‘Despicable Me 4’ Leads with $75M, Beating ‘Inside Out 2’

“Despicable Me 4” dominated the Fourth of July weekend box office, raking in $75 million over three days and $122.6 million over five days since its Wednesday release. This success ended the impressive run of “Inside Out 2.” The latest installment in the “Despicable Me” franchise surpassed its predecessor, “Despicable Me 3,” which had grossed $72.4 million in three days and $99 million in five days back in 2017. However, “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” another film in the series, remains the highest-grossing Fourth of July weekend release, with $107 million in three days and $140 million in five days in 2022, according to Box Office Mojo.

Despite falling behind “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” “Despicable Me 4” outperformed the original “Despicable Me” ($56.3 million in 2010) and “Despicable Me 3.” Internationally, “Despicable Me 4” grossed $106.9 million across 52 markets, bringing its global total to $229.5 million in five days, more than doubling its $100 million production budget. “Despicable Me 4” is the second animated film of the summer to excel at the box office. “Inside Out 2,” which became the first movie of the year to gross $1 billion globally, was the highest-grossing film every weekend since its June 14 release until the Fourth of July. During the holiday weekend, “Inside Out 2” earned an additional $30 million, securing the second spot. Other notable performances included “A Quiet Place: Day One” with $21 million, “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” with $6.5 million, and “Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1” with $5.5 million.

The “Despicable Me” franchise, featuring Steve Carell as Gru, a former supervillain-turned-secret-agent and father to three orphans, has become the highest-grossing animated film series of all time. It has out-earned franchises like “Shrek,” “Toy Story,” and “Frozen,” making it the 15th highest-grossing franchise ever. The series includes six feature films, 18 short films, a holiday TV special, and “Minion Land” at Universal Studios Florida.

Both “Inside Out 2” and “Despicable Me 4” have revitalized a sluggish summer box office. So far, the summer box office has grossed $1.6 billion, which is 42% of the $4.03 billion from last summer, the highest since the COVID pandemic began. Over the holiday weekend, “Inside Out 2” surpassed “Minions” to become the fifth-highest-grossing animated film globally, according to the Hollywood Reporter.