The Highest-Grossing Movies of All Time
Worldwide box office, unadjusted for inflation, as of October 2026. Totals include re-releases, and several films are still earning.
Box office records rarely stay put. For most of the last decade the all-time crown has passed between two films, and in 2026 a new Spider-Man movie joined the elite tier. Here are the ten biggest films in cinema history, counting down to the top.
| # | Film | Year | Worldwide gross |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | The Odyssey | 2026 | $1.74B |
| 9 | Spider-Man: No Way Home | 2021 | $1.92B |
| 8 | Avengers: Infinity War | 2018 | $2.05B |
| 7 | Star Wars: The Force Awakens | 2015 | $2.07B |
| 6 | Ne Zha 2 | 2025 | ~$2.2B |
| 5 | Titanic | 1997 | $2.26B |
| 4 | Avatar: The Way of Water | 2022 | $2.33B |
| 3 | Spider-Man: Brand New Day | 2026 | $2.48B |
| 2 | Avatar | 2009 | $2.92B |
| 1 | Avengers: Endgame | 2019 | $2.93B |
10. The Odyssey (2026), $1.74 billion
Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Homer's epic is the newest entry on the list, and it has been a sensation. It had passed $1.7 billion worldwide by the time this list was compiled. Its ensemble cast includes Tom Holland. It also became the highest-grossing R-rated film ever, passing Deadpool & Wolverine. It is still in release, so its total may keep climbing.
9. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), $1.92 billion
Directed by Jon Watts, No Way Home used a multiverse storyline to bring Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire, and Andrew Garfield together on screen. Fans had speculated about that reunion for years. It arrived while theaters were still recovering from the pandemic, and it showed that audiences would turn out in huge numbers for the right event movie.
8. Avengers: Infinity War (2018), $2.05 billion
Anthony and Joe Russo's film was the first half of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's grand finale. It pitted nearly every hero in the franchise against Thanos and ended on a cliffhanger that dominated conversation for months. That buzz helped it past the $2 billion mark.
7. Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015), $2.07 billion
J.J. Abrams brought Star Wars back to theaters under Disney, pairing returning icons with new characters. For over a decade it held the record as the biggest film ever in North America. That record fell in 2026 to Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
6. Ne Zha 2 (2025), roughly $2.2 billion
The biggest surprise on the list is a Chinese animated sequel. Directed by Yang Yu, Ne Zha 2 retells a figure from Chinese mythology, and its box office came almost entirely from audiences in China. It is the highest-grossing animated film ever, passing Inside Out 2, and the highest-grossing non-English-language film in history. Trackers differ slightly on how it compares to Titanic, so check the latest numbers if the exact order matters to you.
5. Titanic (1997), $2.26 billion
James Cameron's romance-disaster epic was the first film ever to gross $1 billion, and it held the #1 position for about twelve years. It won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Its current total includes several re-releases, most recently in 2023.
4. Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), $2.33 billion
Thirteen years after the original, Cameron returned to Pandora and set the sequel largely among the planet's oceans. Many expected the gap to dull audience interest, and it didn't. The film dominated the holiday season and confirmed that the franchise still had enormous drawing power.
3. Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), $2.48 billion
Tom Holland's fourth solo outing as Spider-Man, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, is the year's biggest hit so far. Its $72 million in Thursday-night previews and its $169.8 million opening day both broke records previously held by Avengers: Endgame. It is now the highest-grossing Spider-Man film by a wide margin and one of only three superhero films to pass $2 billion. Its domestic total of roughly $948 million also makes it the biggest North American release ever.
2. Avatar (2009), $2.92 billion
Avatar made 3D a mainstream event format and pushed motion-capture technology forward. It was the first film to cross $2 billion, and it held the all-time record for about a decade until Endgame passed it in 2019. A 2021 re-release, driven largely by China, put it back on top. As of early October 2026, it trails Endgame by only about $2 million.
1. Avengers: Endgame (2019), $2.93 billion
The Russo brothers closed out a 22-film storyline with a finale built on emotional payoffs, farewells to Iron Man and Captain America, and a huge final battle. It broke opening-weekend records worldwide on release. After the 2026 re-release Avengers: Endgame Encore, it overtook Avatar again, reaching $2.9255 billion. The margin is so small that another Avatar re-release could swap the top two spots once more.
What the list tells us
Cameron still rules. Three of the top five films, Avatar, The Way of Water, and Titanic, are his. A fourth Cameron film, Avatar: Fire and Ash, arrived in late 2025 but sits outside the top ten.
Disney dominates. Disney is behind seven of the ten highest-grossing films ever, through Marvel, Star Wars, and the Fox library it acquired, which includes Avatar and Titanic.
Re-releases shape the top spot. The #1 position has changed hands mainly through re-releases, so rankings at the very top can move quickly.
The map is getting wider. Ne Zha 2 shows that a film aimed at one huge domestic market can reach the global top ten, which would have been hard to imagine a generation ago.