Here Are the Most Expensive Movies Ever Made - MovieWeb

maleomales.blogspot.com

It's astonishing how much money goes into Hollywood franchise movies. Between the actors' multi-million-dollar salaries and the salaries of thousands of crew members to post-production and marketing, the budgets for some films certainly make you realize just how little we, as an audience, are in comparison to the giants of the film industry. It's certainly predictable which franchises and movies will make it onto a list of most expensive movies ever made, but the specific figures of each movie are sure to still make you blink twice.

Of course, a movie with a high budget doesn't necessarily mean that it is certain to make a satisfactory profit in return or, for that matter, be a well-crafted and entertaining story. Disney, for example, invests millions in all of its projects, but that doesn't stop the major studio from experiencing its box office bombs every now and then. Another great example of this phenomenon is Transformers: The Last Knight, which despite its budget of over $216 million still managed to lose more than $100 million, opening at a franchise-low of $69.1 million when all was said and done. Without further ado, here's a look at the most expensive movies ever made.

10 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice — $263M

batman-vs-superman-dawn-of-justice — Warner Bros. Pictures

More than $263 million was used to make Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and yet, no one knows whether it performed well or below people's expectations. Yes, the film earned a solid 3.5x its budget in theatrical alone, according to Forbes, but its success could be seen only in the first opening weekend. Some argue that the movie is actually pretty good, especially praising Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill for their acting performances, but some criticized its pace and storytelling. Despite what you may think, one thing the movie does well is showing how terrifying it could be to be in a powerless person's shoes during the superhuman fights.

9 John Carter — $264M

John Carter is one of the few movies that holds two drastically contrasting titles: it's one of the most expensive movies ever made, but also one of the biggest box office bombs (though its lead actor Taylor Kitsch would disagree). The sci-fi epic used a budget of more than $264 million and grossed only $73 million domestically. Not even Disney expected this movie to flop so horribly, as they were planning to make a whole franchise out of it.

8 Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker — $275M

rey-yellow-lightsaber-star-wars-the-rise-of-skywalker — Lucasfilm / Disney

Although being the lowest-grossing movie of the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker still managed to make a net profit of $300 million and become one of the highest grossing movies of 2019, while more than $275 million was put into the making and special effects. One of the things Rise of Skywalker did well was showing the contrast between Force healing and its dark side counterpart.

7 Solo: A Star Wars Story — $275M

The second Star Wars movie focusing on the character of Han Solo, Solo: A Star Wars Story was the first movie of the franchise considered a box office bomb, according to Vanity Fair. The producers made use of a $275 million budget and grossed only $393.2 million worldwide. Solo: A Star Wars Story is arguably the first movie of the franchise where we can feel that each spin-off explores a different genre. Despite starring big names such as Emilia Clarke and Alden Ehrenreich, this particular movie doesn't really have a fandom of its own.

6 Justice League — $300M

We're proven over and over again that making use of a high budget has nothing to do with the film's predisposition to become a global success. The original version of Justice League from 2017 cost over $300M to make and yet, it was a box office bomb that eventually led to losing Warner Bros. The audience and the critics were so dissatisfied that they pushed Zack Snyder to release his original version of the movie on HBO Max in 2021. It went on to become the fourth most streamed movie of that year.

5 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End — $300M

On the contrary, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End shows us that sometimes it is worth taking the risk of investing $300M into a project. The third installment of the franchise became the highest grossing movie of 2007 with over $960 million grossed. The entirety of the movie consists of Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) constantly fighting for his ship while embracing his destiny and Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) & Will’s (Orlando Bloom) windswept romance. What is there not to love?

4 Avengers: Infinity War — $316M

Now, let's be honest: when has an Avenger movie not lived up to its expectations, particularly when it comes to the grossed earnings? Using the budget of $316M definitely paid off, considering how Infinity War became the first superhero movie to gross over $2 billion worldwide. Despite society's assumptions that superhero movies are an overrated genre and that the superhero movie fatigue is becoming more real, the numbers say otherwise.

3 Avengers: Endgame — $350M

I Am Iron Man in Avengers Endgame — Disney, Marvel Studios

The anticipation for Avengers: Endgame, the movie that would conclude the Infinity Saga storyline, was enormous. It's only natural that the numbers would prove that. Using the budget of $350M, the movie grossed $2.798 billion worldwide. If you thought that Infinity War's achievements were impressive, Endgame surpassed them by becoming the highest-grossing movie of all time from July 2019 until March 2021. Whether you think the Avengers made things infinitely worse by reversing the Blip or you completely love the storyline, the numbers stay the same.

2 Avengers: Age of Ultron — $386M

The second most expensive movie ever made is none other than Avengers: Age Of Ultron, with a budget over $386 million. The special effects and seven different states as filming locations; it's no surprise the producers needed such a high budget. But, as always with the MCU franchise, it was compensated for by becoming the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2015. The second Avengers movie opened new discussions concerning Tony's responsibility, Hawkeye's character, and a new addition to the team in the form of Wanda Maximoff.

1 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides — $422M

Last but not least, the most expensive movie ever made: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The only movie surpassing the four hundred mark with a $422M budget. The reasons for such a huge number were definitely the four different states used as filming locations and also the 3D cameras employed in the filming process, similar to those used in Avatar. Love it, or consider it the death of the franchise, it was still the third highest-grossing film of 2011.