It can not be denied that many movies released in recent years have been sequels, reboots, or remakes. Disney and Pixar have been in many discussions about this trend, with Disney constantly remaking classic animated films into live-action. Meanwhile, several beloved Pixar films have received sequels over the years. Fan outcry for more original stories is not new, but Pixar has backed up a recent TikTok trend that emphasizes Pixar's call for fans to stop asking for original film projects if they will not follow through on their own calls to go see an original story in the theater.
Pixar's latest original film, Elio, resulted in an opening weekend of slightly under $21 million after releasing in theaters on June 20, 2025. When Elemental, another original project, arrived in theaters in 2023, the film made slightly under $30 million in its opening weekend. In comparison, sequel films made much more. The Incredibles 2 received an opening weekend box office of over $180 million. Meanwhile, Inside Out 2 made over $150 million in its opening weekend. Within the last ten years, some of Pixar's most successful films, based on box office numbers, have been sequel projects, including Toy Story 4 and Finding Dory, both of which also made over $100 million at the box office in their opening weekends.
For as much as fans may crave original content, Pixar does have a point in asking audiences to stop complaining about their choice to lean more heavily into sequels. While it makes sense for viewers to show up for sequel projects to films that they loved to watch as kids, not giving that same support to original films will give studios the idea that audiences do not want them as much as they say. Although fans can argue about a seemingly endless array of sequels all they want, not giving the same attention to original projects in theaters is hurting the chance of getting to see more original stories. While sequel projects, such as the upcoming The Incredibles 3 and Toy Story 5, may be divisive among fans, history has proven that audiences are still more likely to show up for those instead of original projects, such as Soul or Onward.
Although new and original Pixar movies may not share the nostalgia element that comes from The Incredibles or Toy Story franchises, they still have plenty of heart and soul. Coco is one of Pixar's most emotional original projects, and offers a tear-jerker moment that will make audiences appreciative of their own loving families.
Turning Red is a beautiful and comical approach to viewing a girl becoming a teenager at the beginning of a coming-of-age story. Luca is a grand story of friendship and self-discovery. Elemental is one of Pixar's best representations of telling a story on various levels, from what it means to grow up in an immigrant family to trying to find one's own identity, to seeing the value in collaboration with others considered different from yourself, as well as the beauty of friendship.
Most of Pixar's projects offer memorable characters, fun storylines, humorous jokes, and heartfelt moments. Up is most remembered for its opening sequence that goes from happy and joyful to heartbreaking in a matter of minutes. However, audiences will never know if Pixar's newest original projects will have the same impact if they never go to see them. Sequel fatigue makes sense, but instead of complaining about the constant collection of sequels, do something about it and go see an original film. Everyone's favorite sequels began as their own original projects, and maybe, one of Pixar's newest original stories has the opportunity to grow and succeed in that same way, but only if they are given a chance.
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