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Well ahead of Hoppers‘ March release date, Pixar showed the film to members of the press, and social media reactions are in. Fortunately, Hoppers is receiving a large amount of praise, with many raving about the movie’s sense of humor, vocal performances, and captivating story. Check out a sampling of the reactions in the space below:
Will Hoppers Be a Box Office Success?
These social media reactions obviously aren’t the same as full written reviews (remember, Edgar Wright’s The Running Man had similarly enthusiastic initial reactions before receiving a more mixed Rotten Tomatoes score), but they still paint an encouraging picture and suggest Hoppers has potential to be something truly special. Assuming the film is as great as these responses suggest, the bigger question is whether or not the reception will translate to box office success. There was a time when the latest Pixar movie was a guaranteed box office lock, but these days, the studio’s sequels are more of a draw, and there are question marks surrounding the original fare.
Elio is a notable example of this trend. Released in the thick of the summer movie season, it posted Pixar’s lowest opening weekend of all time and only grossed $154.2 million worldwide for its entire run. Though Elio earned positive reviews, it faced stiff competition for its target demographic, arriving on the heels of the Lilo & Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon live-action remakes. There simply wasn’t demand for another family film so soon after those two blockbusters. If Elio had released at a different time of year, it might have been more successful. Competition shouldn’t be an issue for Hoppers, which is opening against the R-rated monster movie The Bride!. It’s also one of the first big animated movies of the year, so it could fill a void in the marketplace.
