The Numbers - Box Office Data, Movie Stars, Idle Speculation

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Sunday, May 11, 2008

Movie Budget Records

Note: Budget numbers for movies can be both difficult to find and unreliable. Studios often try to keep the information secret and will use accounting tricks to inflate or reduce announced budgets.

The data we have is, to the best of our knowledge, accurate but there are gaps and disputed figures. If you have additional information or corrections, please let us know at corrections@the-numbers.com.

A complete list of all movies for which we have budget information can be found here.

Note: The profit and loss figures are very rough estimates based on the assumption that 50% of box office receipts were returned to the studio. They don't include ancillary (video, TV etc.) earnings, and serve only as a guide.

Biggest Budgets
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetUS GrossWorldwide Gross
1 5/4/2007   Spider-Man 3 Sony $258,000,000 $336,530,303 $891,930,303
2 11/7/2008   Quantum of Solace Sony Pictures $230,000,000 Unknown Unknown
3 12/14/2005   King Kong Universal $207,000,000 $218,080,025 $550,517,357
4 12/7/2007   His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass New Line $205,000,000 $70,083,519 $365,677,285
5 6/28/2006   Superman Returns Warner Bros. $204,000,000 $200,120,000 $391,120,000
6 12/19/1997   Titanic 20th Century Fox $200,000,000 $600,788,188 $1,835,400,000
7 6/30/2004   Spider-Man 2 Columbia $200,000,000 $373,524,485 $784,024,485
8 5/2/2008   Iron Man   $186,000,000 $126,634,395 $235,213,402
9 5/22/2009   Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins Warner Bros. $185,000,000 Unknown Unknown
10 12/9/2005   The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Buena Vista $180,000,000 $291,710,957 $748,806,957
11 8/10/2007   Rush Hour 3 New Line $180,000,000 $140,080,850 $252,980,850
12 6/30/1999   Wild Wild West Warner Bros. $175,000,000 $113,805,681 $217,700,000
13 6/22/2007   Evan Almighty Universal $175,000,000 $100,289,690 $173,219,280
14 7/30/2008   The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor Universal $175,000,000 Unknown Unknown
15 7/28/1995   Waterworld Universal $175,000,000 $88,246,220 $264,246,220
16 5/7/2004   Van Helsing Universal $170,000,000 $120,150,546 $300,150,546
17 11/10/2004   The Polar Express Warner Bros. $170,000,000 $172,796,043 $296,596,043
18 8/7/2009   G.I. Joe Paramount Pictures $170,000,000 Unknown Unknown
19 7/1/2003   Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines Warner Bros. $170,000,000 $150,358,296 $433,058,296
20 5/18/2007   Shrek the Third DreamWorks SKG $160,000,000 $322,719,944 $798,957,081

See the complete list

Movies With Lowest Budgets to Earn $1 Million at US Box Office
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetUS GrossWorldwide Gross
1 2/26/1993   El Mariachi Columbia $7,000 $2,040,920 Unknown
2 8/1/1991   Slacker Orion Classics $23,000 $1,227,508 Unknown
3 8/1/1997   In the Company of Men Sony Classics $25,000 $2,883,661 Unknown
4 8/9/1995   The Brothers McMullen Fox Searchlight $25,000 $10,426,506 Unknown
5 6/30/1972   Deep Throat Damiano $25,000 $45,000,000 Unknown
6 10/19/1994   Clerks Miramax $27,000 $3,073,428 Unknown
7 7/14/1999   The Blair Witch Project Artisan $35,000 $140,539,099 $248,300,000
8 1/30/2004   Osama United Artists $46,000 $1,127,331 $1,971,479
9 3/16/2001   Gabriela Power Point $50,000 $2,335,352 Unknown
10 5/7/2004   Super Size Me IDP/Sam Goldwyn $65,000 $11,529,368 $29,529,368
11 7/10/1998   Pi Artisan $68,000 $3,221,152 $4,678,513
12 8/30/1972   The Last House on the Left   $87,000 $3,100,000 Unknown
13 3/1/1987   Hollywood Shuffle Samuel Goldwyn $100,000 $5,228,617 Unknown
14 1/1/1977   Eraserhead   $100,000 $7,000,000 Unknown
15 9/17/1920   Over the Hill to the Poorhouse   $100,000 $3,000,000 Unknown
16 2/8/1915   The Birth of a Nation   $110,000 $10,000,000 $11,000,000
17 10/1/1968   Night of the Living Dead   $114,000 $12,000,000 $30,000,000
18 11/16/1942   Cat People   $134,000 $4,000,000 $8,000,000
19 12/20/1989   Roger & Me Warner Bros. $140,000 $6,706,368 Unknown
20 5/16/2007   Once Fox Searchlight $150,000 $9,445,857 $16,307,893

Most Profitable Movies, Based on Absolute Profit on Worldwide Gross
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetWorldwide GrossProfit
1 12/19/1997   Titanic 20th Century Fox $200,000,000 $1,835,400,000 $717,700,000
2 12/17/2003   The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King New Line $94,000,000 $1,133,027,325 $472,513,663
3 6/11/1993   Jurassic Park Universal $63,000,000 $920,100,000 $397,050,000
4 5/25/1977   Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope 20th Century Fox $11,000,000 $797,900,000 $387,950,000
5 5/19/2004   Shrek 2 DreamWorks SKG $70,000,000 $915,278,586 $387,639,293
6 6/11/1982   ET: The Extra-Terrestrial Universal $10,500,000 $792,910,554 $385,955,277
7 7/7/2006   Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Buena Vista $150,000,000 $1,065,659,812 $382,829,906
8 12/18/2002   The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers New Line $94,000,000 $926,284,377 $369,142,189
9 11/16/2001   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Warner Bros. $125,000,000 $976,457,891 $363,228,946
10 5/19/1999   Star Wars Ep. I: The Phantom Menace 20th Century Fox $115,000,000 $924,288,297 $347,144,149
11 11/15/2002   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Warner Bros. $100,000,000 $878,987,880 $339,493,940
12 5/30/2003   Finding Nemo Buena Vista $94,000,000 $864,614,978 $338,307,489
13 7/3/1996   Independence Day 20th Century Fox $75,000,000 $816,969,255 $333,484,628
14 5/25/2007   Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Buena Vista $150,000,000 $952,404,152 $326,202,076
15 12/19/2001   The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring New Line $109,000,000 $868,621,686 $325,310,843
16 7/11/2007   Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Warner Bros. $150,000,000 $938,468,864 $319,234,432
17 5/23/1997   The Lost World: Jurassic Park Universal $75,000,000 $786,686,679 $318,343,340
18 6/15/1994   The Lion King Buena Vista $79,300,000 $783,839,505 $312,619,753
19 5/19/2005   Star Wars Ep. III: Revenge of the Sith 20th Century Fox $115,000,000 $848,470,577 $309,235,289
20 11/18/2005   Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Warner Bros. $150,000,000 $896,013,036 $298,006,518

Note: The profit and loss figures are very rough estimates based on the assumption that 50% of box office receipts were returned to the studio. They don't include ancillary (video, TV etc.) earnings, and serve only as a guide.

Most Profitable Movies, Based on Return on Investment
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetWorldwide GrossPercentage Return
1 7/14/1999   The Blair Witch Project Artisan $35,000 $248,300,000 354,614.29%
2 10/6/2004   Tarnation WellSpring $218 $1,162,014 266,416.97%
3 3/21/1980   Mad Max Filmways $200,000 $99,750,000 24,837.50%
4 5/7/2004   Super Size Me IDP/Sam Goldwyn $65,000 $29,529,368 22,614.90%
5 10/1/1968   Night of the Living Dead   $114,000 $30,000,000 13,057.89%
6 11/21/1976   Rocky   $1,000,000 $225,000,000 11,150.00%
7 8/11/1973   American Graffiti   $777,000 $140,000,000 8,909.01%
8 7/25/1969   The Stewardesses   $200,000 $25,000,000 6,150.00%
9 6/11/2004   Napoleon Dynamite Fox Searchlight $400,000 $46,140,956 5,667.62%
10 5/16/2007   Once Fox Searchlight $150,000 $16,307,893 5,335.96%
11 5/9/1980   Friday the 13th Paramount Pictures $550,000 $59,754,601 5,332.24%
12 8/6/2004   Open Water Lion's Gate $500,000 $52,100,882 5,110.09%
13 12/15/1939   Gone with the Wind MGM/UA $3,900,000 $390,525,192 4,906.73%
14 2/8/1915   The Birth of a Nation   $110,000 $11,000,000 4,900.00%
15 1/1/1925   The Big Parade   $245,000 $22,000,000 4,389.80%
16 10/29/2004   Saw Lion's Gate $1,200,000 $103,096,345 4,195.68%
17 10/8/2004   Primer ThinkFilm $7,000 $565,846 3,941.76%
18 6/11/1982   ET: The Extra-Terrestrial Universal $10,500,000 $792,910,554 3,675.76%
19 8/13/1997   The Full Monty Fox Searchlight $3,500,000 $256,900,000 3,570.00%
20 5/25/1977   Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope 20th Century Fox $11,000,000 $797,900,000 3,526.82%

Note: The profit and loss figures are very rough estimates based on the assumption that 50% of box office receipts were returned to the studio. They don't include ancillary (video, TV etc.) earnings, and serve only as a guide.

Biggest Money Losers, Based on Absolute Loss on Worldwide Gross
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetWorldwide GrossLoss
1 4/27/2001   Town & Country New Line $105,000,000 $10,364,769 -$99,817,616
2 7/29/2005   Stealth Sony $138,000,000 $76,416,746 -$99,791,627
3 8/16/2002   The Adventures of Pluto Nash Warner Bros. $100,000,000 $7,094,995 -$96,452,503
4 7/11/2001   Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within Sony $137,000,000 $85,131,830 -$94,434,085
5 8/27/1999   The 13th Warrior Buena Vista $125,000,000 $61,698,899 -$94,150,551
6 6/22/2007   Evan Almighty Universal $175,000,000 $173,219,280 -$88,390,360
7 4/8/2005   Sahara Paramount Pictures $145,000,000 $121,671,925 -$84,164,038
8 4/9/2004   The Alamo Buena Vista $92,000,000 $23,911,362 -$80,044,319
9 9/2/2005   A Sound of Thunder Warner Bros. $80,000,000 $6,300,451 -$76,849,775
10 6/14/2002   Windtalkers MGM/UA $115,000,000 $77,628,265 -$76,185,868
11 6/16/2004   Around the World in 80 Days Buena Vista $110,000,000 $72,004,159 -$73,997,921
12 4/2/2004   Home on the Range Buena Vista $110,000,000 $76,482,461 -$71,758,770
13 11/24/2004   Alexander Warner Bros. $155,000,000 $167,297,191 -$71,351,405
14 2/18/2005   Son of the Mask New Line $100,000,000 $59,918,422 -$70,040,789
15 5/12/2006   Poseidon   $160,000,000 $181,674,817 -$69,162,592
16 5/2/2008   Iron Man   $186,000,000 $235,213,402 -$68,393,299
17 5/9/1997   Father's Day Warner Bros. $85,000,000 $35,681,080 -$67,159,460
18 7/19/2002   K-19: The Widowmaker Paramount Pictures $100,000,000 $65,716,126 -$67,141,937
19 8/8/2007   Daddy Day Camp Sony $76,000,000 $18,197,398 -$66,901,301
20 11/26/2003   Timeline Paramount Pictures $80,000,000 $26,703,184 -$66,648,408

Note: The profit and loss figures are very rough estimates based on the assumption that 50% of box office receipts were returned to the studio. They don't include ancillary (video, TV etc.) earnings, and serve only as a guide.

Biggest Money Losers, Based on Return on Investment
 Release DateMovieDistributorBudgetWorldwide GrossPercentage Return
1 10/25/2002   All the Queen's Men Strand $15,000,000 $22,723 -99.92%
2 9/17/1999   Taxman Phaedra $3,500,000 $9,871 -99.86%
3 5/17/2002   Harvard Man Cowboy $5,500,000 $56,653 -99.48%
4 1/28/2005   Fascination United Artists $5,000,000 $83,356 -99.17%
5 7/18/2003   This Thing of Ours Small Planet $2,000,000 $37,227 -99.07%
6 12/17/2004   Imaginary Heroes Sony Classics $10,000,000 $290,875 -98.55%
7 2/17/2006   Winter Passing Focus Features $3,500,000 $113,783 -98.37%
8 9/20/2002   Eye See You DEJ Productions $55,000,000 $1,807,990 -98.36%
9 8/4/1999   The Gambler Legacy $3,000,000 $101,773 -98.30%
10 1/21/2000   The Boondock Saints Indican $7,000,000 $250,000 -98.21%
11 1/27/2006   Manderlay IFC Films $14,200,000 $543,306 -98.09%
12 5/4/2001   Eureka Shooting Gallery $2,000,000 $76,654 -98.08%
13 12/10/2004   Freeze Frame First Look $2,000,000 $91,062 -97.72%
14 6/15/2007   Fido Lion's Gate $8,000,000 $419,801 -97.38%
15 9/23/2005   Dear Wendy   $8,000,000 $446,438 -97.21%
16 10/14/2005   Where the Truth Lies ThinkFilm $25,000,000 $1,415,656 -97.17%
17 12/12/2003   The Statement Sony $27,000,000 $1,545,064 -97.14%
18 10/8/2005   Dungeons & Dragons 2: The Elemental Might Warner Bros. $15,000,000 $909,822 -96.97%
19 8/27/2004   The Brown Bunny WellSpring $10,000,000 $630,427 -96.85%
20 5/12/2006   Wah-Wah   $7,000,000 $463,039 -96.69%

Note: The profit and loss figures are very rough estimates based on the assumption that 50% of box office receipts were returned to the studio. They don't include ancillary (video, TV etc.) earnings, and serve only as a guide.