What Was the First Marvel Movie Made
How Much Money Has Every Marvel Movie Made?
Our list below shows how much money every Marvel movie has made. Total Marvel box office earnings total over $21 billion dollars.
Captain America: Civil War made an excellent showing with $1.14 billion worldwide. That puts it as the #4 Marvel movie for money by 6/29/16. Other standouts includeMarvel's The Avengers with over $1.5 billion in ticket sales,Iron Man 3 andAvengers: Age of Ultron with well over $1 billion each.
We list worldwide box office earnings for each movie below. For a breakdown between domestic and worldwide money earned per movie, plus totals of each, see the complete Marvel movie money table by scrolling down.
Bear in mind that the figures below represent box office earnings only. They don't include DVD, Blu-Ray or streaming sales and rentals. We've provided extra details on Marvel's top 21 money earners below, to give you a complete picture of the forces at work behind Marvel movie income.
Either way, the Marvel money story is far from over, with 14 big budget Marvel movies on deck to release between now and 2021.
1. Marvel's The Avengers: $1,518,594,910
Marvel's the Avengers has made the most money of any Marvel movie, with over $1.5 billion in earnings worldwide. It's also the fourth highest money maker out of all movies in history, behind #1 earner Avatar with $2.788 billion and James Cameron's other chartstopperTitanic with $2.186 billion.
At least part of the movie's success may be due to the high level of tension in the characters. Director Joss Whedon said, "These people shouldn't even be in the same room let alone on the same team – and that is the definition of family."
2. Avengers: Age of Ultron: $1,398,858,115
Marvel's blockbuster hitAvengers: Age of Ultron has earned $1.398 billion since its release. That makes it the number six movie of all time.
During filming, Scarlett Johansson was pregnant, requiring her to have three stunt doubles on set at all time. The doubles looked so much like Johansson that Chris Evans reported getting in conversations with them before realizing they weren't her.
3. Iron Man 3: $1,215,439,994
Iron Man 3 is the third biggest moneymaker of any Marvel movie. With $1.215 billion in earnings, it's the seventh highest grossing film of all time. It's the first Iron Man film to make over $1 billion. It's also the second Marvel movie to break the billion dollar mark.Marvel's The Avengers was the first.
The movie originally had a budget of $140 million, but Marvel Studios added another $60 million after the huge success ofThe Avengers.
4. Captain America: Civil War: $1,147,698,026
A big overseas opening and the #5 movie opening of all time putCivil War at #4 on our Marvel money list. The movie beatThor's entire box office take in just one weekend. Civil War has a 90% fresh rating on critic site Rotten Tomatoes and is also a huge hit with fans. The movie bestedBatman v Superman's $875 million worldwide gross. That money would put Batman at #6 on the Marvel list. WhileBatmanhad a killer opening weekend, it also had a supersized drop of 69% the second weekend.Civil War has a slim chance to unseat #3 filmIron Man 3with $1.22 billion.
5. Spider Man 3: $890,871,626
Spider Man 3 is the first Marvel movie on our list to bring in less than a billion dollars in ticket sales. The movie stars Tobey Maguire.
In the movie, all of Kirsten Dunst's screams were taken from Spider Man 2. Thomas Hayden Church broke three knuckles punching a brick wall that the effects crew had told him was fake.
Here's How Much Money All 42 Marvel Movies Made:
The table below shows the worldwide and domestic box office earnings for all 37 Marvel movies. The total adds up to well over $19 billion in Marvel movie income and doesn't include worldwide DVD, Blu-Ray and streaming sales and rentals.
See below the table for continued breakdowns of each Marvel movie's earnings. Note that although Marvel got at least some money from every movie below, in cases where another studio made more money from Marvel we've listed that company as the main producer.
| All Marvel Movies Ranked by Money | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel Movie Rank | Produced By | Marvel Movie | Worldwide Theater Earnings | Domestic Theater Earnings |
| 1 | Marvel Studios | Marvel's The Avengers | $1,518,594,910 | $623,357,910 |
| 2 | Marvel Studios | Avengers: Age of Ultron | $1,398,858,115 | $457,358,115 |
| 3 | Marvel Studios | Iron Man 3 | $1,215,439,994 | $409,013,994 |
| 4 | Marvel Studios | Captain America: Civil War | $1,147,698,026 | $401,946,213 |
| 5 | Columbia Pictures | Spider Man 3 | $890,871,626 | $404,040,954 |
| 6 | Marvel Enterprises | Spider Man | $821,708,551 | $403,706,375 |
| 7 | Marvel Entertainment | Spider Man 2 | $783,766,341 | $373,585,825 |
| 8 | 20th Century Fox and Marvel Entertainment | Deadpool | $778,618,148 | $363,071,095 |
| 9 | Marvel Studios | Guardians of the Galaxy | $774,176,600 | $333,176,600 |
| 10 | Columbia Pictures | The Amazing Spider-Man | $757,930,663 | $262,030,663 |
| 11 | 20th Century Fox | X-Men: Days of Future Past | $748,121,534 | $233,921,534 |
| 12 | Marvel Studios | Captain America: The Winter Soldier | $714,766,572 | $259,766,572 |
| 13 | Columbia Pictures | The Amazing Spider-Man 2 | $708,982,323 | $202,853,933 |
| 14 | Marvel Studios | Doctor Strange | $652,887,055 | $226,087,055 |
| 15 | Walt Disney Pictures | Big Hero 6 | $652,105,443 | $222,505,443 |
| 16 | Marvel Studios | Thor: The Dark World | $644,783,140 | $206,362,140 |
| 17 | Marvel Studios | Iron Man 2 | $623,933,331 | $312,433,331 |
| 18 | Marvel Studios | Iron Man | $585,174,222 | $318,412,101 |
| 19 | Marvel Entertainment | X-Men: Apocalypse | $524,089,004 | $151,480,912 |
| 21 | Marvel Entertainment | X-Men: The Last Stand | $459,359,555 | $234,362,462 |
| 22 | Marvel Studios | Thor | $449,326,618 | $181,030,624 |
| 23 | 20th Century Fox | The Wolverine | $414,828,246 | $132,556,852 |
| 24 | 20th Century Fox | X2: X-Men United | $407,711,549 | $214,949,694 |
| 25 | 20th Century Fox | X-Men Origins: Wolverine | $373,062,864 | $179,883,157 |
| 26 | Marvel Studios | Captain America: The First Avenger | $370,569,774 | $176,654,505 |
| 27 | Bad Hat Harry Productions | X-Men: First Class | $353,624,124 | $146,408,305 |
| 28 | Constantin Film | Fantastic Four (2005) | $330,579,719 | $154,696,080 |
| 20 | Marvel Studios | Ant Man | $518,585,201 | $180,157,872 |
| 29 | 20th Century Fox | X-Men | $296,339,527 | $157,299,717 |
| 30 | Marvel Entertainment | Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer | $289,047,763 | $131,921,738 |
| 31 | Marvel Studios | The Incredible Hulk | $263,427,551 | $134,806,913 |
| 32 | Universal Pictures | Hulk | $245,360,480 | $132,177,234 |
| 33 | Crystal Sky Pictures | Ghost Rider | $228,738,393 | $115,802,596 |
| 34 | Regency Enterprises | Daredevil | $179,179,718 | $102,543,518 |
| 35 | Marvel Studios | Fantastic Four (2015) | $167,977,597 | $56,117,547 |
| 36 | Marvel Enterprises | Blade II | $155,010,032 | $82,348,319 |
| 37 | Marvel Entertainment | Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance | $132,563,930 | $51,774,002 |
| 38 | Marvel Enterprises | Blade | $131,183,530 | $70,087,718 |
| 39 | New Line Cinema | Blade: Trinity | $128,905,366 | $52,411,906 |
| 40 | Marvel Enterprises | Elektra | $56,681,566 | $24,409,722 |
| 41 | New World Pictures | The Punisher | $54,700,105 | $33,810,189 |
| 42 | Lucasfilm | Howard the Duck | $37,962,774 | $16,295,774 |
| 43 | Valhalla Motion Pictures | Punisher: War Zone | $10,100,036 | $8,050,977 |
| Totals | $21,997,331,616 | $8,935,668,186 |
6. Spider Man: $821,708,551
Adjusted for inflation, 2002'sSpider Man would have the second highest domestic box office take of all Marvel movies, second only toThe Avengersand followed closely bySpider Man 2 andSpider Man 3.
In the movie's famous upside-down kissing scene, the crew had to stop filming several times because Tobey Maguire's sinuses kept filling with water.
7. Spider Man 2: $783,766,341
Spider Man 2 is Marvel's seventh biggest movie money maker, with almost $784 million. The movie spent more than $54 million on digital effects and set a record for the biggest opening day of any movie ever. The movie had a budget of $200,000,000. At the time that tied it for first place of the most expensive movie ever made. The other contender was James Cameron'sTitanic. Spider Man 2 is no small contributor to Marvel movie income.
8. Deadpool: $778,618,148
Deadpool made $778 million worldwide and $363 million domestically. It's also #8 on our Marvel movies money list. The Marvel black comedy comic movie made an astounding opening. A huge part of its early success was probably thanks to the way it reinvented the superhero movie. Deadpool doesn't have an "or else the world will end" type of plot. That's new. It also doesn't take itself seriously. It's also very raunchy. It's possible fans are reacting to the differences and freshness of the film. It's also possible they're parting with the money because it's just a kickass Marvel movie.
9. Guardians of the Galaxy: $774,176,600
Marvel's ninth biggest earner isGuardians of the Galaxy with $774 million taken in worldwide. It was the first Marvel movie to top $300 million in the U.S. without featuring Robert Downey Junior's Iron Man character.
When actor Dave Bautista learned he'd got the part of Drax the Destroyer, he burst into tears, then signed up for acting lessons so he'd be able to do his best work on the role.
10. The Amazing Spider Man: $757,930,663
The reboot of Marvel's Spider Man franchise pulled in almost $758 million. The movie was originally intended to be titledSpider Man 4 and star Tobey Maguire, with Sam Raimi directing. Disagreements between Raimi, Maguire and the studio drove development costs past $100 million dollars, causing the studio to scrap the movie in favor of a reboot.
The film's star Andrew Garfield reported shedding tears when he first tried on the Spider Man costume.
11. X-Men: Days of Future Past: $748,121,534
With $748 million, 2014's X-Men installment is Marvel's 11th biggest earner. The movie's $200 million budget was easily justified by its earnings.
When Hugh Jackman's Wolverine character travels back in time to 1973, he was originally scripted to wear boxer shorts in bed. He insisted on being filmed nude, reasoning that nobody waking up next to a good looking woman would be wearing anything.
12. Captain America: The Winter Soldier: $714,766,572
2014's Captain America installment is Marvel's 12th biggest money maker ever. The movie had a budget of $170 million. The movie was filmed in Cleveland, Ohio after being granted a $9.5 million tax credit.
In the movie, Nick Fury says his grandfather was an elevator operator. Actor Samuel L. Jackson's father operated an elevator in real life.
13. The Amazing Spider Man 2: $708,982,323
Marvel's 13th highest grossing film isThe Amazing Spider Man 2 with about $709 million. The movie's marketing budget alone was about $190 million. In Hong Kong the movie earned $1.23 million on its opening day, the biggest movie opening in Hong Kong in history.
Emma Stone wrote her character's graduation speech herself. In the movie, Stone is shown walking a dog. She and real-life significant other Andrew Garfield later adopted the dog.
14. Doctor Strange: $652,887,055
Entering the half billion and up club,Doctor Strange comes in at #14. The Marvel movie has made more money than most other Marvel's films, outdoing Thor and Captain America. To date the movie has earned $652 million worldwide and $226 million in the US. With a budget of $165 million, it's not the most expensive of the Marvel canon. It marks the largest IMAX opening on record with a worldwide total of over $24 million.
With a 90% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie is a fan favorite, though some critics have complained of a generic origin story plot. Benedict Cumberbatch initially had to turn the lead role down because of a prior commitment. He was slated to appear in a stage production of Shakespeare'sHamlet.
15. Big Hero 6: $652,105,443
One of the lesser known Marvel movie characters,Big Hero 6 is also the highest grossing animated Marvel movie. It's also the third Marvel movie of 2014 to earn more than $500 million. The others areGuardians of the Galaxy andCaptain America: The Winter Soldier. The big inflatable robot has definitely done his share to chip into the Marvel movie income hopper.
The movements of the movie's hero Baymax were created by modeling the motions of a baby who had a full diaper.
16: Thor: The Dark World: $644,783,140
2013'sThor: The Dark World is one of 19 Marvel movies to earn more than a half a billion dollars. Within 19 days of the film's release, it had already earned more than the first Thor movie. The movie earned its biggest overseas money pile in China with $55.3 million.
It took Natalie Portman 30 tries to slap Chris Hemsworth in one scene because she didn't want to hurt him. By contrast, the star only needed five takes to punch Tom Hiddleston.
17: Iron Man 2: $623,933,331
With a budget of $200 million, Marvel's 17th biggest money maker earned $312 million in North America. With a marketing budget of more than $150 million, the film would have lost money without foreign ticket sales.
Much of the Whiplash character was created by actor Mickey Rourke. He even paid for the character's pet cockatoo and gold teeth with his own money.
18. Iron Man: $585,174,222
2008'sIron Man earned the 2nd least money of all Marvel's 19 movies to make over a half billion dollars. The movie was the first film in 2008 to bring in more than $300 million. Jeff Bridges commented that the lax production format made him feel as if he was appearing in a $200 million dollar student film."
The movie kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Movie Universe franchise. The dialogue was mostly ad-libbed.
19. X-Men: Apocalypse: $524,089,004
X-Men: Apocalypseis #19 on the list of all Marvel movies, ranked by money. The movie wasn't made by Marvel Studios, but instead by Marvel Entertainment, Marvel's wing for movies that get made by other production companies (in this case 20th Century Fox). It's not a huge hit with critics, getting only a 48% on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. It does slightly better with fans, getting a 74% fresh rating, but the movie doesn't look destined to be a high-end Marvel money maker.
20. Ant Man:$518,585,201
Coming in at an impressive #20 on the list of Marvel movies by money, the relatively smallAnt Man film earned almost four times its production budget at the worldwide box office, ending at $518 million. That beats the box office take of Thor andCaptain America: The First Avenger.Producer Kevin Feige said of the film's star Paul Rudd that he was perfect for the role of someone who can be charming while at the same time doing slightly unsavory things like breaking into houses to steal things. The film took in $180 million in North America alone, making it a decent entry in Marvel's money-making movie canon. This despite the film's having the second lowest box office opening of any Marvel movie.
Actor Paul Rudd is rumored to have purchased a gigantic ant farm as part of his research for the role. Rudd found the experience so inspiring that he kept the ant farm after the film's release. Another part of Rudd's preparation for the movie was weight training. Apparently he did so well at it they had to specially tailor his Ant Man suit to make him look less muscular than he was.
21. X-Men: The Last Stand: $459,359,555
The second Marvel movie on our list to take in less money than a half a billion, X-Men: The Last Stand still earned nearly $500 million worldwide. No small contribution to the Marvel movie income. The 2006 movie spent about 1/6 of its budget on its Golden Gate Bridge sequence. A life-sized section of the bridge was constructed for the movie. At the time, the film was the most expensive ever made.
Halle Berry's wire flying stunts made her so sick during filming that she vomited. The crew had to have buckets ready before filming subsequent fight scenes.
22. Thor: $449,326,618
Number 22 on our list of the top earning Marvel movies, Thor's original script would have required $300 million to produce. The script was trimmed to cut the film's budget in half. The cuts didn't seem to hurt this addition to the Marvel movie income coffers.
The movie was well received critically. According to film site IMDB, when Anthony Hopkins first saw Chris Hemsworth in costume, he said, "God, there's no acting required here is there?"
23. The Wolverine: $414,828,246
Hugh Jackman's first solo role in a Marvel movie earned nearly $415 million. The 2013 movie had a budget of $120 million. It earned $19 million more than that amount during its opening weekend worldwide.
With $132 million in North America, The Wolverine made less money than any other film in the X-Men franchise domestically. In foreign markets however, it pulled in $282 million, a significantly larger take than any other X-Men movie.
24. X-2: X Men United: $407,711,549
X-2 pulled in $407 million, making it the 23rd biggest Marvel movie money maker. The 2003 film was so successful that 20th Century Fox gave director Bryan Singer a $50 million budget boost for the sequel. The movie went on to make $107 million during the first five days after its release on DVD.
Most of the frozen people in the movie were portrayed by mimes. In the movie a cat licks Wolverine's claws. The cat was enticed to lick the claws by putting frozen tea on them.
25. X-Men Origins: Wolverine: $373,062,864
X-Men Origins: Wolverine earned $373 million worldwide on a budget of $150 million, despite opening to lackluster critical reviews. The film was produced by Hugh Jackman, who earned $25 million from it. The movie was produced in Sydney Australia, where the government estimated it would generate $60 million for the city's economy. The movie took in $64 million in DVD sales.
Hugh Jackman helped write the movie's script. At one point during filming, Will.i.am punched a camera by accident, scarring his knuckles.
26. Captain America: The First Avenger: $370,569,774
In the first standalone Captain America movie by Marvel, actor Chris Evans was paid only $300,000 for portraying the film's main character. The film had a $140 million dollar budget. The money for the movie came from a $525 million dollar investment in Marvel by Merril Lynch. The film made up for more than a third of its production cost in DVD sales alone. After another couple hundred million from the box office take, the rest was all gravy in the Marvel movie income vat.
Chris Evans turned down the lead role three times before he accepted it. His reasoning was that the resulting fame would ruin his private life. Robert Downey Junior talked Evans into taking the part, arguing it would give him the freedom to take on any role he wanted in the future.
Marvel's Box Office Bomb
2015's not so fantasticFantastic Four is Marvel's first recent box office disaster. The film took in $168 million worldwide, placing it behindDaredevil andGhost Rider. It also finished five spots below the 2007 bomb Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and seven spots below 2005's original so-so Fantastic Four.
The film gets a 10% score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes for being dull and misguided and lacking joy, humor and thrills.
Marvel Movie Money into the Future
There are 12 Marvel movies scheduled to hit the theaters by 2021. They include:
- Doctor Strange (11/4/2016)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (5/5/2017)
- Spider Man Homecoming (7/28/2017)
- Thor: Ragnarok (11/3/2017)
- Black Panther (2/16/2018)
- Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (5/4/2018)
- Ant Man and the Wasp (7/6/2018)
- Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 (5/3/2019)
- Captain Marvel (3/8/2019)
- Inhumans (7/12/2019)
- Untitled Marvel Movie #1 (5/1/2020)
- Untitled Marvel Movie #2 (7/10/2020)
- Untitled Marvel Movie #3 (11/6/2020)
If each of those movies brings in the average worldwide take for a Marvel film, that'll boost Marvel's total earnings to $25 billion by 2020.
Will Marvel be able to keep its spot as king of the comic money movies? It's hard to say. With powerhouse writer/director Joss Whedon on the way out and new entries in the Star Wars franchise hitting theaters in December, Marvel has its work cut out for it. Then again, since both Marvel and Star Wars are owned by Disney, the coming battle may just be the mighty Mouse arm wrestling himself.
Also see: How Much Money Has Every Star Wars Movie Made?
Sources
BoxOfficeMojo.com
IMDB.com
What Was the First Marvel Movie Made
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