Toy Story 3 – 98%

Third time isn’t always a charm for blockbuster franchises, but in the case of Toy Story, it proved a winner both creatively and commercially. A beautiful conclusion to the CG-animated series’ initial trilogy, Toy Story 3 is notorious for reducing grown adults to blubbering wrecks. As well as grossing $1.067 billion worldwide, director Lee Unkrich’s film scores a near-perfect 98% at Rotten Tomatoes.

Zootopia – 98%

Questions might be asked about the overall popular impact of 2016’s Zootopia (or Zootropolis as it’s known in some territories), but the Disney animated movie was a smash hit on release. The film from directors Rich Moore and Byron Howard rang up $1.025 billion in ticket sales, and also attracted positive reviews to the tune of a 98% RT score.

Toy Story 4 – 97%

Not everyone agreed there was any good creative reason to make a fourth Toy Story, but the resulting film wound up going down very well indeed. On top of earning a stunning 97% RT score, director Josh Cooley’s Toy Story 4 was one of the biggest hits of 2019, with a final global box office haul of $1.073 billion.

Top Gun: Maverick – 96%

After having its release delayed several times due to both a complex post-production and the Covid-19 pandemic, actor/producer Tom Cruise really needed his long-awaited sequel Top Gun: Maverick to be successful. Luckily for Cruise, it was both the biggest hit of his career, and one of his best reviewed movies. Director Joseph Kosinski’s blockbuster earned $1.496 billion and scored 96% on the Tomatometer.

Black Panther – 96%


Challenging old preconceptions that films with predominantly black casts won’t appeal to a wide audience, Marvel’s 2018 superhero movie Black Panther proved a global phenomenon. Director Ryan Coogler’s film, starring the sadly missed Chadwick Boseman, earned $1.349 billion, holds a 96% fresh Rotten Tomatoes rating, and also has the distinction of being the first Marvel Studios production to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – 96%

Almost a full decade after it began in November 2001, the Harry Potter series came to a suitably grandiose conclusion with July 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, which proved to be both the highest-earning and best-reviewed entry in the eight-film saga. Director David Yates’ adaptation of JK Rowling’s novel earned $1.342 billion, and a 96% fresh RT score.

Avengers: Endgame – 94%

11 years after the Marvel Cinematic Universe began with 2008’s Iron Man, the initial superhero saga reached a conclusion of sorts with 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, which remains the biggest comic book blockbuster to date. A member of the still exclusive $2 billion club, Joe and Anthony Russo’s film (which scores 94% at RT) was briefly the biggest hit in blockbuster history, earning $2.799 billion worldwide.

The Dark Knight – 94%

Christopher Nolan’s second Batman movie The Dark Knight was a major watershed moment for comic book movies. Earning $1.006 billion worldwide, the 2008 film was the fourth biggest hit ever on release, and the reviews were good enough to earn it a 94% RT score. On top of all that, Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker won him a posthumous Best Supporting Actor Oscar.

Finding Dory – 94%

Arriving 13 years after the original Disney-Pixar hit, 2016’s Finding Dory took us back to the aquatic world of 2003’s Finding Nemo, and audiences couldn’t wait to get back there. Earning a 94% RT score, director Andrew Stanton’s $1.029 billion-grossing blockbuster had the biggest opening for an animated movie at the time, and it was briefly the highest-grossing animated movie ever at the US box office.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King – 94%

The final entry in director Peter Jackson’s ground-breaking three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel The Lord of the Rings was a true big screen epic. On top of earning $1.147 billion and scoring 94% at Rotten Tomatoes, 2003’s The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King also swept the board at the Oscars, winning all 11 awards for which it was nominated.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens – 93%

When Star Wars: The Force Awakens opened in December 2015, it broke the box-office records for a movie in its first few weeks of release. In just 12 days, it had brought in $1 billion worldwide. The seventh film in the saga was a hit both with critics and at the box office, making more than $2 billion globally and becoming the highest-grossing Star Wars movie of all time.

Spider-Man: No Way Home – 93%

Spider-Man broke the pandemic curse of big-budget flops. 2021’s No Way Home became the first film since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker to cross $1 billion at the box office. Starring Tom Holland and directed by Jon Watts, the movie earned $1 billion in just 12 days and became one of the few films to cross $1 billion without a release in China.

Incredibles 2 – 93%

The sequel to 2004’s The Incredibles, the animated action-comedy film Incredibles 2, was released in theaters on June 15, 2018 – a long 14 years after the original movie. Despite the wait, the sequel broke records as the fastest animated film to gross $1 billion at the box office.

Skyfall – 92%

The 2012 James Bond movie Skyfall was a smash hit, grossing more than $1 billion worldwide and becoming Sony’s most successful film of all time. The film’s success likely benefited from Adele’s recording of the Oscar-winning theme song.

Jurassic Park – 91%

Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park had long been out of theaters when a 3D re-release put it over the edge and into the $1 billion club. The movie wasn’t originally released in China, however, the 20th-anniversary international re-release included China and proved to be even more popular than previous releases. This led to more pandemic re-releases in 2020 and 2022, which helped push the box office revenue even higher.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi – 91%

2017’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi racked up more than $1 billion worldwide. It took only three weeks for the second installment in the rebooted franchise to cross that mark – though its predecessor, The Force Awakens, still holds the record for the biggest opening weekend for a Star Wars movie with $529 million.

Marvel’s The Avengers – 91%

The first Avengers movie brought together a group of popular comic book characters – and the blockbuster film became one of Marvel’s biggest hits. The movie went on to become the third-fastest movie to cross $1 billion in ticket sales, tying with Avatar and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two.

Captain America: Civil War – 91%

In 2016’s first blockbuster hit, Captain America: Civil War, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s heroes face off against one another. The success of Captain America: Civil War was due to its large superhero cast, including Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and the introduction of Tom Holland as Spider-Man.

Spider-Man: Far From Home – 90%

Spider-Man: Far From Home, starring Tom Holland, Zendaya and Samuel L. Jackson, crossed the one-billion mark less than a month after its US premiere on July 2, 2019. The sequel to Spider-Man Homecoming proved that Holland’s Spider-Man is one of the most financially successful superheroes and movie franchises.

Frozen – 90%

Frozen held the record for the highest-grossing animated film of all time until its sequel outdid it in 2019. The blockbuster musical about two sisters also picked up two Oscars. It became Disney’s third highest-grossing film of all time, earning more than $400 million for the production company.

Barbie – 88%

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie – starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling – has been a mega hit with audiences since its release. The film opened at #1 at the box office and quickly became the highest-grossing movie of 2023, taking in over $1 billion in just 17 days, thanks in part to a social media phenomenon known as ‘Barbenheimer’. The box office success has led to Gerwig becoming the first female director to gross over $1 billion.

Titanic – 88%

Director James Cameron has made three movies that have grossed more than $1 billion at the box office. After more than two decades, his Titanic is still one of the biggest hits in Hollywood history. The 1997 film, which was based on the real-life sinking of the passenger liner of the same name, made about $1.8 billion during its initial release and then topped $2 billion after a 3D rerelease in 2023.

The Dark Knight Rises – 87%

Christopher Nolan’s 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises became the 13th movie of all time to gross $1 billion. The Dark Knight Rises had a successful run at the box office despite concerns that it would be affected by the tragic shooting in Aurora, Colorado, which occurred during a midnight screening.

Avengers: Infinity War – 85%

In 2018, Avengers Infinity War became the highest-grossing film in history with a $630 million opening weekend and proved that the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise was stronger than ever. By mid-June, two months after its release, Avengers: Infinity War had grossed more than $2 billion worldwide.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – 84%

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was a box office hit, raking in $1 billion just 39 days after its global release. The blockbuster became the fourth movie of 2016 to make $1 billion at the box office, following The Force Awakens, Jurassic World and Finding Dory. All four movies were produced by Disney.

Avatar – 81%

James Cameron’s 2009 film Avatar was so successful that it remained the highest-grossing movie of all time for a decade, raking in more than $2.7 billion in revenue. In the summer of 2019, however, Disney’s Marvel adventure Avengers: Endgame knocked it off the top spot. However, when Disney rereleased the film in China in spring 2021, Avatar reclaimed its position as the highest-grossing film of all time.

Furious 7 – 81%

Upon its release in 2015, Furious 7 became the fastest live-action film to reach $1 billion at the box office. However, it was bumped to third place after the releases of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Jurassic World later in the year. This film was the last one to include Paul Walker, who had been part of the franchise since its inception, which likely contributed to box-office numbers.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – 81%

In 2001, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was released to much fanfare and became a huge success. Nineteen years later, after being re-released in China, the movie managed to cross the $1 billion mark. The movie took in $13.6 million at the box office over the course of three days to become the second Harry Potter movie to gross more than $1 billion.

Captain Marvel – 79%

The Marvel movies have achieved tremendous success over the years, and the Captain Marvel film is no exception. The blockbuster – starring Brie Larson as the title character – opened to a record-breaking $455 million at the box office and crossed the billion-dollar mark for global sales in just over three weeks.

Iron Man 3 – 79%

The third movie in the Iron Man trilogy, Iron Man 3, was a blockbuster hit. It took just 23 days for the film to earn $1 billion at the box office. The success of Iron Man 3, which grossed nearly double the amount of its predecessor and became the highest-grossing film in the series, confirmed Robert Downey Jr.’s impact on Marvel’s franchise.

Frozen II – 77%

The box-office success of 2013’s Frozen was easily eclipsed by its sequel. Frozen II became Disney’s sixth billion-dollar movie of 2019, following Toy Story 4, The Lion King, Captain Marvel and two other releases. A third movie in the franchise is currently in development, to continue the story of Elsa, Anna and Kristoff.

Avatar: The Way of Water – 76%

The Avatar sequel grossed more than $1 billion at the box office in only two weeks and became the second-fastest movie to cross $2 billion. Producer Jon Landau told Insider that he and Cameron weren’t worried that audiences would lose interest in a sequel after waiting over a decade: “I looked at this almost like an original piece of content that happened to be with known characters in a known world.”

Avengers: Age of Ultron – 76%

The blockbuster Avengers franchise became the latest film to join an elite group of franchises that have more than one installment to gross more than one billion dollars in worldwide box office receipts. In 2015, the sequel to the 2012 ensemble superhero movie opened in the number one spot around the world.

Beauty and the Beast – 71%

Disney’s live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast passed $1 billion in worldwide box-office sales in April 2017 to become the highest-grossing film of 2017. The live-action remake stars Emma Watson and Dan Stevens as the title characters, bringing a modern twist to a tale as old as time.

Jurassic World – 71%

Jurassic World was one of the most successful films of all time. It made $1 billion in only 13 days, knocking Fast and Furious’s Furious 7 out of the number one spot for the fastest movie to make $1 billion. In addition to its record-breaking overall gross, Jurassic World was also the first movie to gross over $500 million in a single weekend.

Joker – 69%

This DC comic movie about a psychopathic supervillain – the first R-rated movie to make $1 billion at the box office – became the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time. The milestone came about six weeks after the movie premiered worldwide. Actor Joaquin Phoenix went on to win the Best Actor Academy Award for his leading performance as troubled Arthur Fleck.

The Fate of the Furious – 67%

In April 2017, the eighth movie in The Fast and the Furious franchise joined the billion-dollar club. The film was another success for actor Vin Diesel and director F. Gary Gray, who have both worked on several of these action-packed movies. This is the second movie from the franchise to make more than $1 billion.

Aquaman – 66%

The 2018 Warner Bros. movie Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa as the title character, officially became the first DC superhero movie to make $1 billion dollars at the box office. A sequel to the blockbuster movie is set to release in December 2023, with the lead cast reprising their roles.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey – 64%

When director Peter Jackson’s first Hobbit film crossed the $1 billion mark, it looked like it would be an equally successful franchise for him following The Lord of the Rings. However, both of the second two Hobbit movies fell short of reaching $1 billion at the box office. The Desolation of Smaug grossed around $950 million, while Battle of the Five Armies grossed about $960 million.

The Super Mario Bros Movie – 59%

In just 26 days, the Universal Pictures adaptation of Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. crossed $1 billion at the box office. It was the first film of 2023 to reach this milestone and became Universal’s seventh highest-grossing film of all time. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was also the first animated film to hit $1 billion dollars since the pandemic.