Licensing at the Oscars: The Category That Actually Matters

Why do some Oscar-winning films generate huge licensing businesses while others create almost none?

In this episode of Born to License, David looks at Hollywood’s biggest night through a licensing lens. While the world focuses on Best Picture, the licensing industry should be paying attention to a very different category: Best Animated Feature.

From Shrek to Frozen, animated films have consistently created billion-dollar licensing ecosystems that shape retail for years after their release. Meanwhile, many Best Picture winners - despite their cultural impact - generate little to no consumer products business.

David breaks down why animation continues to dominate licensing, what this year’s nominees tell us about the future of consumer products, and which upcoming franchises could become the next major licensing opportunities.

In this episode:

• Why Best Picture rarely translates into a major licensing program
• The licensing power of animated franchises like Shrek, Frozen, and Toy Story
• Why Best Animated Feature is the category that really matters for licensing
• The growing momentum behind K-Pop Demon Hunters
• Why upcoming releases like Toy Story 5 could become major licensing moments
• The importance of original IP in building long-term consumer products businesses

If you work in licensing, retail, or brand strategy, this is the Oscars category you should be watching.

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Transcript

The Oscars Through a Licensing Lens

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hollywood's biggest night just happened. And while the rest of the world is debating best picture winners and acceptance speeches, I'm asking the question, what does this mean for licensing? I'm David Bourne and this is Born to License. Now, a quick note here before we start. I'm recording this before the Oscar ceremony. But the episode will air after the winners are announced. So while I have no clue what's going to happen, you already know who won. It's important context as you listen to this episode. Every year the Oscars take over the cultural conversation. And every year, all eyes are on the big categories that are leading the news cycle. But for me, of course, I'm looking out for what it means for licensing. Let me explain. Best picture is Hollywood's most prestigious award. It drives cultural conversation for months. It can define a director's career. But, and this is a truth the licensing industry knows well, the winner of Best Picture almost never translates into a meaningful consumer products business. Think about recent best picture winners: Enora, Oppenheimer, Everything Everywhere All at Once. Three culturally significant films, three properties with essentially zero licensing footprint. Now let's go back further. To find a best picture winner that actually supported a serious licensing program, you have to go all the way back to 2003. Before that, Gladiator in 2000, and before that, Titanic in 1997. And even those films, Gladiator, Titanic, even Rocky back in 1976, The Godfather in 1972, their licensing success came largely after the theatrical moment, not during it. This year's Best Picture Race is fascinating from a pop culture standpoint. Cinners set a new all-time record with 16 Oscar nominations. One battle after another came in strong with 13. I've seen them both, and they're both extraordinary films, and I highly recommend seeing them if you haven't already. But neither have a significant consumer products program. And if history is our guide, that's unlikely to change regardless of who took home the trophy last night. So if Best Picture isn't where we should be looking, where should the licensing industry be focused? The answer to that question is best animated feature. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it, this is the most important category in the entire Oscar ceremony from a licensing standpoint. And yet it's almost always treated as a supporting act. The category was introduced in 2002, and the very first winner, well, it was Shrek, a licensing juggernaut that is still generating revenue more than two decades later. In fact, I've been to several Universal licensing showcases over the last six months, and they are gearing up for something enormous. Shrek 5, it's slated for July 2027. It's going to be one of the biggest licensing moments of next year. If you're a licensee and you're not already thinking about how to align with that franchise, the conversation really needs to start now. Let's take a look at the track record of best animated feature winners. Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Happy Feet, Frozen, Spider-Man into the Spider-Verse. These, of course, were incredible films, that's why they won, but they were also licensing powerhouses that shaped the retail landscape for years after their release. And the franchise that's bookended this category in the most remarkable way, well, it's Toy Story. Toy Story 3 won for Best Animated Feature in 2010, and then Toy Story 4 took the Oscar in 2019. In just a few months, we're getting Toy Story 5, which I've already gone on record predicting will be the biggest licensing moment of 2026. That franchise was built for consumer products. So what about this year's nominees? Well, we have Arco, Ilio, Little Amelie, or the character of Rain, Zootopia 2, and K-pop Demon Hunters. Of those five, only two entered the awards race with meaningful licensing programs, Zotopia 2 and K-pop Demon Hunters. And honestly, neither reached their full potential leading up to and during the launch window. K-pop Demon Hunters is the one I've been watching most closely. This property became much bigger than anyone anticipated. Netflix was caught a little flat-footed early on, but they've course corrected significantly. We saw that on the show floor at Toy Fairs earlier this year. There's real energy building behind the brand now. Hasbro and Mattel have both taken on significant licensing roles, and the song Golden was actually nominated for Best Original Song, which I assume by now has already been awarded the Oscar. This tells you something about how deeply this property has embedded itself in popular culture. Now, by the time you're listening to this, the winner of Best Animated Feature will have been announced. The bookmakers had K-pop Demon Hunters at a 93% probability of winning, with Zootopia 2 as the next most likely contender. I am, of course, backing K-pop Demon Hunters tonight. You can't argue with those odds. It really feels like the right call. And whoever wins, the licensing implication is the same. The animated feature category is where the commercial opportunity lives. Every licensee and brand licensed or in this space should be watching this category every single year with the same intensity that Hollywood watches Best Picture. Now, since I'm recording before the ceremony, I may as well put my cards on the table for other categories. For Best Picture, I think one battle after another. For Best Actor, Timothy Chameley for Marty Supreme. Best supporting actor, I'm gonna go for Sean Penn for one battle after another. Best actress, Jesse Buckley for Hamnet, and Best Supporting Actress, Tiana Taylor, for one battle after another. By the time you listen to this, you'll know how well I did. Drop me a message and let me know, and I can take the criticism if I got a lot wrong there. Before I go, a few things I've been watching closely this week. Pixar's new original film, Hoppers, had an extraordinary opening weekend, around$88 million worldwide. That is the best opening for an original Pixar film since Coco back in 2017. And given its reviews and audience scores, I feel like this one has legs. Pixar will be breathing a sigh of relief, and the licensing industry should be paying attention. Original IP with this kind of commercial and critical traction is exactly where long-term licensing programs are built. So watch this space. On the Born to License client side, we've had a run of exciting product launches recently. Wolfpack launched a Barbie Tactical Backpack Range, and they've also just dropped a Dora the Explorer backpack collection. I have to say, this one is a full circle moment for me personally. My first ever licensing role involved Dora of the Explorer yogurts. Almost 20 years later, I'm working on Dora the Explorer Tactical Backpacks. The brand never stops. Elsewhere, Bandoo launched Peppa Pig themed kids' headphones. Hippo Blue dropped a Batman back to school range. DreamBig Little Co. launched a Eric Carl Bamboo pajama collection, and Comma Football is celebrating Diego Maradona's legacy through a unique fan apparel line. The Born to License team has done an incredible job to support our clients in bringing those licensed products to market. And a massive congratulations to everyone involved. And finally, if you've been following Born in Action, our behind the scenes vlog on YouTube, we've just dropped a new episode covering my journey leading up to and running the Melbourne Marathon last October. It's personal, it's honest, and it gives you a real look at what goes on outside the licensing office. I'll put the links in the show notes and you can find the Born to License channel on YouTube. If you found value in today's episode, please share it with a colleague. And if you haven't already, subscribe so you never miss an episode. You can catch me on LinkedIn, Instagram, or email hello at borntoLicense.com. I'm David Bourne, and this is Born to License.