Hoppers Movie Dominates Box Office While The Bride! Bombs Opening Weekend

Two wildly different films opened head-to-head on March 6, and the results could not be more different. Pixar's Hoppers is soaring toward one of the studio's best openings in nearly a decade, while Warner Bros.' The Bride! is collapsing at the box office with one of the studio's most embarrassing debuts in years.

Hoppers Movie: Pixar's Best Opening Since Coco Is Now Confirmed

Hoppers is tracking toward $88 million globally in its opening weekend across 41 markets — the best start for a Pixar original movie since 2017's Coco. Domestically, the film is expected to land between $36 million and $40 million from 4,000 theaters.

Hoppers also earned a 97% Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes — matching the legendary grade Coco received — making it the best-reviewed Pixar film since that same era.

Audience reaction is equally strong. Hoppers earned an A CinemaScore and a very solid 75% definite recommend on PostTrak, with the audience skewing slightly female at 52%. PLF formats — including large-format and premium screens — are driving 27% of the weekend's revenue.

Critics called it "a sprightly riot that might just be the funniest entry in the Pixar canon yet" and declared the studio is "back" with its most vibrant and imaginative feature in years.

What Is Hoppers the Movie About?

In Disney and Pixar's Hoppers, scientists have discovered how to "hop" human consciousness into lifelike robotic animals, allowing people to communicate with animals as animals. The adventure introduces Mabel, an animal lover who seizes an opportunity to use the technology and uncovers mysteries within the animal world beyond anything she could have imagined.

Hoppers is directed by Daniel Chong — creator of We Bare Bears — and produced by Nicole Paradis Grindle. The voice cast features Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, and Jon Hamm. The film runs 1 hour and 45 minutes and is rated PG.

The city of Beaverton, Oregon declared March 5 "Hoppers Day" in honor of the film's release. Cast members Piper Curda and Bobby Moynihan visited Beaverton and were presented with a handmade wooden key to the city.

The Bride Movie: $90 Million Budget, $8 Million Opening — A Major Bomb

Warner Bros.' The Bride had been projected to open around $17 million before mixed reviews hit on Wednesday. Instead, the film collapsed to just $1 million in Thursday preview screenings and is now tracking toward roughly $8 million to $10 million for its opening weekend — on a reported $90 million production budget.

Audiences gave The Bride a C+ CinemaScore and a troubling 43% definite recommend on PostTrak — numbers that signal weak word of mouth and a steep decline in the weeks ahead.

The Bride! is directed and written by Maggie Gyllenhaal, stars Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale, and draws inspiration from the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein. Set in 1930s Chicago, the gothic romance reimagines Mary Shelley's creation myth with a feminist lens, tracing what happens after Frankenstein's monster enlists a scientist to bring a companion to life. The ensemble also includes Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Penélope Cruz.

Critics were sharply divided on The Bride, with Rotten Tomatoes landing at 61%. Supporters called it "wildly audacious" and "invigorating," while detractors called it "a hot, unholy mess" that lurches in too many creative directions to cohere.

Box Office Rankings — Opening Weekend March 6–8, 2026

Hoppers opened alongside The Bride! and is projected to reverse Pixar's string of soft original film openings, which included Elemental in 2023 and the outright box office failure Elio in 2025. Both films are currently playing exclusively in theaters nationwide.