Back in 2022, I wrote about the 10 top-grossing Western animated movies starring people of color. Since then, we’ve gotten some new movies, so I thought I’d give this topic an update.
Criteria
Figures are taken from The Numbers website as of October 5, 2025. I’m only looking at theatrically released films, not direct-to-video fare. Box office figures are for the worldwide box office, and aren’t adjusted for inflation. I’m limiting this list to Western animated films; otherwise, the #1 entry for all films globally is China’s “Ne Zha 2,” which raked in over $2 billion at the box office, almost entirely in China.
The top 10 films by box office
- “Moana 2” (2024), $1,059,135,998
- “Coco” (2017), $796,397,165
- “Up” (2009), $731,463,377
- “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” (2023): $690,824,738
- “Moana” (2016), $684,654,985
- “Big Hero 6” (2014), $646,584,368
- “Aladdin” (1992), $504,050,219
- “Home” (2015), $385,997,896
- “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018), $373,807,069
- “Pocahontas” (1995), $347,100,000
Observations
The #1 Western animated film is Disney’s “Moana 2,” whose success isn’t surprising. The original “Moana” has been one of the most-watched films on Disney+.
Unsurprisingly, Disney and Pixar together make up seven of the top 10 spots. Said films include the original “Moana,” “Up” (costarring the young scout Russell), and the oldest film on the list, “Aladdin.” Also on the list is “Pocahontas,” a film that was criticized for being particularly problematic even when it was released. These days, it’s also got Mel Gibson as a celebrity voice actor (voicing John Smith) working against it.
The non-Mouse House films on the list include:
- “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” the 2018 and 2023 Sony animated films starring Miles Morales.
- “Home,” a 2015 DreamWorks film co-starring a young African American girl named Tip (voiced by singer Rihanna).
Eight of the 10 films on the list were released in the 21st century: one film in the aughts, five in the 2010s, and two in the 2020s. I suspect if not for the pandemic, “Encanto” would likely be on this list.
On home video/streaming
All of the above films are available on DVD and Blu-ray.
The eight Disney/Pixar films are available on Disney+. As of this writing, “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” and “Home” aren’t available on streaming, but “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” is on Disney+.
Image, left to right: “Coco” (Pixar); “Big Hero 6” (Disney); and “Moana” (Disney).
