PG movies are driving Hollywood’s box office rebound

Forget star power or Oscar-worthy scripts. The real box office strategy is appealing to people who can’t see the screen without a booster seat.

The blockbuster two-week opening of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is the latest proof that family movies are currently running the show in Hollywood.

The numbers back it up. The top domestic movie in each of the last two years was PG-rated. Inside Out 2 led the pack in 2024, while Zootopia 2 took home the title last year en route to becoming the highest-grossing Hollywood animated film ever. And the latest Italian plumber-led animated PG hit from Universal has jumped out to an early lead in 2026.

Spoiler alert: it’s not the adults

Nearly 60% of Gen Alpha (anyone 12 or younger) prefer watching movies in theaters compared to at home, making them more likely to do so than any other generation, per a National Research Group report. In other words: while older audiences are harder to drag off the couch, families are still showing up, even with higher ticket prices and endless streaming options.

This is lifting the entire industry: Domestic box office revenue is up 26% year-over-year, marking the strongest start for the industry since the pre-Covid era, according to Comscore.

Looking ahead…There are 26 wide-release PG movies slated for 2026, up from 24 in 2025 and 18 in 2024. Top titles include Minions & Monsters, Toy Story 5, and The Cat in the Hat.