Inside Out 2 Becomes 2024’s Highest-Grossing Film, Yet Animation Still Struggles for Oscar Recognition

Inside Out 2 dominated the box office in 2024, earning an impressive $653 million domestically and surpassing $1 billion globally, making it the highest-grossing film of the year. Despite its monumental success, the film—alongside another 2024 hit, Wild Robot—was notably absent from the Oscar nominations for Best Picture. This has reignited the ongoing conversation about the place of animated films in the Academy Awards.

Animation continues to exist in its own niche, often overlooked in major categories like Best Picture. While the Academy introduced the Best Animated Feature category in 2002, only three animated films in Oscar history have ever been nominated for Best Picture: Beauty and the Beast (1992), Up (2009), and Toy Story 3 (2010). This limited recognition highlights the challenges animated films face in being seen as equal to live-action cinema.

At the 2023 Academy Awards, acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro passionately advocated for animated films to receive greater consideration. He emphasized that animation is an integral part of the film industry, requiring meticulous planning and artistry, much like live-action films. “You don’t get anything by accident or by chance in animation,” del Toro stated. “You have to plan everything.”

Despite the critical and commercial success of animated films, they are often stereotyped as being solely for children, which hinders their broader appreciation. This perception, coupled with the occasional use of humor aimed at younger audiences, can overshadow the depth and creativity that animated films bring to the industry.

However, animated filmmakers remain optimistic. They are determined to break through these barriers and challenge the notion that animation is lesser than live-action. As the industry evolves, there is hope that the Academy and audiences alike will recognize the artistry and storytelling potential of animated films, paving the way for future nominations and wins in the Best Picture category.