2008 Box Office

[IrishJedi]

This is the Top 20 Adjusted For Inflation:

1 Gone with the Wind MGM $1,430,476,000 $198,676,459 1939^
2 Star Wars Fox $1,261,086,700 $460,998,007 1977^
3 The Sound of Music Fox $1,008,300,900 $158,671,368 1965
4 E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial Uni. $1,004,328,700 $435,110,554 1982^
5 The Ten Commandments Par. $927,480,000 $65,500,000 1956
6 Titanic Par. $908,688,900 $600,788,188 1997
7 Jaws Uni. $906,798,000 $260,000,000 1975
8 Doctor Zhivago MGM $878,879,000 $111,721,910 1965
9 The Exorcist WB $782,826,200 $232,671,011 1973^
10 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Dis. $771,720,000 $184,925,486 1937^
11 101 Dalmatians Dis. $707,414,100 $144,880,014 1961^
12 The Empire Strikes Back Fox $695,118,900 $290,475,067 1980^
13 Ben-Hur MGM $693,840,000 $74,000,000 1959
14 Return of the Jedi Fox $665,940,600 $309,306,177 1983^
15 The Sting Uni. $631,131,400 $156,000,000 1973
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark Par. $624,044,300 $242,374,454 1981^
17 Jurassic Park Uni. $610,337,400 $357,067,947 1993
18 The Graduate AVCO $605,845,500 $104,901,839 1967^
19 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace Fox $600,566,700 $431,088,301 1999
20 Fantasia Dis. $587,947,800

TDK is currently #49 and will likely end up somewhere between 21-30 on the all-time adjusted list. Still pretty damn good and the best domestic performer since TPM.

 

[King Darkness]

This is the Top 20 Adjusted For Inflation:

1 Gone with the Wind MGM $1,430,476,000 $198,676,459 1939^
2 Star Wars Fox $1,261,086,700 $460,998,007 1977^
3 The Sound of Music Fox $1,008,300,900 $158,671,368 1965
4 E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial Uni. $1,004,328,700 $435,110,554 1982^
5 The Ten Commandments Par. $927,480,000 $65,500,000 1956
6 Titanic Par. $908,688,900 $600,788,188 1997
7 Jaws Uni. $906,798,000 $260,000,000 1975
8 Doctor Zhivago MGM $878,879,000 $111,721,910 1965
9 The Exorcist WB $782,826,200 $232,671,011 1973^
10 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Dis. $771,720,000 $184,925,486 1937^
11 101 Dalmatians Dis. $707,414,100 $144,880,014 1961^
12 The Empire Strikes Back Fox $695,118,900 $290,475,067 1980^
13 Ben-Hur MGM $693,840,000 $74,000,000 1959
14 Return of the Jedi Fox $665,940,600 $309,306,177 1983^
15 The Sting Uni. $631,131,400 $156,000,000 1973
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark Par. $624,044,300 $242,374,454 1981^
17 Jurassic Park Uni. $610,337,400 $357,067,947 1993
18 The Graduate AVCO $605,845,500 $104,901,839 1967^
19 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace Fox $600,566,700 $431,088,301 1999
20 Fantasia Dis. $587,947,800

Nice to see one of the greatest horror movies of time in the top ten

 

[Bannister]

This is the Top 20 Adjusted For Inflation:

1 Gone with the Wind MGM $1,430,476,000 $198,676,459 1939^
2 Star Wars Fox $1,261,086,700 $460,998,007 1977^
3 The Sound of Music Fox $1,008,300,900 $158,671,368 1965
4 E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial Uni. $1,004,328,700 $435,110,554 1982^
5 The Ten Commandments Par. $927,480,000 $65,500,000 1956
6 Titanic Par. $908,688,900 $600,788,188 1997
7 Jaws Uni. $906,798,000 $260,000,000 1975
8 Doctor Zhivago MGM $878,879,000 $111,721,910 1965
9 The Exorcist WB $782,826,200 $232,671,011 1973^
10 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Dis. $771,720,000 $184,925,486 1937^
11 101 Dalmatians Dis. $707,414,100 $144,880,014 1961^
12 The Empire Strikes Back Fox $695,118,900 $290,475,067 1980^
13 Ben-Hur MGM $693,840,000 $74,000,000 1959
14 Return of the Jedi Fox $665,940,600 $309,306,177 1983^
15 The Sting Uni. $631,131,400 $156,000,000 1973
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark Par. $624,044,300 $242,374,454 1981^
17 Jurassic Park Uni. $610,337,400 $357,067,947 1993
18 The Graduate AVCO $605,845,500 $104,901,839 1967^
19 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace Fox $600,566,700 $431,088,301 1999
20 Fantasia Dis. $587,947,800

TDK is currently #49 and will likely end up somewhere between 21-30 on the all-time adjusted list. Still pretty damn good and the best domestic performer since TPM.

I think the whole adjusted for inflation thing is flawed. There really is no way to know what movie would really be the top money maker of all time. There are too many other factors besides inflation.

 

[EVILFACE]

Nice to see one of the greatest horror movies of time in the top ten

Guess you missed Jaws 2 spots above it

Though Sound of Music could be considered a horror movie to some. It was torture having to watch it in school!

 

[barbelith]

I think the whole adjusted for inflation thing is flawed. There really is no way to know what movie would really be the top money maker of all time. There are too many other factors besides inflation.

The most relevant ranking would be ticket sales expressed as a unit of volume combined with a "share" extrapolated from the contemporary population and number of screens. The combination of inflation, independently rising ticket prices and unprecedented number of screens makes a mockery out of any attempt to compare box office figures more than a few years apart.

 

[IrishJedi]

I think the whole adjusted for inflation thing is flawed. There really is no way to know what movie would really be the top money maker of all time. There are too many other factors besides inflation.

It's not just inflation, though. The basis is the total number of individual tickets sold.

Obviously, people just don't go to the movies as often as they did before the advent of television, home video and other media.

 

[tomandshell]

When Disney rereleased a movie like Fantasia over the years, they sold more tickets but at different price. Any of those big earners that had a rerelease (including E.T. and Star Wars) will have a mixture of original tickets prices and higher priced tickets from the various releases. It's pretty tricky trying to come up with a precise and accurate adjusted total.

 

[barbelith]

Obviously, people just don't go to the movies as often as they did before the advent of television, home video and other media.

Modern movies actually have a massive advantage when it comes to box office figures beyond inflation. The Dark Knight opened on 9200 screens, which is an utterly inconceivable number for films released before the multiplex age.

 

[CelticPredator]

Nice to see one of the greatest horror movies of time in the top ten

I dont see Alien up there?!???

 

[scubasteve]

I can't believe it's going to top Star Wars. Incredible!

 

[Lord Aykroyd]

The most relevant ranking would be ticket sales expressed as a unit of volume combined with a "share" extrapolated from the contemporary population and number of screens. The combination of inflation, independently rising ticket prices and unprecedented number of screens makes a mockery out of any attempt to compare box office figures more than a few years apart.

I sort of agree - except, we can assume an increase in theatres over time and an increase in population density in the cities (i.e. newer movies SHOULD have more ticket sales), but take a look at this!

Obviously, the oldies kicked some serious butt.

Rank Title_____________Est. Tickets
1 Gone with the Wind_____________202,044,600
2 Star Wars_____________________178,119,600
3 The Sound of Music_____________142,415,400
4 E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial_______141,854,300
5 The Ten Commandments_________131,000,000
6 Titanic________________________128,345,900
7 Jaws__________________________128,078,800
8 Doctor Zhivago__________________124,135,500
9 The Exorcist____________________110,568,700
10 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs__109,000,000
11 101 Dalmatians__________________99,917,300
12 The Empire Strikes Back__________ _98,180,600
13 Ben-Hur________________________98,000,000
14 Return of the Jedi________________94,059,400
15 The Sting_______________________89,142,900
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark____________88,141,900
17 Jurassic Park____________________86,205,800
18 The Graduate___________________85,571,400
19 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace_____________ 84,825,800
20 Fantasia_______________________83,043,500

 

[Kratos]

I'm Glad IronMan did so well good work Downey

 

[barbelith]

I can't believe it's going to top Star Wars. Incredible!

It's not really. Have you been reading the thread?

 

[Bannister]

I sort of agree - except, we can assume an increase in theatres over time and an increase in population density in the cities (i.e. newer movies SHOULD have more ticket sales), but take a look at this!

Obviously, the oldies kicked some serious butt.

Rank Title_____________Est. Tickets
1 Gone with the Wind_____________202,044,600
2 Star Wars_____________________178,119,600
3 The Sound of Music_____________142,415,400
4 E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial_______141,854,300
5 The Ten Commandments_________131,000,000
6 Titanic________________________128,345,900
7 Jaws__________________________128,078,800
8 Doctor Zhivago__________________124,135,500
9 The Exorcist____________________110,568,700
10 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs__109,000,000
11 101 Dalmatians__________________99,917,300
12 The Empire Strikes Back__________ _98,180,600
13 Ben-Hur________________________98,000,000
14 Return of the Jedi________________94,059,400
15 The Sting_______________________89,142,900
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark____________88,141,900
17 Jurassic Park____________________86,205,800
18 The Graduate___________________85,571,400
19 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace_____________ 84,825,800
20 Fantasia_______________________83,043,500

That is because home video didn't exist back then. There were a lot less viewing options for movies back then. You had to see it in the theatre. That was it.

 

[DarkArtist81]

It's not really. Have you been reading the thread?

Depends on what list you are going off of.

And SW has a leg up in the fact that it has be rereleased multiple times, with or without inflation.

I don't like the adjusted list, there are too many factors that change things. Number of theaters, ticket prices, the economic climate, technological advancements....

Lists are meant to evolve, so I like it as it is... nobody stays on top forever.

 

[Bannister]

Depends on what list you are going off of.

And SW has a leg up in the fact that it has be rereleased multiple times, with or without inflation.

I don't like the adjusted list, there are too many factors that change things. Number of theaters, ticket prices, the economic climate, technological advancements....

Lists are meant to evolve, so I like it as it is... nobody stays on top forever.

 

[scubasteve]

Depends on what list you are going off of.

And SW has a leg up in the fact that it has be rereleased multiple times, with or without inflation.

I don't like the adjusted list, there are too many factors that change things. Number of theaters, ticket prices, the economic climate, technological advancements....

Lists are meant to evolve, so I like it as it is... nobody stays on top forever.

I agree. Eventually all these films will be toppled.

And yes, I read the thread, barbelith. Thank you for asking.

 

[EVILFACE]

Depends on what list you are going off of.

And SW has a leg up in the fact that it has be rereleased multiple times, with or without inflation.

I don't like the adjusted list, there are too many factors that change things. Number of theaters, ticket prices, the economic climate, technological advancements....

Lists are meant to evolve, so I like it as it is... nobody stays on top forever.

Bottom dollar amount is what matters now. And The Dark Knight is going to knock off Star Wars

 

[barbelith]

Depends on what list you are going off of.

The problem of course is that any list based solely on nominal box office is worse than meaningless. I say worse because we already know it's wrong. So what's the point?

Jaws opened on 400 screens. The Dark Knight opened on more than 9000 screens. Add in three decades of inflation and then pretend nominal box office tells us anything.

 

[DarkArtist81]

The problem of course is that any list based solely on nominal box office is worse than meaningless. I say worse because we already know it's wrong. So what's the point?

Jaws opened on 400 screens. The Dark Knight opened on more than 9000 screens. Add in three decades of inflation and then pretend nominal box office tells us anything.

You also have to factor in the changes in culture and technology... that affects things a lot. People used to go see movies because it was the best they would ever get to see, and unedited. There was no DVD or even VHS back even further, no surround sound or huge HD screens at home that you could sit back and wait to see it later. Things have changed immensely since the Jaws days, no matter how you look at it.

To have a list that can factor in all the changes would be impossible. Unless you actually went back in time and released the top 20 films at the same time to the same time periods crowds.

To argue this point is even more pointless.... I think we can all agree that to measure old films vs. new films with 100% accuracy and 100% box office calculations... is insanity and cannot be done with full certainty.