51. “Jurassic World Dominion” (2022)
Total gross revenue: $1,000,000,000
Poor reviews didn’t stop people from seeing the third “Jurassic World” outing.
It took over three months, but “Jurassic World Dominion” crossed $1 billion worldwide. The sequel likely crossed the number thanks, in part, to the original “Jurassic Park” cast returning to the big screen and teaming up with the newer “Jurassic World” cast in this entry.
50. “The Dark Knight” (2008)
Total gross revenue: $1,006,102,277
Back in July of 2008, people began speculating that Christopher Nolan’s “Batman Begins” sequel starring Heath Ledger as the Joker might have the box-office power to set a world record. “There are even whispers starting whether ‘Dark Knight‘ can beat the incredible worldwide numbers posted by the all-time $1.8 billion benchmark of ‘Titanic,’” Deadline reported.
At the time, the film broke several box-office records, including highest-grossing opening weekend, highest Friday midnight showings, and highest-opening day record. “TDK” went on to become the highest-grossing movie of 2008.
The film’s successful viral marketing campaign and box-office performance really set the bar for what a superhero movie could be. Many consider it a blueprint for the success of superhero movies that came afterwards. Unfortunately, instead of DC catapulting into the stratosphere from here on out, Marvel took the lead, appearing on this list 10 times compared to DC’s four.
49. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (2012)
Total gross revenue: $1,017,030,651
When Peter Jackson’s first “Hobbit” movie crossed the $1 billion mark, it looked like a good indication that the subsequent two sequels would perform equally well, if not better, at the box office.
But neither of the second two “Hobbit” films wound up crossing that box-office landmark. Both “The Desolation of Smaug” and “Battle of the Five Armies” grossed around $960,000,000 each.
48. “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” (2001)
Total gross revenue: $1,022,290,019
Nineteen years after it’s initial 2001 release, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” managed to cross the $1 billion mark only after it was given a theatrical re-release in China.
Deadline reported that the movie had grossed $13.6 million over the course of three-days after it was released in theaters with a “remastered 4K 3D” version. It’s the second movie in the “Harry Potter” franchise to gross more than $1 billion.
44. “Finding Dory” (2016)
Total gross revenue: $1,028,570,942
Moviegoers flocked back to theaters in the summer of 2016 for Disney Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” sequel. It was the second animated feature of 2016 to pass the $1 billion mark (“Zootopia” is the other). At the time, the box-office numbers also made “Finding Dory” the fifth highest-grossing animated movie of all time.
43. “Despicable Me 3” (2017)
Total Gross Revenue: $1,034,800,131
“Despicable Me 3” was a sleeper hit of 2017. With the return of Gru, Lucy, and of course the Minions, this is the second movie in the franchise to gross over one billion dollars. The introduction of “South Park” co-creator Trey Parker as a new villain was clearly a smart move.
42. “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” (2011)
Total gross revenue: $1,045,713,802
There are four total “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies in the franchise — and two of them have joined the billion-dollar club. “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” sits behind the “Dead Man’s Chest” installment of this particular Disney franchise.
41. “Aladdin” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,050,693,953
Like many of the Disney live-action versions of animated classics, “Aladdin” did very well at the box office. “Aladdin” became one of Disney’s record-breaking seven movies to hit $1 billion in 2019.
40. “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016)
Total gross revenue: $1,056,057,720
“Rogue One” cemented its place in the “Star Wars” franchise by raking in $1 billion just 39 days after its global release. The spinoff became the fourth and final movie of 2016 to make $1 billion at the box office. It’s also worth noting that all four billion-dollar movies of 2016 were Disney releases.
39. “The Lion King” (1994)
Total gross revenue: $1,063,611,805
The 1994 Disney Oscar-winning picture grossed $968.5 million by the end of its theatrical run. Several rereleases of the film helped push it over the $1 billion mark.
38. “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” (2006)
Total gross revenue: $1,066,179,747
Back in 2006, when the sequel to Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl” hit theaters, it took just three months for the movie to make $1 billion at the box office. At that time, it was the third ever film to do so.
37. “Toy Story 3” (2010)
Total gross revenue: $1,066,970,811
The third movie in the “Toy Story” franchise crossed the $1 billion mark in 2010 and made Disney history as Pixar’s highest-grossing film of all time. The success of “Toy Story 3” helped push a fourth movie into Disney’s animated movie plan.
Read more: 10 things you didn’t know about ‘Toy Story 4’
36. “Toy Story 4” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,073,394,593
With “Toy Story 4” also crossing this milestone, Disney became the first movie studio to create seven billion-dollar movies in a single year. The movie joined its Disney comrades “Captain Marvel,” “Aladdin,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “The Lion King,” “Frozen II,” and “The Rise of Skywalker.”
35. “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,074,149,279
The ninth episode in the “Star Wars” Skywalker saga, “The Rise of Skywalker,” crossed the $1 billion mark on Tuesday, January 14.
As reported by Variety, it took this film 28 days to hit this milestone, while “The Force Awakens” did it in 12 days and “The Last Jedi” managed it in 19 days.
34. “Joker” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,074,445,730
This DC comic movie is the first R-rated movie to ever make $1 billion at the box office. Deadline announced the milestone, which came about six weeks after the movie premiered worldwide.
Marvel’s “Deadpool” star Ryan Reynolds snarkily congratulated “Joker” on becoming the highest-grossing R-Rated movie of all time.
32. “Jurassic Park” (1993)
Total gross revenue: $1,099,699,003
Similar to “The Phantom Menace,” a 3D re-release is responsible for putting “Jurassic Park” over the edge and into the $1 billion club. “Jurassic Park” wasn’t originally released in China in 1993, according to a report from The Wrap. But the 20th anniversary international re-release included China — and the difference in ticket sales showed.
A few more pandemic re-releases in 2020 and 2022 helped send it up the chart even more.
31. “Transformers: Age of Extinction” (2014)
Total gross revenue: $1,104,054,072
Ah yes, the unstoppable box-office power of the “Transformers” franchise. According to The Wrap, “Age of Extinction” (the fourth movie) was made specifically with international audiences in mind — and it paid off. Almost a third of the total box-office revenue came from China alone.
29. “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” (2011)
Total gross revenue: $1,123,794,079
The third “Transformers” movie was the first Paramount picture to reach $1 billion at the box office. Just like with “Age of Extinction,” the boost in ticket sales came largely from international movie audiences. This was the last “Transformers” movie which starred Shia LaBeouf.
28. “Captain Marvel” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,128,462,972
And here we begin with the seemingly unstoppable success of Marvel universe movies. Just over three weeks after its release date and record-breaking opening weekend, “Captain Marvel” crossed the billion-dollar mark for global box office sales.
24. “Captain America: Civil War” (2016)
Total gross revenue: $1,153,337,496
“Captain America: Civil War” was a blockbuster hit in 2016, and the first movie of that year to rake in $1 billion. The wild success of Cap’s third outing came from it playing more like an Avengers film thanks to a large superhero roster, including Iron Man, and the introduction of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man.
23. “Minions” (2015)
Total gross revenue: $1,159,444,662
The 2015 prequel to “Despicable Me” focused only on the overall-wearing Minions the world had come to love. People clearly appreciated the yellow henchman’s standalone film, since neither of the two “Despicable Me” movies have breached $1 billion.
21. “The Fate of the Furious” (2017)
Total gross revenue: $1,236,005,118
In April 2017, the eighth movie in “The Fast and the Furious” franchise joined the billion-dollar club. Clearly Vin Diesel’s creative control of these action-packed movies is paying off along with its diverse cast. This is the second movie from the franchise to make more than $1 billion.
19. “Beauty and the Beast” (2017)
Total gross revenue: $1,273,576,220
Also in April 2017, Walt Disney Studios announced that its live-action remake of “Beauty and the Beast” had officially passed the $1 billion mark for global box-office sales. Its total revenue makes “Beauty and the Beast” the highest-grossing film of 2017.
17. “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” (2018)
Total Gross Revenue: $1,310,466,296
The second installment in Universal’s rebooted “Jurassic Park” trilogy had an impressive opening weekend and then quickly grossed $1 billion after two weeks.
16. “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022)
Total Gross Revenue: $1,463,980,685
Pushing back Tom Cruise’s “Top Gun” sequel two years during the pandemic was the right move for Paramount. Far superior to the original with an actual focus on the Top Gun training program instead of a romance, the film became the second pandemic movie to cross $1 billion.
The film’s Memorial Day opening weekend of $248 million worldwide became Cruise’s career-best passing 2005’s “War of the Worlds” ($64.9 million). The movie has had massive staying power at the box office for 10 weeks and counting, only dropping 29% in its second weekend. (Usually, films will drop around 50% in week two.)
Its $709 million at the domestic box office makes it the fifth highest-grossing domestic film of all time ahead of “Black Panther” and “Titanic.” “Maverick” is currently the highest-grossing movie of 2022. For its success, Cruise is getting at least a $100 million payday.
14. “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two” (2011)
Total gross revenue: $1,342,359,942
Following the trend of some other franchises in our top list, the final “Harry Potter” film was the only one of the bunch that raked in $1 billion or more until “Sorcerer’s Stone” was given a theatrical release in China.
13. “Black Panther” (2018)
Total Gross Revenue: $1,347,597,973
“Black Panther” crossed this milestone in just 26 days after breaking the record for best February opening weekend of all time. This movie was the 16th Disney film to gross over one billion dollars.
12. “Avengers: Age of Ultron” (2015)
Total gross revenue: $1,402,809,540
“Transformers,” “The Dark Knight,” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” are three franchises which each have two movies in the billion dollar club — and you can add “The Avengers” to that list.
The 2015 follow-up ensemble movie added James Spader as the terrifying new villain, and (surprising no one) “Age of Ultron” opened in the number one spot around the world.
11. “Frozen II” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,450,026,933
The highly-anticipated sequel to the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, 2013’s “Frozen,” easily surpassed the box-office gross of its predecessor. “Frozen II” became Disney’s sixth (out of seven total) movies to cross $1 billion in 2019 after 24 days.
10. “Furious 7” (2015)
Total gross revenue: $1,515,341,399
“Furious 7” broke records when it raced past the $1 billion box-office mark in just 17 days. As Entertainment Weekly reported “that makes ‘Furious’ 7 the fastest live-action film to reach that number.” But two other 2015 movies (coming later on our list) eventually bumped it to third place.
This was the last “Fast and Furious” movie to include Paul Walker, which some believe helped boost box-office numbers.
9. “Marvel’s The Avengers” (2012)
Total gross revenue: $1,518,815,515
The first “Avengers” movie brought together an all-star cast of comic book heroes — and Marvel’s efforts were rewarded at the box office. The film passed $1 billion in ticket sales in just 19 days — which means it’s tied for third place in the list of fastest grossing movies alongside “Avatar” and “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two.”
8. “The Lion King” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $1,663,250,487
After just under three weeks in theaters, Disney’s remake of “The Lion King” crossed $1 billion dollars in total box-office gross. This was the fourth movie of 2019 to join the billion-dollar club.
The first three were “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” “Avengers: Endgame,” and “Captain Marvel.”
6. “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021)
Total gross revenue: $1,901,232,550
Spider-Man broke the pandemic curse. “No Way Home” became the first film since 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker” to cross $1 billion at the box office. The Tom Holland-starring film crossed $1 billion in just 12 days and become the highest-grossing movie of 2021.
According to Forbes, it’s only the fifth film to cross $1 billion without a China release. If it ever does open there, it will likely cross $2 billion.
4. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” (2015)
Total gross revenue: $2,069,521,700
The seventh movie in the “Star Wars” franchise broke the “Jurassic World” records when box-office numbers tallied $1 billion after only 12 days. And it didn’t stop there — “The Force Awakens” went on rake in more than $2 billion, solidifying its number four spot on our list and becoming the highest-grossing “Star Wars” movie of all time.
3. “Titanic” (1997)
Total gross revenue: $2,201,647,264
Two decades later, James Cameron’s “Titanic” is holding steady in its number-three spot for box-office records. The movie made around $1.8 billion during its initial 1997 release, and then topped $2 billion after it was re-released in 3D in honor of the 100-year anniversary of the iconic ship’s sinking.
2. “Avengers: Endgame” (2019)
Total gross revenue: $2,797,501,328
Marvel’s major endcap to its run of 22 comic-book based films broke the record for fastest movie to reach one-billion dollars in international box-office totals. On the Sunday of its opening weekend, Disney estimated “Avengers: Endgame” had made $1,209,000,000 within the first five days of its global debut.
It became the highest-grossing movie of all time until Disney re-released “Avatar” in China in 2021.
1. “Avatar” (2009)
Total gross revenue: $2,847,397,339
With more than $2.7 billion in box-office revenue, James Cameron’s “Avatar” was miles ahead of other films on the list.
Disney’s epic Marvel adventure “Avengers:Endgame” knocked it out of the top spot in the summer of 2019. However, “Avatar” retook the top spot when Disney (which now owns the rights after the Fox acquisition) re-released the film in China in spring 2021.
Now that Disney owns the rights to the two highest-grossing movies of all time, the company has the power to control which movie is in the top spot by simply re-releasing either film whenever it benefits the Mouse. Don’t be surprised with more “Avatar” re-releases as the long-awaited sequel hits theaters this December.
Promoting “Avatar 2” as the sequel to the highest-grossing movie of all time sounds way better than the sequel to the second highest-grossing film of all time.