You’ll Be Shocked to Learn the Highest-Grossing Movie of 2025

And no, the cartoon wasn't made by Disney, DreamWorks or Pixar, but rather Chengdu Coco Cartoon and Beijing Enlight Media as a sequel to 2019's Ne Zha. Directed and written by Jiaozi (also known as Yu Yang), the movie is inspired by the Chinese mythological character Ne Zha, a demon child voiced by Lü Yanting and Joseph Cao in Mandarin and Crystal Lee and Griffin Puatu in English.

Ne Zha 2 broke the world record for the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, topping Inside Out 2—which claimed the spot last year with $1.7 billion in ticket sales.

In addition to being record-breaking, it’s simply rare for an international film to reign supreme at the box office, as past winners include Barbie in 2023 (raking in $1.4 billion), Avatar: The Way of Water in 2022 ($2.3 billion) and Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021 ($1.9 billion).

But Ne Zha 2 has blown audiences away. As The Guardian put it in March, "Epic battle scenes and spellbinding graphics—and a dose of symbolism—have enticed Chinese audiences to the cinema in their millions." Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter's review praised its "endless action sequences," stating, "The sequel is certainly a stupendous achievement in terms of its animation, and clearly has great cultural resonance in its native country."

Not to mention, it got a boost in August when A24—known for such Oscar winners as Moonlight, Lady Bird and Everything Everywhere All at Once—released an English dub in the U.S. with none other than Wicked's Michelle Yeoh voicing Nezha's mom Lady Yin, alongside fellow voice actors Aleks Le, Vincent Rodriguez III, Rick Zeiff and William Utay.

And this month, the hit became available to stream on HBO Max, so there's still time to watch the biggest movie of 2025 before that ball drops on New Year's Eve.

If you're looking for more movies to add to your queue, grab some popcorn and read on to check out more recent and upcoming releases you don't want to miss.

Zootopia 2 - November 26, 2025

Based on the award-winning 2020 novel by Maggie O'Farrell and directed by Oscar winner Chloé Zhao, Hamnet tells the story of how William Shakespeare endured family tragedy to create his masterpiece, Hamlet. Starring Paul Mescal, Jessie Buckley, and Joe Alwyn.

Where to Watch: In select theaters on Nov. 27, expanding nationwide on Dec. 12.

This fresh twist on the classic holiday-comedy features a star-studded cast as one big dysfunctional family, including Michelle Pfeiffer, Felicity Jones, Chloë Grace Moretz, Denis Leary, Dominic Sessa, Jason Schwartzman, and Eva Longoria.

Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez star in the live stage filming of the Tony-winning Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's musical.

George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Billy Crudup and Laura Dern star in this "heartbreaking comedy" from writer-director Noah Baumbach.

Where to Watch: In theaters Nov. 14 and streaming on Netflix Dec. 5.

The 2023 horror hit gets the sequel treatment, with returning stars Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail and Matthew Lilllard joined by new characters played by Mckenna Grace and Skeet Ulrich.

When their beloved dog Merv loses his spark after their split, Anna (Zooey Deschanel) and Russ (Charlie Cox) are forced into the world’s most awkward co-parenting arrangement.

Daniel Craig returns as Benoit Blanc for his most dangerous case yet, alongside a stellar supporting cast including Glenn Close, Josh O'Connor, Josh Brolin, Jeremy Renner, Mila Kunis and Kerry Washington.

Ella McCay - December 12, 2025

An all-star cast (Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jack Lowden, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri) leads this comedy about an idealistic young woman juggling her family and work life.

Directed by Bradley Cooper and starring Will Arnett and Laura Dern, this comedy-drama follows a middle-aged comedian navigating an impending divorce.

SpongeBob and his Bikini Bottom friends set sail on a seafaring comedy-adventure, complete with ghost pirates.

It’s nearly Christmas when an unexpected turn in their mother’s health thrusts four adult siblings, and their exasperating father, into chaos as they navigate messy family dynamics in the face of potential loss. Kate Winslet makes her directorial debut and stars alongside Helen Mirren, Toni Collette, Andrea Riseborough, Johnny Flynn, and Timothy Spall.

Timothée Chalamet takes the lead in this 1950s-set sports drama about a young man with a dream of becoming a champion table-tennis player. Also starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Odessa A'zion.

Based on a true story, two down-on-their-luck musicians (Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson) form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band, proving it's never too late to find love and follow your dreams.

Tom Blyth and Emily Bader star in the movie adaptation of Emily Henry's bestselling romance novel.

A group of friends’ tropical vacation turns into a terrifying, primal tale of horror and survival.

BFFs Matt Damon and Ben Affleck reunite for this action thriller about a team of Miami cops who discover millions in cash in a derelict stash house and along with it some serious trust issues. Also starring Teyana Taylor and Steven Yeun.

Ralph Fiennes stars in this spin-off of the post-apocalyptic franchise, in which the inhumanity of the survivors becomes even more terrifying than the infected.

Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi step into the iconic roles of Catherine and Heathcliff in Saltburn director Emerald Fennell's new adaptation of Emily Brontë's classic novel.

Based on the beloved Dr. Seuss book, this animated adaptation will feature the voices of Bill Hader, Quinta Brunson, Bowen Yang, and America Ferrera.

Pixar’s all-new feature film introduces Mabel, an animal lover who uses new technology to “hop” human consciousness into lifelike robotic animals, allowing people to communicate with animals as animals!