Universal powers past $5 billion as Odyssey rewrites its record book
Universal has crossed $5 billion at the worldwide box office in 2026, the first studio to get there this year, Variety reported on 25 September.
That is rare air. It is only the third time in the studio's history that its yearly total has passed $5 billion, after 2015 and 2017.
The running total to date is $1.788 billion domestically, meaning the United States and Canada, and $3.218 billion internationally, for a combined $5.006 billion globally.
Scale came from the top of the chart. Universal handled three of the five films to pass $1 billion worldwide in 2026: The Odyssey, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie and Michael. The other two billion-dollar titles this year were Sony/Marvel's Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 5.
The Odyssey did the heaviest lifting. Directed by Christopher Nolan, it has earned $1.7 billion worldwide and become the biggest film in Universal's history. It ranks as the No. 10 film of all time globally and internationally among releases from the major Hollywood studios.
Michael followed with $1.028 billion worldwide. It is a Lionsgate film that Universal released internationally. That result moved it past Bohemian Rhapsody as the highest-grossing music biopic, and past Oppenheimer as the highest-grossing biopic of any kind.
Then came the outlier. Obsession, a horror release, earned $519 million worldwide after being produced for less than $1 million. It is now the highest-grossing worldwide release for Focus Features, Universal's specialty label, and for horror producer Blumhouse Atomic Monster.
The climb was steady. Universal was also the first studio to reach $4 billion worldwide this year, NBCUniversal said on 3 August, and the first to pass $3 billion internationally, on 31 August. The wider market helped. Summer 2026 set a domestic record with $4.76 billion, Deadline reported on 7 September, while analysts estimated the full year could top $10 billion, Reuters reported on 4 September.
What makes this stand out is the spread. A mythic epic, an animated sequel, a pop biopic and a micro-budget scare each added a different piece, and the ledger totalled more than any rival could match.
