There is a common trend I have noticed time and time again regarding many of Pixar's film releases. This is that many of Pixar's summer released movies, when they are given a release date for the US, they are given a release date somewhere in the middle of June. However, when they are given a release date for the UK, they are given a release date at some point in July, possibly a month or over a month after release in the US. For example, Toy Story 3 was given a June 18, 2010 release in the US, but took until July 19 to be released in the UK. Cars 2 was given a June 24, 2011 release in the US, but took until July 22 for the UK release. This trend for release dates has been continued with Brave, Monsters University, Inside Out, Finding Dory and Cars 3, but why exactly is this? Why exactly does it take about a month after the US release for Pixar's movies to be released in the UK?
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Chosen answer: This isn't just a thing Pixar does. It's very standard. For example, just looking at 12 US films released in Jan 2016, only 1 had the same release date in the UK. 6 had a UK release date more than a month later, 2 were not released in the UK, and 3 had release dates 2-3 weeks later. Many factors go into the decision when to release in various countries. A lot has to do with marketing. For example, when films are released at different dates, stars of the film can attend premiers in both the US and UK and have more time to promote their films. Additionally, distribution companies and studios want to see how the film will do in the US. Studios also have to consider the UK market and what films they'll be competing against opening week. There are also many factors in deciding to release a film on the same date. Most top grossing films tend to open world wide on the same date where marketing in the US is rolled over to the UK and it helps reduce piracy opportunities. For Pixar, it would seem they found that the delay works best for them.