The Top Ten Highest Grossing Movies of All-Time

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There’s a reason blockbusters are getting bigger budgets than ever, because they have the potential to make more than ever before. The top ten list of the highest grossing movies of all time is forever expanding, and it seems as if every year or two brings a new entry. There are a few ways to calculate this, and I’m going with worldwide box office, not adjusted for inflation. While I know that Gone with the Wind will probably have the all-time record when inflation is factored in, I think it also didn’t have to compete with nearly the same amount of different forms of entertainment that today’s movies are up against, so it balances out somewhat. So here they are, the top ten highest grossing movies of all time.

[Photo via FOX]

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10. The Dark Knight Rises ($1.084B)

Many might say that The Dark Knight was the best film of Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, but that didn’t stop The Dark Knight Rises from edging it out at the box office. But just barely. If this were a top twenty list, The Dark Knight would come in at #19 with $1.004B, but given how much people were hyped for the third film, it was edged out. As it stands, Nolan’s films are among the highest grossing superhero movies ever, though you will find one or two ahead of Rises on the list here.

[Photo via WB]

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9. Skyfall ($1.108B)

You would think a film series would start to lose pace after 20+ films, but not every other film franchise is James Bond. The most recent installment in the series was thought to be one of the best, and a huge performance around the world made it by far the highest grossing Bond film ever, and vaulted it into the top ten of all time. Skyfall will certainly be hard to top, but someone is hard at work on a new Bond film as we speak, assuredly, and will try to topple this record.

[Photo via Sony]

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8. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King ($1.119B)

If any Lord of the Rings film could make the top ten here, I’m glad it was Return of the King, which is arguably the best of the three. The movie was a fantastic capstone for Peter Jackson’s trilogy, and it attracted the largest audience of any of the films. Interestingly, both of the new Hobbit films are ahead of both of the other Lord of the Rings films on the highest grossing charts, even with the lukewarm reception the new films have received.

[Photo via New Line]

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7. Transformers: Dark of the Moon ($1.123B)

You didn’t think we’d be able to get through this list without at least one Transformers movie, did you? Well, it seems that the “best” film of the three, Dark of the Moon, managed to gross the most in ticket sales around the world, but saying it’s the best Transformers movie may not be considered high praise to many. It’s unclear where Transformers: Age of Extinction will fall on this list, but that film has already crossed $500M worldwide in just two weeks of release.

[Photo via Paramount]

Iron Man 3

6. Iron Man 3 ($1.215B)

There was some debate about whether or not Iron Man 3 would end up being a disaster, given that the director of the first two, Jon Favreau, had departed and turned duties over to Shane Black instead. But it turned out that Iron Man 3 may have been the best of the bunch, and it had the box office receipts to match. I believe most everyone involved, Robert Downey Jr. included,  wanted to be done with standalone Iron Man films after this one, but given how much money this made, I can’t see that happening.

[Photo via Buena Vista]

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5. Frozen ($1.267B)

And yes, we have a newcomer to this list as of last year. Frozen is not only the highest grossing animated movie of all time and the highest grossing movie directed by a woman of all time, it’s the fifth highest grossing movie period with only a few others ahead of it. A non-traditional story structure and an insanely catchy soundtrack vaulted it to immortality, and it’s far and away the most profitable thing Disney has done in recent memory.

[Photo via Disney]

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4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 ($1.341B)

Only one Harry Potter film made this list, but the other seven are scattered all throughout the top fifty. Like so many other series listed here, it was the grand conclusion that ended up making the most money out of all of them, though this time the film was a literal part two, as the last book had been split in half given its enormity. The final Harry Potter film was more or less an enormous battle, and from the box office receipts, it seems fans were more than satisfied with it.

[Photo via WB]

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3. Marvel’s The Avengers ($1.518B)

The Avengers was unlike nearly any other film before it in the sense that Marvel and Disney had been building up its release for years, not just with promotion but with literal supporting blockbusters focused on Iron Man, Thor and Captain America. They all culminated in one epic blockbuster directed by fan-favorite Joss Whedon. Despite all the pressure, Whedon delievered, and is now responsible for the highest grossing superhero film of all time.

[Photo via Buena Vista]

OSCARS-BEST PICTURE

2. Titanic ($2.186B)

Given the fact that Titanic was released in 1997, that figure is especially impressive. James Cameron held the record for many, many years, and no one thought it would ever be possible to beat. As you can see, even from its current competition, Titanic is still $700M above its closest competitor down the list. Repeat viewings from lovestruck fans caused the film to achieve immortality, and the only way it’s record was broken was because…

[Photo via Paramount]

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1. Avatar ($2.782B)

…James Cameron made an even higher grossing film. There was every possibility, and almost probability, that Avatar would be a disaster with its unsettling aliens, bizarre concept and relatively unknown cast, but the magic of James Cameron pushed through it all, and created a film that broke his own “impossible” record by a mile. Avatar’s box office was helped by 3D ticket sales, and though it didn’t cause the format to catch fire with other films, is widely thought of as the movie that has used the tech best. Avatar 2 and 3 are already in the works, and we’ll have to see if they can come close to this record when they’re released.

[Photo via FOX]

 

Written by Paul

Paul lives in New York with his beautiful and supportive wife. He writes for Forbes and his work also appears on IGN, The Daily Dot, Unreality Magazine, TVOvermind and more. It's a slow day if he's written less than 10,000 words.