List of Universal Pictures theatrical animated feature films
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This is a list of theatrical animated feature films released by Universal Pictures, the film division of Comcast's NBCUniversal.
Universal Pictures releases films from Universal-owned and non-Universal owned animation studios. Most films listed below are from Illumination which began as the feature animation department of Universal, producing its first feature-length animated film Despicable Me in 2010. Beginning with How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World in 2019, Universal also itself released animated films by DreamWorks Animation, which were originally released under their then DreamWorks Pictures film production label, but the company was later acquired by NBCUniversal in 2016.[1][2][3] Other studio units have also released films theatrically, including Universal Animation Studios, which now focuses mainly on animating television shows and direct-to-video films.
The studio's distribution unit acquires film rights from outside animation studios to release films under the Universal Pictures or Focus Features film labels. For example, Laika's stop-motion animated features were released by Universal through its Focus Features label. Other studios globally have released films through Universal Pictures which maintains distribution rights in certain territories.
Films
| Universal Animation Studios (2006–present) | |
| Illumination (2010–present) | |
| DreamWorks Animation (2019–present) | |
| Other Universal studio | |
| Third-party studio | |
| Live-action/animation hybrid sold as animation | S |
| Live-action/animation hybrid sold as live-action | SL |
| Distribution only | D |
| An adult animated production | A |
American releases
Upcoming
| Title | Intended theatrical release date by Universal Pictures |
Animation studio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forgotten Island | September 25, 2026[46] | DreamWorks Animation | |
| Cocomelon: The Movie[D] | February 19, 2027[47][48] | DreamWorks Animation, Moonbug Entertainment, Flywheel Media, and Prime Focus Studios | |
| Not Alone | April 16, 2027[49][50][51] | Illumination | |
| How to Train Your Dragon 2[SL] | June 11, 2027 | DreamWorks Animation and Marc Platt Productions | |
| Shrek 5 | June 30, 2027[52][53][54][55][56][44][57] | DreamWorks Animation | |
| Untitled DreamWorks Animation film | September 24, 2027[58] | ||
| Untitled Illumination/Nintendo film | April 12, 2028[59] | Illumination and Nintendo | |
| Donkey | June 30, 2028[60][61] | DreamWorks Animation | |
| Untitled third Super Mario film | 2029[62][63] | Illumination and Nintendo | |
| Untitled Illumination film | June 29, 2029[64] | Illumination | |
| Untitled DreamWorks Animation film | September 21, 2029[65] | DreamWorks Animation | |
| Untitled Illumination film | July 3, 2030[66] | Illumination | |
| Undated | |||
| Barbie | TBA[67] | Illumination and Mattel Studios | |
| Lego[S] | TBA[68] | The Lego Group and Rideback | |
| The Wild Robot Escapes | TBA[69][70] | DreamWorks Animation | |
International releases
| Title | Original theatrical release date[rls 4] | Animation studio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Abrafaxe – Under The Black Flag[D] | October 25, 2001 (Germany)[st 1] | Abrafaxe Trickfilm | |
| Momo[D] | December 21, 2001 (Italy)[st 1] | Taurus Produktion | |
| Coraline[D] | February 5, 2009 | Laika[st 2] | |
| Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! | July 10, 2009 (Denmark)[rls 5] | Universal Animation Studios and Imagine Entertainment | |
| 9[D] | September 9, 2009 | Relativity Media, Lux Animation, Starz Animation and Tim Burton Productions[st 2] | |
| Nikté[D] | December 18, 2009 (Mexico)[st 1] | Animex Producciones | |
| Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer[SL] | June 10, 2011[st 1] | Relativity Media and Smokewood Entertainment | |
| ParaNorman[D] | August 17, 2012 | Laika[st 2] | |
| Underdogs[D] | July 18, 2013 (Argentina)[st 1] | Prana Studios and 100 Bares Producciones | |
| Moshi Monsters: The Movie[D] | December 20, 2013[st 1] | Spider Eye Productions | |
| Song of the Sea[D] | September 6, 2014 (Ireland)[st 1] | StudioCanal and Cartoon Saloon | |
| The Seventh Dwarf[D] | September 25, 2014 (Germany)[st 1] | Zipfelmützen Film GmbH & Co. KG | |
| The Boxtrolls[D] | September 26, 2014 | Laika[st 2] | |
| Yellowbird[D] | October 11, 2014[st 1] | TeamTO | |
| Mune: Guardian of the Moon[D] | October 14, 2015 (France)[st 1] | On Animation Studios, Onyx Films, Kinology and Orange Studio | |
| Ratchet & Clank[D] | April 29, 2016 | Rainmaker Entertainment and Blockade Entertainment[st 3] | |
| Kubo and the Two Strings[D] | August 19, 2016 | Laika[st 2] | |
| Ethel & Ernest[D] | October 28, 2016[st 1] | Cloth Cat Animation | |
| The Breadwinner[D] | September 8, 2017 (Canada)[st 1] | Elevation Pictures, StudioCanal, and Cartoon Saloon | |
| Woody Woodpecker[SL] | October 5, 2017 (Brazil)[rls 5] | Universal Animation Studios and Cinemotion | |
| Zombillenium[D] | October 18, 2017 (France)[st 1] | Maybe Movies and Belvision | |
| The Boss Baby | March 21, 2018 (Japan)[st 4] | DreamWorks Animation | |
| The Addams Family[D] | October 11, 2019[st 1] | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Cinesite[st 5] | |
| The Wishmas Tree[D] | February 27, 2020 (Australia)[st 1] | Like a Photon Creative | |
| Combat Wombat[D] | October 15, 2020 (Australia)[st 1] | ||
| Daisy Quokka: World's Scariest Animal[D] | November 28, 2020 (Australia)[st 1] | ||
| The Addams Family 2[D] | October 1, 2021[st 1][71][72] | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Cinesite[st 5] | |
| Marcel the Shell with Shoes On[D][SL] | February 17, 2023 (United Kingdom)[73] | A24, Cinereach, You Want I Should, Human Woman, Sunbeam Television & Films, and Chiodo Bros. Productions[st 2] | |
| Mavka: The Forest Song[D] | March 29, 2023 (France)[st 1][74] | Animagrad Animation Studio and Film.UA | |
| Orion and the Dark | February 2, 2024 | DreamWorks Animation[st 6] | |
| Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back[D] | February 29, 2024 (Australia)[st 1] | Like a Photon Creative | |
| Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp[SL] | April 12, 2024 | Universal Animation Studios[st 6] | |
| Spy x Family Code: White[D] | April 25, 2024 (Netherlands)[st 7] | Toho, Wit Studio and CloverWorks | |
| The Sloth Lane[D] | July 25, 2024 (Australia)[st 1] | Like a Photon Creative | |
| Piece by Piece[D] | October 11, 2024[75] | The Lego Group, Tremolo Productions, and I Am Other[st 2] | |
| The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland[D] | November 15, 2024[rls 5] | Lupus Films | |
| The Lost Tiger[D] | February 27, 2025 (Australia)[st 1] | Like a Photon Creative | |
Highest-grossing films
- † indicates films playing in theaters around the world in the week commencing 31 July 2026.
This list does not include films combining live-action with animation.
| Rank | Film | Worldwide gross | Studio | Year | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie | $1,363,298,473 | Illumination and Nintendo | 2023 | [76] |
| 2 | Minions | $1,159,398,397 | Illumination | 2015 | [77] |
| 3 | Despicable Me 3 | $1,034,799,409 | 2017 | [78] | |
| 4 | The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | $1,011,096,833 | Illumination and Nintendo | 2026 | [79][80] |
| 5 | Despicable Me 2 | $970,761,885 | Illumination | 2013 | [81] |
| 6 | Despicable Me 4 | $968,240,710 | 2024 | [82] | |
| 7 | Minions: The Rise of Gru | $939,628,210 | 2022 | [83] | |
| 8 | The Secret Life of Pets | $875,457,937 | 2016 | [84] | |
| 9 | Sing | $634,151,679 | 2016 | [85] | |
| 10 | Kung Fu Panda 4 | $546,362,086 | DreamWorks Animation | 2024 | [86] |
See also
Notes
Release Notes
- Listed are the original theatrical release dates in the United States (or other non-U.S. territories) when the film was contributed by Universal. Different distributors are attributed and credited for distributing each film throughout the history of Universal.
- Original Soviet release date was November 15, 1957
- Released by Universal Pictures in North America
- Listed are the original theatrical release dates in the United States (or other non-U.S. territories) when the film was contributed by Universal. Different distributors are attributed and credited for distributing each film throughout the history of Universal.
- Not released theatrically in the United States, released as DTV film
Studio/Production Notes
- Released by Universal outside North America
- Released by Focus Features.
- Released by Gramercy Pictures.
- Released by Universal in Japan
- Released theatrically by MGM in USA
- Released theatrically and distributed in select international markets, including Netherlands, by Universal Pictures, released by Crunchyroll in US.
Rights Notes