The Top 12 Most Expensive Movies Ever Produced

The most expensive movies in the motion picture business.

The film industry, which is among the most costly in the world, has been producing the most expensive movies and raising both its revenue and production costs gradually to meet the demands of both filmmakers and spectators for new technology and content. As a result, most of the films on this list are recent releases. It’s simple to see how the films on this list got here, especially all of the Disney films, as big-budget Hollywood film studios like Disney, Amazon, and Universal are acquiring and using all the smaller names in the industry.

To be clear, all of the films on this list are completed and available to the general public; those that are not are not included. This article’s figures represent filmmaking expenses, excluding commercials, posters, marketing, and other expenses. Because most production firms do not disclose actual production expenses, this information has been estimated—likely understated—by writers and experts in the film industry who are responsible for doing so.

12. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007)

$300 Million

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is the oldest by four years and by far the most remarkable of the three titles in a three-way tie for tenth place on our list. Regretfully, the $300 million film only brought in $309 million at the domestic box office, so the returns on that investment weren’t quite what was anticipated. The third entry in the Pirates of the Caribbean series was somewhat lower quality than the first two, which is evident in both reviews and financial figures. It’s unlikely that this movie will appear on any rankings of the top pirate films.

11. Justice League (2017)

$300 Million

DC’s first ensemble cast film, Justice League, aims high in reaction to the enormously popular Marvel film franchise. A box office failure, the massive $300 million budget yielded a lifetime domestic revenue of $229 million, although the film was poorly reviewed by both reviewers and audiences. Years later, the Zack Snyder cut was released as a result, which cost the studio millions of dollars altogether but only marginally raised total income.

10. Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

$300 Million

The first of the new Star Wars trilogy films to be mentioned is Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which came in at number ten on this list. This canon addition had a lot to offer broad viewers, earning an astounding $620 million at the domestic box office. Despite having the smallest budget of the three, the film’s visual effects are nonetheless incredibly thrilling and fun to watch. The Last Jedi, the best Star Wars film of the new trilogy, demonstrates that having the largest budget isn’t always a good thing.

9. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

$325 Million

Avengers: Infinity War, the first of the major ensemble cast Marvel films on this list, was and is still a huge hit in the new wave of superhero films. This particular sequel will probably go down in history as one of the greatest, most action-packed superhero films of all time, even though the market is undoubtedly oversaturated and overdone. The expense and effort were worthwhile since the film’s gross domestic box office receipts nearly doubled its budget.

8. Fast X (2023)

$340 Million

Fast X continues the 22-year legacy with beautiful, unabashed gusto in the tenth edition of this utterly outrageous movie franchise. The movie makes only $146 million domestically. This barely covers its enormous budget. After all these years, the movie’s foreign fan base helps it significantly. Despite this setback, Fast X is a part of the fantastic movie franchise. The franchise shows no signs of slowing down and is packed with well-known characters and names. Fast & Furious is one of the most established film franchises. It is impossible to predict how many more films will be made in this series.

7. Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

$350 Million

Avatar: The Way of Water, is the eagerly awaited follow-up to the visual masterpiece that came before it. It is unexpectedly low on this list because of the extensive computer-generated imagery and special effects it requires. Thanks to James Cameron and his company’s groundbreaking camera technology, this film is the first of many sequels. The film would shatter budget and box office records for years to come. Right now, Avatar is the third highest-grossing film ever made.

6. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

$356 Million

The last film in the Avengers ensemble cast series, Avengers: Endgame, is hugely popular. It has one of the most striking cost/income ratios on this list. The Avengers’ creative team for this movie had little financial concerns because of the popularity of Avengers: Infinity War. With $858 million in American box office receipts, this movie was worth every penny.

5. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

$365 Million

Unexpectedly high on this list is Avengers: Age of Ultron. This film is the most expensive of all Avengers ensemble movies. The expenditure of CGI and other visual effects is evident in the movie’s third act. But it was not as successful as the next two episodes.

4. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)

$379 Million

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is one of the less profitable entries in the film franchise. It continues the story, but it eventually fails to meet its financial target. Johnny Depp earned $55 million for one role. He also earned $265 million for five films, totaling $320 million. It seems that only Johnny Depp received the benefits from the $379 million domestic return.

3. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

$416 Million

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was one of the three films that brought in significant revenue for the company. However, it did not perform as well financially as the company had hoped. Audience expectations were high. The studio was under additional pressure. It was the third and last film in the new Star Wars trilogy. Though it barely made a profit, the movie did decently overall.

2. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)

$432 Million

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is one of the most absurd films on this list. The movie projects consequences when dinosaur nerds are given a gigantic computer-generated imagery budget. The result is two hours of massive explosions, enormous dinosaurs, and a shallow plot. The film’s poor narrative seemed to be an afterthought for the company, despite the excellent CGI and visual effects. Fortunately, the Jurassic Park movie franchise has a bright future because people will always want to see more dinosaur action.

1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

$447 Million (Most expensive movies ever produced)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which is the most expensive movies ever made and the largest domestic box office receipts on this list, steals the show. Also, it expands the already enormous wealth of Lucasfilm or Disney. There was a lot of excitement among viewers because it was the first of the most recent Star Wars trilogy. The studio took the safe way and made the plot resemble Star Wars: A New Hope since they knew this. Despite many people seeing through it, they continued to go see the movie in theaters. They enjoyed the amazing special effects and helped the film collect $936 million at the domestic box office.

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