Walt Disney Studios Becomes First and Only Studio To Cross $6 Billion Worldwide In 2025 As AVATAR: FIRE & ASH Hits $450M
Walt Disney Studios is once again proving that theatrical still matters. The studio officially crossed the $6 billion worldwide box office mark, becoming the first and only studio to hit that milestone in 2025.
The moment arrived a little earlier than expected thanks to the fast-moving global performance of Avatar: Fire & Ash, which is already past $450 million worldwide and still climbing.
The breakdown shows just how dominant Disney has been this year. The studio has generated $2.3 billion domestically, which is the highest total for any major studio in North America year to date, alongside $3.65 billion from international markets.
No other studio is even close right now. Warner Bros currently sits at $4.3 billion worldwide, though it did cross $4 billion before any other studio earlier in the year.
This marks the fifth time Disney has cleared the $6 billion mark globally, following similar runs in 2016, 2017, 2018, and the historic 2019 year. That 2019 run remains unmatched, when Disney reached an all-time $13.1 billion worldwide.
Of that total, $11.1 billion came from Disney titles alone, with the remainder coming from 20th Century Studios and Searchlight. It also stands as the only time a major motion picture studio has ever crossed $10 billion globally.
The road to $6 billion this year was paved by volume and variety. Disney released 16 wide titles in 2025, including the only two MPA films to cross $1 billion worldwide. Zootopia 2 currently sits at $1.3 billion, while Lilo & Stitch has reached $1.038 billion. Together, they’ve anchored the studio’s box office dominance.
Marvel Studios also played a key role with three releases combining for more than $1.3 billion worldwide. The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Thunderbolts*, and Captain America: Brave New World each contributed meaningful global totals that helped keep Disney consistently on top throughout the year.
Outside of Marvel and animation, Disney also found success with Predator: Badlands, which became the highest-grossing entry in the 38-year-old sci-fi thriller franchise with nearly $184 million worldwide.
Freakier Friday delivered a solid $153.1 million, while other releases still added to the overall haul, even if they didn’t explode at the box office. Tron: Ares brought in $142.2 million globally, and Pixar’s Elio landed at $154.2 million.
The final push came from Avatar: Fire & Ash, directed by James Cameron. Its current totals stand at $119 million domestic and $331.1 million internationally, with China leading all offshore markets at $67 million.
Fire & Ash delivered the second biggest global opening for an MPA title in 2025 with $347 million, trailing only Disney’s own Zootopia 2, which launched to $560.3 million worldwide. It also ranks as the second biggest global opening of Cameron’s career, following Avatar: The Way of Water, which debuted at $441.7 million worldwide in 2022.
Crossing $6 billion reinforces the studio’s grip on theatrical moviegoing at a time when consistency matters more than ever. With major titles still playing strong around the world, Disney’s 2025 box office run doesn’t look like it’s slowing down anytime soon.