Box Office Breakdown of 2019

The success of certain films over a year is of great interest to film producers but should also be of note to the public: what they pay to see, and what draws the most crowds will ultimately decide how the big studios will operate over the next few years, and the public, as consumers, can expect what they will be pushed to go and see in the future. 

2019 was a record breaking year on a vast scale; 2015 had the record for most billion dollar grossing films in a year (five) but 2019 is (at the time of writing) on its way to a potential nine films grossing a billion dollars. Avatar was finally dethroned from its worldwide record and we got new highest grossing films in the live-action, animated and R rated departments. Here is the 2019 worldwide list with breakdowns of the performances:

10. Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and  Shaw - $758,910,100
Poor Hobbs and poor Shaw: the only film stopping 2019 having a clean sweep of billion dollar grossers. But 3/4 of a billion is not to be sniffed at when considering its a spin-off that is predominantly aimed at teenage boys on their summer holidays. I haven't seen the film but it is clear that the teaming of Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham was vital for marketing, as well as the semi-tongue in cheek humour and massively overblown set pieces.

9. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - $1,005,323,801 (and counting)
Episode 9 could either have been the second film on this list or not at all. It was immensely hard to predict how this film would do: The Last Jedi saw a $700 million decline from The Force Awakens, fan reception was massively divided with threats of a boycott, Solo was a flop and appetite for the brand has steadily declined as the novelty has worn off. And then there is the film itself: neither satisfying for the people who loved TLJ and not satisfying enough for those that hated it. It stumbles about trying to make as many people happy as possible that the final result is a 'meh' film that feels conventional and cowardly and does not fully wrap up the messy sequel trilogy. It is the first of the Disney bunch that I did not feel inclined to go and see again, a sentiment held by a great deal of friends too. It gave Disney their seventh billion dollar hit of the year but this is not a film that will be remembered, and the fact that other films on this list grossed more is enough evidence for a diminishing franchise. Watch The Mandalorian instead. 

8. Aladdin - $1,050,693,953

At the start of the year if someone had said "Joker will gross more than Aladdin" then I would've shrugged and I said "probably." Aladdin had polarising trailers and did not seem like a juggernaut. And then it exploded around the world. Now if someone had said to me in September that "Joker will out-gross Aladdin" I would have scoffed. It seemed like an impossible feat. Both those statements turned out true and the studio executives for both films should be pretty pleased with the two films on this list that I would have argued a year ago would not make it. The film proved Will Smith is still bankable and audiences will see Disney remakes if they keep banging them out. 

7. Joker - 

By far the biggest success story of the year, Todd Phillips' psychological thriller about Arthur Fleck's descent into becoming Joker is a zeitgeist-tapping breakout. The fantastic trailers and marketing kicked off the anticipation for this, and then the post-film-festival controversy and media assault began, drawing the film deeper into the public's perception. This was a film used by the media for scaremongering; in reality it led to people watching it to decide for themselves and have an opinion on it. What followed was a gigantic October opening, and then an impressive -43% drop in its second weekend, showing its staying power and word of mouth. Joker's success can be attributed to a variety of reasons: the media outcry that labelled it as violent and upsetting, the hype around Joaquin Phoenix's potentially Oscar winning performance and, probably most importantly, it is a terrific film. It offers something new and refreshing to younger cinema goers; showing an evolution in the superhero genre. Also, the film's deluded protagonist and smart direction means that not everything in the film is fact, something which in conversations after watching it will only encourage repeat viewings to help your own theory and understanding of the film. Joker is the biggest R rated film ever, and by quite a significant margin at that. The fact that it made over a billion dollars without a Chinese release is phenomenal. Joker is a studio's dream: an old school style drama made on a budget of around $60 million that did not need a Chinese release to become the most profitable comic book film of all time. 

6. Toy Story 4 - $1,073,3948,593

When it opened in America, Toy Story 4 grossed 'only' $120 million over the weekend and at the time landed the biggest worldwide opening for an animated film with $244 million (since overtaken twice). Articles circulated that this was a disappointing result for Pixar, and that it showed a fatigue or lack of love for a new Toy Story film. But is that really the case? Finding Dory made over $130 million in its domestic opening weekend, landing the biggest animated opening. In 2018, Incredibles II destroyed that record with $180 million. It is these two films, recent Pixar sequels to beloved classics, that perhaps set a standard for this fourth installment. The key word there is 'fourth'- Woody and Buzz have had sequels before, and there was an 11 year gap between the 2 and 3, which lead to a juggernaut box office success for the third. The novelty of seeing these characters again decreases the more they are seen; if Incredibles had two more sequels I would predict that they wouldn't open bigger than the second. The novelty fades. And any animated film hitting over $100 million in a weekend is a breakout hit. Unadjusted for inflation, this film actually made slightly more than Toy Story 3 which is what you hope a sequel will do. I am glad this film was a big hit, it's fantastic and a poignant ending not just to Woody and Buzz, but also for Pixar's sequels as this was to be their final one. 

5. Captain Marvel - $1,128,274,794

February seems like a new sweet spot for Marvel releases, with this stand-alone film coming a year after Black Panther accumulated $1.3 billion in the same release window. Again, this had the 'social novelty' of being Marvel's first female led film, similar to the first black-led Marvel film a year prior. The two big factors for this film's success is the female-led USP and that 2018's Infinity War set up Captain Marvel with its post-credits scene; implying her importance and a need to see her origin film before watching Endgame. Because the film itself is average; probably better than most others in the franchise and I found its quieter scenes far more engaging than its spectacle, which seems forgettable. And no, Brie Larson's disastrous comments did not lead to a boycott or box office failure. I would expect more from this character in the future. 

4. Spider-man: Far From Home - $1,131,927,966

In seven months Marvel made $5 billion worldwide. Let that sink in. Far From Home capitalised on Endgame's success big time; using it in marketing and being sold as an epilogue to the Infinity Saga. This was a clever move, butting bums in seats by saying that this was a final bit of closure for characters like Tony Stark. The previous Spider-man film, Homecoming, made $880 million back in July 2017. In that time, Peter Parker got some of the most memorable lines and scenes in the two colossal Avengers films; in many ways being the heart and soul of the story. It was inevitable this film would earn more, and if you add in Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio you have a solid recipe for success. Again, this was a mostly fine Marvel film. It had entertaining sequences, comedy and a welcome surprise in its credit scenes. Another new leading face for the MCU moving forward. 

3. Frozen II - $1,267,812,364 (and counting)
Whilst not surprised that it is a gigantic success, I will admit I was taken aback that Frozen II overtook its predecessor. Back in 2013, Frozen was that ubiquitous film with instantly iconic new characters, an inescapable selection of songs and a female friendly property. It played in cinemas in months, complete with sing-a-long versions too. Six years is a while between sequels but promising trailers and familiarity have ensured that Frozen II became another breakout, all the more surprising considering I have not heard the more popular songs being played and sung as much as Let It Go was back in the day. But its a win for female audiences and Disney. 

2. The Lion King - $1,656,813,149
I expected this to crack the top three easily, and I also expected it to become the biggest of the Disney remakes. 1994's The Lion King is unquestionably the most popular Disney animation; it is the highest rated, one of their biggest successes, as an eternally playing London show and is always in conversation for the 'what scenes make you cry' question. Throw in James Earl Jones returning as Mufasa, Beyone as Nala and Donald Glover as Simba, and you have a talented of-the-time cast to go with the striking visuals. Of course audiences wanted to see the story told again and hear the famous score and soundtrack, regardless of critical response. And the prime mid-July weekend is always economically beneficial, giving the tent pole films a good two weeks run before the next summer release. It did not deserve to make this much money as it offered nothing new, but it is obvious how it did. 

1. Avengers: Engdame - $2,797,800,564

A monolith of a film if ever there was one. It has been all too frequently documented how and why this epic conclusion became the highest grossing film of all time. But as briefly as possible here goes. Infinity War was universally loved and praised by audiences and critics; it had a riveting new villain, a shocking, cliffhanger finale and the promise of revenge. Audiences knew this was the end of the story, and the end of some of their characters. The theorising was non-stop and people just could not wait, so they all booked tickets opening weekend. Infinity War had the biggest domestic opening ever with $257 million, and the biggest global opening with around $640 million. Endgame launched to $350 million domestic and $1.2 billion worldwide. That is a ludicrous increase, and a record I just cannot fathom ever being topped. The film was emotionally satisfying, had some of the most rewarding moments in fan-service history, and has a pulsing momentum towards an unforgettable conclusion (especially if you saw it in a packed cinema). Then there was a whole social media movement that aimed at removing Avatar as the no.1 film in favour of something more worthwhile. Is it more worthwhile? Well with Avatar I think more people went to see it, whereas Endgame was perhaps driven more by repeat viewings of its fans. One is a technical gimmick, the other a decade long closure to a generation defining franchise. And yes, Marvel did cheat by adding extra scenes and Far From Home material to later releases in order to get it over Avatar, but then again so did James Cameron. What is interesting is that after those two films is Titanic with $2.1 billion. That means there is a nearly $700 million difference and the top two are separated by a puny $10-20 million.