Every movie is made with a conviction that it would be successful. Movie being a collaborative artwork involving months of hard work by 100s of people, its fate cannot be predicted until it hit theaters. While many creations flop at box office, a handful amass astronomical gain. Here we present those top 10 movies grossed highest earnings at worldwide box-offices. Below list is based on theatrical revenues. While theatrical exhibition generates major revenue for most of the movies, there are other revenue streams like TV broadcasting rights, home video rights, merchandising, online streaming rights etc. So, here is the countdown of top-grossing movies:
#10: Frozen II
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $1.450 billion
Frozen II is a 3D computer-animated musical fantasy from Walt Disney and was directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. The movie was made with a budget of $150 million.
Set three years after the events of the first film, the story follows Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven, who embark on a journey beyond their kingdom of Arendelle in order to discover the origin of Elsa’s magical powers and save their kingdom after a mysterious voice calls out to Elsa.
The cast includes Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, and Ciarán Hinds.
#9: Furious 7
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $1.516 billion
Furious 7 (seventh installment in the Fast & Furious franchise) was directed by James Wan and released in 2015. It was made with a budget of $190 million. Furious 7 follows Dominic Toretto (Diesel), Brian O’Conner (Walker), and the rest of their team, who have returned to the United States to live normal lives after securing amnesty for their past crimes in Fast & Furious 6, until Deckard Shaw (Statham), a rogue special forces assassin seeking to avenge his comatose younger brother Owen Shaw, puts the team in danger once again.
The movie stars Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Djimon Hounsou, Kurt Russell, and Jason Statham.
#8: The Avengers
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $1.519 billion
The Avengers, is a 2012 superhero movie based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. The movie was written and directed by Joss Whedon, and was made with a budget of $220 million. In the movie, Nick Fury and the spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D. recruit Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Thor to form a team capable of stopping Thor’s brother Loki from subjugating Earth.
The cast includes Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, and Jeremy Renner.
#7: The Lion King
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $1.657 billion
The Lion King, released in 2019, was directed by Jon Favreau. The movie plot follows Simba, a young lion who must embrace his role as the rightful king of his native land following the murder of his father, Mufasa, at the hands of his uncle, Scar. The production budget for this movie was $250–260 million.
This photo-realistic computer-animated remake stars the voices of Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alfre Woodard, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, Florence Kasumba, Eric Andre, Keegan-Michael Key, JD McCrary, Shahadi Wright Joseph, and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.
#6: Jurassic World
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $1.672 billion
Jurassic World, a science fiction released in 2015, is the fourth installment of the Jurassic Park film series and a a direct sequel to the franchise’s first film, Jurassic Park. It was directed by Colin Trevorrow and was made with a budget of $150 million.
Jurassic World narrates the chaos happening 22 years after the events of Jurassic Park when a transgenic dinosaur escapes from its enclosure in a theme park of cloned dinosaurs on the same fictional island of Isla Nublar where the first movie was set.
The movie stars Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Vincent D’Onofrio, Ty Simpkins, Nick Robinson, Omar Sy, BD Wong, and Irrfan Khan.
#5: Avengers: Infinity War
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $2.048 billion
Avengers: Infinity War, a 2018 film, was directed by Anthony Russo and Joseph Russo. In this superhero movie based on the Marvel Comics superhero team, the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy attempt to prevent Thanos from collecting the six all-powerful Infinity Stones as part of his quest to kill half of all life in the universe. The movie’s production cost was $316–400 million.
The cast include Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Josh Brolin, and Chris Pratt.
#4: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $2.068 billion
Star Wars: The Force Awakens, released in 2015, is the first installment in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, following the story of Return of the Jedi (1983). Set 30 years after Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens follows Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, and Han Solo’s search for Luke Skywalker and their fight in the Resistance, led by General Leia Organa and veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, a successor to the Galactic Empire. The movie was directed by J. J. Abrams and cast includes Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow. The gross budget for its production was $306 million.
#3: Titanic
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $2.194 billion
A 1997 release, Titanic tells a fictional love story in the backdrop of historic disastrous maiden voyage of RMS Titanic. The move was written and directed by James Cameron and made with a budget of $200 million.
The cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher, Bernard Hill, Jonathan Hyde, Danny Nucci, David Warner and Bill Paxton.
#2: Avatar
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $2.790 billion
Avatar, released in 2009, is a science fiction written and directed by James Cameron. It tells the story of humans colonizing a lush habitable moon, named Pandora, to mine the mineral unobtanium. This expansion threatens the existence of Pandora’s indigenous species, a humanoid named Na’vi. The production budget of this movie was $237 million.
The main actors include Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver.
#1: Avengers: Endgame
Box-Office Gross Revenue: $2.798 billion
Avengers: Endgame, directed by Anthony Russo and Joseph Russo, was released in 2019. It was produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The movie was made for a budget of $356 million.
Avengers: Endgame narrates the attempt of surviving members of the Avengers and their allies to reverse the damage caused by Thanos in its sequel, Avengers: Infinity War.
The cast includes Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson, Karen Gillan, Danai Gurira, Benedict Wong, Jon Favreau, Bradley Cooper, Gwyneth Paltrow and Josh Brolin.
