Fans are curious whether a sequel to 2017's The Emoji Movie (The Emoji Movie 2) could ever be released in theaters or elsewhere.
This 2017 animated movie brought real-world emojis to life in the city of Textopolis, which is inside a smartphone. While each emoji has one facial expression for life, T.J. Miller's Gene is a lighthearted and cheerful emoji with multiple expressions who tries to become more "normal."
Teaming up with other emojis, he travels through apps and eventually discovers a danger that could threaten their home as they know it.
How Did The Emoji Movie Perform Upon Release?
The Emoji Movie debuted on July 28, 2017, and quickly became arguably the year's biggest critical flop.
To this day, it has only a 6% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the worst-performing movies in the site's history. On top of that, audiences were not much higher on it as it currently has a 36% Audience Score.
It did not fare better from a CinemaScore standpoint, where it came out with a B rating. This score is determined by audience reactions directly after leaving the theater, and while a B does not indicate a complete flop, it does not usually mean the movie was a hit either.
Interestingly, it performed admirably at the box office. Against a $50 million budget, it grossed $217 million (per Box Office Mojo).
While The Emoji Movie panned critically, its box office success may have been enough to warrant a potential sequel.
Will The Emoji Movie 2 Ever Release?
Based on the critical side alone, it seems unlikely that Sony Pictures Animation would want to greenlight a second Emoji Movie for release after the first one performed so dismally.
Even in 2024, it remains at or near the top of many "worst of" lists (see Collider) when ranking the worst animated movies ever. Sony would understandably be hesitant to make this film into a franchise, particularly with no guarantee that a second movie would perform better than the original.
Furthermore, emojis are far less of a new concept these days than in 2017 when smartphones first became common in the general public.
Bringing a second Emoji Movie would have far less of an impact culturally in the current era than it did seven years ago. Considering how much less marketable emojis are now, the concept would arguably not influence viewers similarly.
The Emoji Movie is streaming on Netflix.
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