The Lion King Remake Is Now The Top Grossing Animated Film

The Lion King, the realistic remake of the classic 1994 animated film, has now topped the original--along with any other animated movie. The latest worldwide box office numbers, not adjusted for inflation, show it leading every other animated film.

Previously, Disney's recent hit Frozen was the top-grossing animated film of all time. The Lion King's latest earnings put it just over $1.33 billion worldwide to Frozen's $1.27 billion. This also makes The Lion King the #12 movie of all time according to Box Office Mojo. It could also earn a spot in the top ten if it displaces both Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt 2 and Black Panther, which are narrowly ahead by $1.341 billion and $1.346 billion, respectively.

Fellow Disney property Avengers: Endgame recently beat Avatar to claim the top-grossing film of all time. However, that's only in non-adjusted gross, and adjusting for inflation means Avatar still beats earth's mightiest heroes.

However, it should be noted that adjusting for inflation shakes up the top-grossing films in some much more dramatic ways as well--mostly in regards to movies released decades ago. According to BOM, inflation-adjusted numbers put Gone with the Wind, Star Wars, and The Sound of Music at the top. On that list, Avengers and Avatar are side-by-side in the mid-teens, and The Lion King remake doesn't even make the top 100--far behind the original animated movie at the #20 spot.

Despite its beloved inspiration, The Lion King 2019 got only middling reviews on GameSpot sister site Metacritic, and in GameSpot's Lion King review. In particular, many critics suggested the remake was too faithful to its source material, while its more realistic animated style sacrificed some of the original's expressive tone.

"Maybe it's smart of Disney and director Jon Favreau to leave well enough alone and simply try to recreate the original's magic with contemporary technology and actors," Michael Rougeau wrote. "Incredibly gorgeous visuals, a star-studded new cast, a punched-up comedic script, and a new Beyoncé song will no doubt be enough to get plenty of fans--of all ages--into the theater to see this movie. But in the end, Disney is just repeating history, and that makes the new Lion King simply good, not great."