Curious What Other Movies Have Passed the $1 Billion Mark Like ‘Michael’? Here Are the Top Ten Highest-Grossing Films of All Time

This summer’s sleeper hit Michael has garnered over $1 billion worldwide, making it the first biopic to cross the billion-dollar mark. Domestically, the film brought in a little over $371 million, while overseas it achieved almost $630 million in ticket sales. But while Michael is the highest-grossing biopic in history, several other films have also surpassed the $1 billion mark.

The billion-dollar-and-up club is a relatively small one, featuring only 60-something films. Some of the top ten on this list, however, managed even to top $2 billion. So, what kind of company does Michael find itself in? Unsurprisingly, several of the top film franchises.

Avatar

The highest-grossing film in history is Avatar, the story of a paraplegic Marine who is part of a colonizing mission on the foreign moon Pandora. There he encounters the Na’vi, the residents of Pandora, and it isn’t long before he’s torn between duty and protecting this new world.

Avatar’s domestic opening weekend sales were $77,025,481. Before it was all over, though, the film made an incredible $2,923,710,708 worldwide.

Avengers: Endgame

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to find the Avengers on this list (in fact, two Avengers films made the top ten). Avengers: Endgame brought the chapter of Marvel that began with The Avengers to a close, an ending that came with both joy and heartbreak. Audiences were eager to see how this chapter would play out, landing this film as the second highest-grossing of all time.

Avengers: Endgame’s domestic opening alone was $357,115,007, and altogether, the movie earned a total of $2,799,439,100.

Avatar: The Way of Water

Yep, Avatar also came in twice on the list of highest-earning movies. The second film in the Avatar series sees the Marine from the first movie happily living in Pandora with his newfound family. At least, until an old threat returns, and he and the Na’vi must once again protect their home.

Avatar: The Way of Water had a better domestic opening than the original, bringing in $134,100,226. However, overall, it earned just a few million less, garnering $2,334,484,620 in worldwide ticket sales.

Ne Zha 2

This animated film was the follow-up to China’s 2019 Ne Zha, about a demonic boy raised to fight demons. While the original only managed to make $726,121,261 worldwide, Ne Zha 2 did much better. The direct sequel continues to follow Ne Zha’s journey as he and his friends attempt to recover from the events of the first movie.

While Ne Zha 2’s domestic opening was only $7,687,776, it ended up making $2,267,446,370 globally.

Titanic

In case you weren’t around when Titanic hit theaters, it was a cultural phenomenon. There was no way to escape Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” or debates about whether Jack could have fit on the makeshift raft with Rose. Titanic was everywhere, so the amount of money it made isn’t shocking.

While Titanic’s domestic opening was much more modest than the top three movies on this list at $28,638,131, the film eventually earned a total of $2,264,812,968.

Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens

There had to be at least one Star Wars movie in the top ten highest-grossing films, and The Force Awakens earns that honor. This sequel to Return of the Jedi follows Rey and company’s search for Luke Skywalker, while they also fight against the First Order and Kylo Ren. It was also the third film ever to pass the $2 billion mark.

Its domestic opening was impressive at $247,966,675 in ticket sales, but altogether, The Force Awakens made an even more impressive $2,071,310,218 at the box office.

Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Infinity War preceded Avengers: Endgame, offering up the beginning of the end to fans. And while the long-awaited storyline featuring Thanos and the Avengers attempting to save the world once again did well, it didn’t do quite as well as the movie that followed it.

Its domestic opening only brought in $257,698,183, while Avengers: Infinity War’s overall take was several million less than Avengers: Endgame at $2,052,415,039.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

The Avengers films aren’t the only Marvel properties to bypass the $1 billion mark. Everyone was excited to see how Spider-Man would fare after his identity was revealed (and how past versions of Spider-Man would be tied into the film), leading audiences to flock to the theaters to see Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The movie’s domestic opening was pretty great, reaching $260,138,569 in ticket sales. However, it didn’t manage to break the $2 billion mark, earning only $1,921,426,073 worldwide.

Zootopia 2

The original Zootopia, about a rookie bunny cop and a con artist fox that must team up for a case, was a hit, breaking the billion dollar mark. However, its sequel, Zootopia 2, which had the bunny and fox teaming up once again, managed to surpass the original by several million dollars.

The sequel brought in $100,262,540 at its domestic opening (versus the original’s $75,063,401). Overall, it managed to garner $1,866,647,950 worldwide, while the original only brought in $1,044,585,599.

Inside Out 2

Finally, the 10^th highest-grossing film in history is another animated one, Inside Out 2. While Inside Out, which followed the inner emotions of a young girl, did well, the sequel, following the protagonist of the first film as she navigates her teenage years, far surpassed its earnings.

Inside Out 2 had a reasonably good domestic opening, earning $154,201,673. Over time, though, it ended up grossing $1,698,863,816 globally (whereas the first only made a total of $859,076,401 worldwide).

(feature image: Lionsgate)

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