The 24 Most Successful Film Franchises in History
Reporting by Cindy Kabiru, GRAPHIQ.
The true mark of a successful film is its ability to transcend audiences and the generations that follow. The same can be said for successful film franchises; however, franchises must also thrive on some air of mystery. By slowly unraveling the mystery at hand throughout the film series, a compelling narrative must be cultivated for an audience to be captivated. A franchise’s capacity to sustain widespread interest in creative ways is the driving force in its success.
With that said, character-driven franchises with plenty of edge-of-the-seat moments can spur on the production of final chapters, sequels and prequels for years to come. The most recent example is, of course, the newest installment in the James Bond film series — “Spectre.” After gracing big screens for over 50 years, Bond’s legacy rose to a cult status of its own after amassing over $4 billion in box office revenue since its debut in 1962.
Ultimately, quality storytelling trumps overstated visual effects when it comes to achieving enduring commercial success. Adjusting for inflation, the PrettyFamous team ranked the highest-earning film franchises. Follow along to see 24 of the most successful film franchises to ever grace the big screen, ranked by inflation-adjusted franchise overall gross.
#24. American Pie
Total Franchise Gross: $531,865,800
This hilarious coming-of-age story rose to popularity after the infamous pie scene in the original film. Three sequels later, audiences continue to enjoy watching protagonist Jim Levenstein navigate the intricacies of adolescence to hilarious effect.
#23. Night At the Museum
Total Franchise Gross: $639,015,000
The bittersweet trilogy’s last installment was one of Robin Williams' final performances before his untimely death in 2014. Williams showcased his flair for the dramatic in the movie series as Theodore Roosevelt — one of the many personalities that come to life at the Museum of Natural History.
#22. Die Hard
Total Franchise Gross: $747,776,200
The action-movie series sees Bruce Willis at his best as John McClane — a take-no-prisoners type police detective out to rid the world of its most dangerous terrorists.
#21. The Matrix
Total Franchise Gross: $785,753,000
This science-fiction thriller pits Keanu Reeves’ Neo against Laurence Fishburne’s Morpheus in a battle that leaves audiences questioning reality.
#20. Ice Age
Total Franchise Gross: $866,499,400
An unlikely gaggle of paleolithic mammals come together to bring a helpless infant back to his family in the animated series’ first film.
#19. Terminator
Total Franchise Gross: $870,336,700
Nearly all movie buffs can recite this series’ ubiquitous line “I will be back” by memory, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s iconic role in the films as terminator model T-800 helped the franchise amass an international fan base.
#18. Despicable Me
Total Franchise Gross: $980,818,800
The adorable yellow henchmen — otherwise known as the Minions — are the undeniable breakout stars of this wildly successful franchise. The franchise also owes a large portion of its popularity to funny man Steve Carell, who voices the character of Gru.
#17. Iron Man
Total Franchise Gross: $1,105,632,000
Stemming from the Marvel Comics empire, “Iron Man” tells the story of an industrialist with a knack for inventing new weaponry, courting women and protecting the world from evil forces.
#16. Mission: Impossible
Total Franchise Gross: $1,141,996,000
All spy flicks aspire to titillate audiences as much as the “Mission: Impossible” series does. With non-stop thrills and crazy stunts, audiences will continue to live vicariously through the adventures of Ethan Hunt for as long as new Mission: Impossible flicks are released.
#15. Hunger Games
Total Franchise Gross: $1,190,655,000
The names Katniss and Peeta have become mainstays in our cultural lexicon after the surging popularity of "The Hunger Games." The book-to-film movie series proved to be anything but divisive among die-hard fans, who helped the franchise gross over $1 billion.
#14. Toy Story
Total Franchise Gross: $1,200,182,000
This Pixar animated classic speaks to our childhood fantasies that our toys were as magical as we dreamed them to be. Toys that come to life when left alone in a room truly capture the imagination of the child that lives within us all.
#13. The Dark Knight
Total Franchise Gross: $1,302,363,000
The tales of Gotham City and the Caped Crusader are brilliantly told with the direction of Christopher Nolan in this trilogy. The gritty superhero movies are among the best in the comic-book film category.
#12. Spider-Man
Total Franchise Gross: $1,385,039,000
In the Marvel cinematic universe, Peter Parker wins over adolescent audiences with his relatively young age as a high-school student. His relatability and arachnid-like agility guaranteed the series’ long-running commercial success.
#11. The Fast & The Furious
Total Franchise Gross: $1,411,225,400
This high-octane movie franchise is Universal Pictures’ most successful franchise of all time. Centering around illegal street racing, The Fast & The Furious stars the late Paul Walker, who shines as the series' protagonist.
#10. Transformers
Total Franchise Gross: $1,425,850,000
In the original “Transformers” film, the fate of humanity rests in the outcome of a battle between two opposing robot factions — the Autobots and the Decepticons. In the following installments, the Michael Bay-directed series continues to explore a world where massive robots are a threat to civilization.
#9. Twilight
Total Franchise Gross: $1,463,138,000
Despite drawing stinging criticism for its hackneyed storyline, “Twilight” wooed audiences around the world with the tale of two star-crossed lovers — Bella and Edward. The saga is responsible for catapulting Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson into stardom.
#8. X-Men
Total Franchise Gross: $1,490,799,000
As this series proves, superhero mutants and gripping character development are a winning combination in Hollywood. The franchise’s eighth installment, "X-Men: Apocalypse," is set to hit theaters in 2016.
#7. Pirates of the Caribbean
Total Franchise Gross: $1,498,701,000
Inspired by a Disney theme park ride of the same name, this swashbuckling series sees the cunning Jack Sparrow navigate the wild open seas with his team of fellow sea marauders.
#6. Shrek
Total Franchise Gross: $1,531,525,000
Everyone’s favorite green ogre delighted audiences so much on screen that the film series spawned a Broadway production — "Shrek The Musical."
#5. Jurassic Park
Total Franchise Gross: $1,890,663,000
In its most-recent installment, an ambitious attempt to sustain an amusement park of cloned dinosaurs, terror ensues as the venture turns out to be more than a group of scientists can handle.
#4. Lord of the Rings
Total Franchise Gross: $2,191,236,000
A cult favorite, this epic fantasy saga is the summation of two trilogies that are set in Middle Earth. The award-winning franchise chronicles Frodo and Samwise’s continued quest to find and destroy the one, all-consuming ring.
#3. Harry Potter
Total Franchise Gross: $2,824,296,000
J.K. Rowling’s wondrous book-to-movie empire bursts with witchcraft and wizardry. The bespeckled protagonist faces fate-altering challenges at every turn — luckily he is accompanied by his loyal comrades, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.
#2. James Bond
Total Franchise Gross: $4,648,400,592
This juggernaut film franchise sees the ever-so-suave James Bond slink his way through high-pressure situations as a world-class spy. His suits, cars, gadgets and good-looks afford Bond a knack for courting women — another theme that runs throughout the series.
#1. Star Wars
Total Franchise Gross: $4,920,191,000
This intergalactic saga has a stronghold on society’s geekdom obsessions. From the cinnamon-bunned princess Leia to the sage Yoda, the out-of-this-world franchise boasts an all-star set of characters and stellar storytelling. Having already churned out six installments in the series, the long-awaited "Star Wars: Episode VII" flies into theaters on Dec. 18, 2015.
