Star Wars and Super Heroes To Drive 2016 Toy Sales

Last Updated on May 10, 2021 by Danielle

Entertainment properties are driving toy sales and will continue in 2016.

With blockbusters like Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Jurassic World, and the Minions generating huge sales in 2015, Hollywood movies are expected to continue driving sales again this year. Last year, Star Wars generated an astounding $700 million in toy sales and the U.S. toy sales grew about 7% to $19 billion. Movie-based toy sales increased by more than 9%. Although box office movie ticket sales aren’t expected to hit 2015’s record levels of more than $11 billion, the toy business shouldn’t be negatively impacted significantly.

This year some of the highly-anticipated Marvel and DC superhero films we can expect are: Batman vs. Superman, X-Men: Apocalypse, Captain America: Civil War, Fantastic Four, Suicide Squad, Doctor Strange, and Deadpool. We’re betting that some of 2021’s hottest Christmas toys will be based on movies.

Kids films include Finding Dory, the long-awaited sequel to Disney/Pixar’s Finding Nemo, Incredibles 2, Kung Fu Panda 3, The Jungle Book, Ice Age: Collision Course, The Angry Birds Movie, Popeye, Fantastic Beasts, Alice Through The Looking Glass, Disney Zootopia, and The Secret Lives of Pets.

Top videogame franchises, such as Warcraft, Uncharted, and Assassin’s Creed are expected to make their box office debut.

Major box office blockbusters for 2016 include Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Transformers 5: Revenge of the Fallen, Transformers: Rise of Unicorn, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, Star Trek: Beyond, Ghostbusters, Jason Bourne, and The BFG from Steven Spielberg.

With a strong offering of superhero movies, kids’ films, and blockbusters at the box office this year, it should continue to drive sales of action figures, dolls, and vehicles associated with these films. Clearly, there is plenty to be excited about this year. Movie tie-in toys are likely to be heavily discussed at the New York Toy Fair.

Warner’s DC Entertainment is expected to launch DC Super Hero Girls, a new franchise targeting young girls ages 6 – 12. Toy manufacturers can expect to continue to benefit from the momentum built from the Star Wars: The Force Awakens box office hit. According to reports, 40-45% of toys sales can be attributed to licensed properties. The bottom line is that it should be a fantastic year for the toy industry.

And it’s not all about movies. In an effort to boost sales, the toy industry is examining popular digital media franchises. For instance, Shopkins, collectible dolls that were a major toy industry hit last year, spawned a successful YouTube series. Engagement through YouTube and video games is another major strategic focus. Some of the best family games for ps4 and best family games for Xbox One are driven by movies, but video games are now being used to drive toy sales.