Pixar’s Elio has surprisingly rocketed to the number 1 spot on Disney+ following an underwhelming box office. The 2025 animated sci-fi adventure film follows 11-year-old Elio Solís (Yonas Kibreab) who is mistaken as Earth’s ambassador at an interplanetary organization called the Communiverse. Elio must navigate a crisis involving alien politics, expectations, and identity, ultimately figuring out where he belongs.
Directed by Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, and Adrian Molina, and starring Zoe Saldaña, Elio premiered theatrically on June 20, 2025, grossing just $154 million worldwide against a budget of $150–200 million. While critics and audiences were generally favorable, giving it an 83% Tomatometer and 90% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes, Elio opened with the worst box office weekend in Pixar’s history.
Now, Elio currently ranks number 1 on Disney+’s Top 10 in the US Today. Elio’s position places the film above Marvel’s Thunderbolts* and Alien: Earth, two significantly popular and recent releases on the site. The film made its streaming debut on September 17, 2025, shortly after Elio was released on digital platforms and in physical formats in August.
What This Streaming Success Means For Elio
This kind of streaming success shifts the narrative around Pixar’s Elio dramatically. Streaming platforms often allow for broader reach, especially among families or viewers who may have skipped it in cinemas for cost or timing reasons. This is exactly what has happened with Elio, as the film has found new life since it was released on streaming just yesterday.
For originals—which often face tougher theatrical competition—strong streaming numbers can be every bit as important as box office in measuring long-term success. It may also set a precedent that perhaps Pixar’s original, more experimental projects are better suited to hybrid or streaming-only releases, especially in the current franchise-populated and digital-central era where theatrical risks still remain high for originals.
Our Take On Elio’s Reception
Elio has been a strange case, as it was critically praised and conceptually ambitious, but commercially underwhelming in theaters. The film evidently resonates with viewers, yet its box office opening was low even by Pixar’s own standards, a drop-off that feels disappointing, especially from a studio that has set such high benchmarks with Inside Out 2, Coco, and Elemental.