The 15 most expensive movies in the world are below.
1. Avengers: Endgame (2019) – $356 million
Avengers: Endgame is a 2019 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the Avengers, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to 2012’s The Avengers, 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, and 2018’s Avengers:
Infinity War, and the twenty-second film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It was directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and features an ensemble cast including 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.
The film was a critical and commercial success, grossing over $356 million in its opening weekend and becoming the highest-grossing film of all time, surpassing Avatar (2009). It is currently the highest-grossing film of all time, with a global box office total of over $2.797 billion.
2. Avatar (2009) – $280 million
Avatar was released on December 18, 2009, and went on to become the highest-grossing film of all time, earning $2.79 billion at the box office worldwide.
In North America, Avatar grossed $749.7 million, becoming the highest-grossing film in history, surpassing Titanic’s $600.8 million record. The film’s total production budget was estimated at $237 million, with an additional $150 million spent on marketing and distribution.
3. Titanic (1997) – $258 million
Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as members of different social classes who fall in love aboard the ill-fated RMS Titanic.
Upon its release on December 19, 1997, the film achieved significant critical and commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing film of all time at the time, and remained so for twelve years until Avatar surpassed it in 2010.
Titanic earned a total of $2,186,772,302 worldwide, making it the second-highest-grossing film of all time, behind only Avatar.
It was nominated for fourteen Academy Awards, winning eleven, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Dramatic Score, Best Cinematography, Best Effects, Sound Editing, and Best Visual Effects. It also won four Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director.
4. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) – $245 million
Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released in 2015 and grossed over $2.068 billion worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of all time, unadjusted for inflation. Directed by J.J. Abrams, the film stars 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, Max von Sydow.
The budget for Star Wars: The Force Awakens was an estimated $245 million. The film spent $150 million on production and $95 million on marketing. The advertising campaign included a large-scale television campaign, outdoor advertising, and a strong presence on social media. The film was also released in over 4,000 theaters worldwide, making it one of the widest releases in history.
5. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – $321 million
Avengers: Infinity War was the highest-grossing film of 2018, earning $321 million in its opening weekend. The film broke many box office records, including the highest opening weekend of all time in the US and Canada, as well as the largest global opening ever.
It went on to gross over $2 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of all time. The film follows the Avengers and their allies as they attempt to stop Thanos from collecting all six Infinity Stones and using them to wreak havoc on the universe.
6. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007) – $300 million
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is a 2007 American fantasy swashbuckler film, and the third installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. It was released in the United States on May 25, 2007, and grossed over $300 million worldwide.
The film follows Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann, Captain Barbossa, and the crew of the Black Pearl as they attempt to rescue Captain Jack Sparrow from Davy Jones’s Locker. The film was directed by Gore Verbinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. It also featured performances from Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightley, Bill Nighy, and Chow Yun-fat.
7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) – $250 million
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was directed by David Yates and was released on July 15, 2009. It was produced by David Heyman and David Barron and written by Steve Kloves. The budget for the film was $250 million, making it the most expensive of the Harry Potter films. The film grossed $934 million worldwide, making it the 8th highest-grossing film of all time.
The plot centers on Harry Potter’s sixth year at Hogwarts and his quest to find and destroy Lord Voldemort’s Horcruxes. It also features the romantic relationship between Harry and Ginny Weasley, as well as the final battle between Harry and Voldemort.
8. Aquaman (2018) – $240 million
Aquaman (2018) is an American superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name. It is the sixth installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).
Directed by James Wan, the film stars Jason Momoa as the titular character, with Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Nicole Kidman in supporting roles.
The film was released in the United States on December 21, 2018, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It grossed over $1.148 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing DCEU film, the highest-grossing film based on a DC Comics character, and the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2018. It also received praise for its visuals, direction, acting, soundtrack, and action sequences.
Aquaman was made on a budget of $240 million.
9. Spider-Man 3 (2007) – $250 million
Spider-Man 3 is a 2007 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. It was directed by Sam Raimi and written by Sam and Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent. It is the third film in the Spider-Man film franchise and stars Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard, and James Cromwell.
The film was produced on a budget of $250 million and grossed over $890 million worldwide, making it the most successful film of the Spider-Man series both commercially and critically.
10. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) – $270 million
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey had a production budget of $270 million and was filmed in New Zealand. The movie had a total gross of $1.021 billion worldwide and was nominated for three Academy Awards. It was directed by Peter Jackson and starred Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Elijah Wood, and Andy Serkis.
11. Justice League (2017) – $300 million
The budget for the 2017 movie Justice League was reported to be around $300 million, which included production and marketing expenses. The movie was filmed over the course of five months, with additional reshoots and post-production work extending into 2017.
The marketing budget for the movie was estimated to be around $150 million. The film was released on November 17, 2017 and grossed $657.9 million worldwide.
12. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) – $250 million
The reported budget for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was $250 million, with an additional $150 million spent on marketing and promotion. This makes the total cost of the movie $400 million.
13. The Dark Knight Rises (2012) – $300 million
The Dark Knight Rises had an estimated production budget of $250 million and an estimated marketing budget of $50 million, for a total budget of $300 million. It was one of the most expensive movies ever made at the time. The movie was shot in locations in the United States, United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, and Scotland. It was released on July 20, 2012, and grossed over $1 billion at the box office, making it the sixth-highest-grossing film of all time.
14. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008) – $260 million
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is a 2008 fantasy adventure film based on the novel by C. S. Lewis. It was directed by Andrew Adamson and produced by Mark Johnson, Andrew Adamson, and Philip Steuer.
The film stars Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian, Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie, Skandar Keynes as Edmund Pevensie, William Moseley as Peter Pevensie, Anna Popplewell as Susan Pevensie, and Sergio Castellitto as Miraz. The film was released on May 16, 2008 by Walt Disney Pictures and grossed over $260 million worldwide.
15. John Carter (2012) – $264 million
John Carter (2012) was a science fiction action-adventure film based on the novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and was released on March 9, 2012. The movie grossed $264 million worldwide, with a production budget of $250 million. It received mixed reviews from critics and audiences alike, with some praising the visuals and action sequences, while others criticized the pacing, storyline, and characters.
