We often talk about how Walt Disney Animation Studios surprises us. No one expected Frozen to be the monster hit and cultural phenomenon that it became, and I don’t think anyone thought Zootopia would become one of the highest grossing films of 2016. But what might surprise you is that Zootopia is now the second biggest original movie ever released.



Zootopia Becomes the Second Biggest Original Movie of All Time

Zootopia just crossed a billion dollars worldwide. It’s only the second film to do so this year and has earned just 10% below the mega blockbuster Captain America: Civil War. And the film hits home video this week, so it’s likely it won’t get much higher than its current $1,000,700,000 worldwide box office take.

But back to that title of second biggest original movie ever released. Remember, while Zootopia might have found inspiration in the talking animal films from Disney Animation history, it is not based on any previously released property or story. The only film that beats it in the original story category is James Cameron’s Avatar (a non-Disney-owned franchise which is somehow getting its own land in a Disney theme park before Zootopia does, WTF). Thanks to Forbes for pointing this out. Of course, Zootopia falls roughly $1.7 billion below Avatar‘s all-time $2.7 billion mark, a box office record that even Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($2.06 billion) was unable to take down.

And I know what some of you are thinking: Sure, Zootopia is the second biggest original story in box office history but that’s accounting for inflation. Yeah, Gone with the Wind would have made almost $4 billion if the numbers were adjusted for inflation, but it’s still based on a book. By those calculations, Zootopia would be the 8th highest grossing original movie of all time, which is still a huge accomplishment. Here are the original films that would have topped Zootopia with their adjusted-for-inflation numbers: Avatar ($2.8b), Star Wars ($2.2b), E.T. ($1.7b), Independence Day ($1.15b), Finding Nemo ($1.08b), Blazing Saddles ($1.06b), and Close Encounters of the Third Kind ($1.06b).

And of course, how do we celebrate the crowning of the second biggest original movie of all time? By talking about its potential sequel — it’s Hollywood after all. Hit the jump to learn from directors Byron Howard and Rich Moore what Zootopia 2 might explore.