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‘Nemo’ Bests ‘Lion King’ as Top Animated Film
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The fishy father and son heroes of summer movie hit “Finding Nemo” have bested “The Lion King” at the box office, breaking the long-held animated film record for U.S. ticket sales, tracking firm Exhibitor Relations reported on Friday.
“‘Nemo’ is the biggest film of the summer, the biggest film of the year, and now it is the biggest animated feature of all time,” said Exhibitor Relations chief Paul Dergarabedian.
“Nemo” had sold $328.7 million in tickets in the United States by the end of Thursday, topping the $328.5 million that “The Lion King” sold in its original release and a more recent large-format Imax reissue.
“Nemo,” a computer animated tale of a cowardly father fish who plucks up his courage to hunt for his lost son off — and on — the coast of Australia was created by Pixar Animation Studios Inc. and has been closing in for weeks on the heels of the Walt Disney Co. 1994 musical set in Africa.
Disney is also Pixar’s partner on “Nemo.”
“The Lion King” still reigns over the worldwide box office for animated films, with more than $780 million in tickets sold, and since ticket prices were lower when “The Lion King” came out, Nemo still has a way to go before it can claim more a bigger audience, even in the United States.
“But ‘Nemo’ is still playing,” said Dergarabedian.