emma Stone, and the upcoming Beauty and the Beast-verse title, Gaston. Maleficent years ago was a great success for the studio. If that Sleeping Beauty spinoff taught Disney anything, it\u2019s to approach live-action adaptations of the classics from the side in an edgy way rather than a full-on adaptation (i.e. Dumbo, Pinocchio, Snow White) with great filmmakers and sublime stars. Quite often, the old pics are dated in their morals and arrive with inherent themes which are more baggage than their worth for the studio when trying to pull in a pluralistic audience. Another lesson from Moana: Don\u2019t make a carbon copy of the original animated pic. Better to vary it up with different musical numbers and deeper plots for fun\u2019s sake. Also when it comes to non-Disney IP movies, the current motion picture administration is on the hunt for the next YA hit, which can easily fit into the Magic Kingdom\u2019s sensibilities both spiritually and merchandising wise, read winning a big auction for Katherine Rundell\u2019s Impossible Creatures<\/a>, a publishing phenomenon on the order of\u00a0Harry Potter, The Hunger Games\u00a0and\u00a0Twilight Saga (no updates yesterday).<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\tAnimation Is Intact
With Frozen 3<\/a>, a November 2029 date for Coco 2 and Incredibles 3, clearly Disney knows when it comes to making $1 billion hits, it never fails to make a sequel to a landmark hit. And ya gotta space \u2019em out. Frozen 3 arrives eight years after its previous chapter, Incredibles 3 is ten years later than its predecessor while Coco 2 will hit theaters 12 years after Coco. Disney kept their powder dry on what to expect on Coco 2 and Incredibles 3, showing very little footage. Essentially what we learned were plot reveals. <\/p>\n

Original Walt Disney Animation title, Hexed, due out at Thanksgiving, about a young woman coming into her bewitching powers while facing off against a coven, looks like it can work, elevating the leading independent female sensibility that the studio\u2019s princess toons are known for, while also being the flip side of a Disney princess. Walton Goggins as a wisenheimer three-eyed Southern cat, Beef\u00a0Roger Crummchuk, to Hailee Steinfeld\u2019s protag, Billie Doe, is very funny and very Goggins. Disney vet Jodie Foster in her first Disney animation voiceover role as the villain, Queen Celeste, is intriguing. Well played, casting.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Kristen<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tKristen Bell and Idina Menzel <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJesse Grant\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\n\tBut get ready for Frozen 3. At the last D23 two years, they merely teased concept art, but this year, Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel (Anna and Elsa) rocked a new song, \u201cFrozen Heart\u201d while Josh Gad brought down the house with a new 1970s love song-sounding ditty about Olaf\u2019s new g.f., \u201cSamantha\u201d. Add in a new black icy witch villain with powers that could topple Elsa and more about the ice sister\u2019s past, and we got a great Star Wars-like film on our hands. The Jennifer Lee-directed threequel hits theaters on Nov. 24, 2027.<\/p>\n

\n\tIf you want to build franchises, you have to make originals, and as we know in the current post-Covid space, sometimes that means opening at a significantly lower gross and playing out. Pixar has always won in the original space when they do their own twist on a genre (i.e. space with Wall-E, French movies with Ratatouille) and anchor it on an emotionally affecting lead character. Not an easy needle to thread (Elio), but it appears they have something as they venture into horror with Ghost Market about a fast talking kid who has a supernatural interaction at a lunch shop hidden away in a remote location on O\u02bbahu\u2019s North Shore that serves lost spirits, stuck between life and death.<\/p>\n

\n\tMum\u2019s the word on Avatar
There was no mention of the future of the Na\u2019vi last night. Two movies remain on the release calendar, Avatar 4 for Dec. 21, 2029 and Avatar 5 for Dec. 19, 2031. As far as the fate of those pics, all we know is what franchise director James Cameron has said following the threequel\u2019s $1.48 billion (the lowest in the franchise, but, hello, still an excellent gross for any movie). They\u2019re \u201cstill floating out there.\u201d <\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\tA New Hope for Star Wars?
Nothing new was announced, and this is the one label which requires the most resuscitation after Mandalorian and Grogu died this summer with $345M WW. Rather than getting lost in their heads on what to do with the Skywalkers or legacy characters after failing to take fans into hyperspace with 2018\u2019s Solo: A Star Wars Story, Lucasfilm opted to go anew with elements that create alchemy, read the comedic and story awe of director Levy, scribe Jonathan Tropper and the cool and hysterically funny Gosling in Star Wars: Starfighter<\/a>. It looks amazing, like Gosling\u2019s Driver from Drive in space amid some new cool sea-filled planets. There\u2019s an older mentor-to-kid story, and a nod to the drag race aura that George Lucas wove from his teen days into American Graffiti and Star Wars: Phantom Menace. For any die-hard Star Wars fans, there\u2019s a lot of call-back in the imagery, but the question is whether they\u2019ll buy into something completely fresh. The box office comp here isn\u2019t Levy\u2019s Deadpool & Wolverine ($211.4M domestic opening) which was working off a successful superhero comedy property, it\u2019s more the spinoff of bigger IP, think 2016\u2019s Fantastic Beasts coming off of Harry Potter ($74.4M domestic debut). There\u2019s a lot of pressure on Levy and Gosling to truly take us to another galaxy far, far away next Memorial Day weekend.<\/p>\n

\n\tMeanwhile, per newly appointed co-president, Dave Filoni, when it comes to an Adam Driver starring The Hunt for Ben Solo movies; fans, it\u2019s not the movie you\u2019re looking for, to quote Obi-wan Kenobi. Filoni told Deadline<\/a> that when it comes to the next movie after Rise of Skywalker, \u201cThe force is not with us in that regard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThis was the second time in the Disney fan confab\u2019s history that they\u2019ve wowed their future film and TV lineup at the Honda Centre (called D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event), taking what was once a filled theater-like presentation at the Anaheim Convention Center to what\u2019s now an Ariana Grande-like concert spectacle with floating balloons, Broadway numbers and the entire arena doing \u201cthe wave\u201d before the start of the show.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The morning after an intoxicating D23 Friday night, which included a dancing spirit squad, Adam Driver and Inde…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":815185,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[77790,3716,88,129066,345920,45676,9616],"class_list":["post-815184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-d23","tag-disney","tag-entertainment","tag-frozen-3","tag-ghost-market","tag-star-wars-starfighter","tag-x-men"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/815184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=815184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/815184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/815185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=815184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=815184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=815184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}