TOP 150 ALL TIME GROSSING MOVIES IN USA BOX OFFICE

[aTOMiC]

movies.yahoo.com/mv/boxoffice/alltime/


This list is fascinating. There are films here you'd never guess would have grossed in top 150 and some films you'd swear would be included but were not. And lots of films you might have forgotten all about.

Notice that Star Wars films populate the top 25 or so but nowhere will you find a Star Trek film. Hmmmmmm......

[High Lord Tolkien]

I still don't understand what people liked about ET.

And I was really surprised about The Passion of the Christ making as much as it did. I remember hearing that it was expected to make a lot but didn't hear much about it after the first few weeks. I still have yet to see it.

I love the fact that the #1 top grossing film is Titanic.
With a title like that it's fitting.

And then there's "Elf".
I saw it in the theater and my wife and I thought it was OK.
A few hours later my wife and I were laughing hysterically recalling various parts of the movie.
For over a month we answered each other's cell phones "Buddy the Elf. What's your favorite color?"
I'm very glad it made the list.

[danlo]

Really surprised Braveheart didn't make it!

[Edge]

'Biggest grossing' is an extremely inaccurate benchmark, and totally irrelevant to 'most popular' or 'most profitable' statistics.

More accurate lists (though not as extensive) can be found here:

www.the-numbers.com/movies/records/budgets.html

[Usivius]

box office totals are in no way a true indicator of how popular a movie is/was. The only true measure of such a type of statistic is to somehow determine how many people paid to see a movie, or more accurately, how many tickets were sold. This way it is not $ related or inflation related, just a 'pure' number of how many times the movie was seen by people. Heck, a movie like "Gone with the Wind" will never appear on these other lists, although it may have been seen by more people in the theatre at that time, than, say, Elf!

[High Lord Tolkien]

'Biggest grossing' is an extremely inaccurate benchmark, and totally irrelevant to 'most popular' or 'most profitable' statistics.

What's the difference between "biggest gross" and "most popular"?
Isn't it the same thing?

I like the biggest grossing lists best.
It shows what the people went to see.

Though the international gross and budget lists are also interesting!
Thanks.

[wayfriend]

BTW, I've been getting this information from Box Office Mojo for years. There's some cool stuff there, like world box office, box office adjusted for inflation, Star Wars vs. LOTR, etc.

or more accurately, how many tickets were sold

... and you need to adjust for population as well as for inflation. (There were half as many people in 1950 as there are today.) Then there's the factor of number of theaters per capita, etc.

[aTOMiC]

Edge, Wayfriend thanks for the cool links. I've added them to my list.

[sindatur]

Additionally with Gone, with the Wind, that's from 1939, ticket prices were considerably less then, than they are now. Gone with the Wind held the highest grossing title for about 30 years, it wasn't until about the late 60s when it got displaced.

[High Lord Tolkien]

aahhhh......
I get it.
Thanks everyone.

Gone with the Wind is a great movie by the way.
I saw it for the first time this year.
I always thought it was the ultimate chick flick and avoided it like the plauge.
I love the was they speak in those old flicks: fast and alot!

[matrixman]

I remember back when it seemed like Star Wars: A New Hope would be forever safe as the No.1 movie of all time.

Then along came E.T. in '82. (I was resentful when it surpassed Star Wars, heh.) Nothing remotely challenged E.T. at the box office for so many years that I thought it was untouchable.

Then along came Jurassic Park in '93. Directorsaurus Spielberg was eating the competition alive! All right, surely the box office tally of this movie wouldn't be matched for a looong time to come.

Then Lucas comes along and re-releases Star Wars in '97 as the Special Edition, and reclaims the No.1 box office title. Yay! But SW fans barely had time to enjoy bragging rights before...

Titanic came along in Dec '97 and entirely demolished the record books. Sheesh. I'm still amazed by Titanic's $600 million US box office take. That number is utter insanity for one single movie--in one single country! Okay, surely Titanic is an immovable object. Records are made to be broken...but I wonder what kind of movie it would take to topple Titanic.

[aTOMiC]

Titanic is an immovable object. Records are made to be broken...but I wonder what kind of movie it would take to topple Titanic.

If you look at where each of the first two films appear on the list we'd all have to assume that SHREK III will become the first 700 million dollar all time grossing film.

Or perhaps not.

No the movie in question will have to be directed by James Cameron and star Adam Sandler and Jim Carrey. Perhaps a couple of time traveling lunatics caught in the middle of the first alien invasion in Egypt in 600 bc.

[matrixman]

Well, I was shocked to see Shrek 2 right behind Star Wars and Titanic. It made that much money?? So who knows about Shrek 3? It's hip to be a green ogre these days.

Perhaps a couple of time traveling lunatics caught in the middle of the first alien invasion in Egypt in 600 bc.

Bill & Ted + Independence Day + The Mummy?

Ooh, I've got the popcorn ready!

[Avatar]

I haven't read any of the links, so forgive me if this is covered, but what would be interesting would be to work out how many people saw each one, by dividing the total by the average price of a ticket at the time.

--A

[dANdeLION]

Okay, surely Titanic is an immovable object.

Heh, I bet the passengers of the Titanic thought much the same thing......

[aTOMiC]

Okay, surely Titanic is an immovable object.

Heh, I bet the passengers of the Titanic thought much the same thing......

I'm sure they did until......

[matrixman]

Hmm, good point, dAN...

Immovable object=iceberg

Not quite irresistible force=Titanic