DreamWorks’ original animated adventure earned enthusiastic audience reactions, but its modest debut leaves a challenging path to theatrical profitability.
DreamWorks Animation’s Forgotten Island has opened below expectations despite strong reviews and positive audience feedback, highlighting the difficulty of turning enthusiasm into ticket sales for an original animated film.
The movie debuted with approximately $12.8 million from 3,548 North American cinemas, according to TheWrap’s report published on 27 September 2026. With a reported production budget of around $80 million, the opening creates considerable pressure for the remainder of its theatrical run.
Directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, the film follows two friends who become stranded in a mystical world. Its early reception was encouraging: audiences awarded it an A CinemaScore, while the Associated Press reported a 94% Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score during opening weekend.
Those favourable reactions contrast with its fifth-place domestic debut. The weekend offered substantial competition, with five films each earning more than $10 million in North America. Avengers: Endgame Encore, Resident Evil, Heart of the Beast and Primetime all finished ahead of the animated newcomer.
The crowded schedule may have made attracting attention more difficult, although the earnings figures do not establish why families chose other films or stayed away. Strong reviews demonstrate how a movie was received; they do not necessarily measure how effectively its premise reached prospective viewers.
International markets remain important. TheWrap reported approximately $7.8 million in overseas opening business, with numerous territories still awaiting release. It also recorded strong audience recommendation scores, offering some grounds for optimism about word-of-mouth.
Nevertheless, recovery will require sustained attendance. Marketing expenses add to the production budget, and studios receive only a portion of theatrical ticket revenue.
Forgotten Island’s opening is therefore an early setback rather than a final verdict. Its coming weeks will test whether satisfied viewers can help an unfamiliar story build the wider audience it initially struggled to attract.
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