10 most expensive films in the history of cinema

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Lifehacker has compiled a selection of the 10 most expensive films for which the creators have spared no money. Some of them increased the budget of the film companies, and some failed at the box office, despite all the costs.

The Dark Knight Rises

• Fantastic thriller.
• USA, UK, 2012.
• Duration: 165 minutes
• IMDb: 8, 5.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

Completion of the epic trilogy by Christopher Nolan, in which Bruce Wayne managed to grow a beard, walk with a cane, get out of an underground prison, once again save Gotham and find himself. Almost a quarter of a billion was spent on location filming, because it is known that Nolan is not a supporter of computer graphics. As a result, global fees exceeded $ 1 billion.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

• Fantastic thriller.
• USA, 2015.
• Duration: 141 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 4.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

The sequel to a superhero movie from Marvel, in which the illustrious team of Avengers is confronted by a crazy droid created by Tony Stark. Ruined New York, an army of armed robots and an abundance of scenes on the green screen. It is not worth explaining what the money was spent on.

Joss Whedon's film grossed nearly $ 1.5 billion worldwide.

John Carter

• Fantasy.
• USA, 2012.
• Duration: 132 minutes
• IMDb: 6, 6.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

Based on the novel Princess Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the film tells the story of a veteran of the American Civil War who ends up on Mars. He not only has to fight for his life, but also to save the beautiful princess.

Disney's massive fantasy will forever be remembered as one of the studio's biggest failures, with the film earning only $ 284 million.

Captain America: Civil War

• Fantastic thriller.
• USA, 2016.
• Duration: 147 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 9.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

The third film from Marvel, dedicated to Steve Rogers, which is called the conditional sequel to "The Avengers". Judge for yourself: all the main characters of the universe, except for the Hulk, are assembled. But the heroes are fighting against each other. Conservative Tony Stark believes superheroes need control, and Steve Rogers is confident that they must save the world at any time and not wait for permission.

The Russo Brothers' film grossed over a billion dollars and cemented the success of the MCU.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

• Fantasy.
• New Zealand, USA, 2014.
• Duration: 144 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 4.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

The finale of a new trilogy about Middle-earth, directed by Tolkien expert Peter Jackson. Thirteen Dwarfs and Bilbo Baggins wander through the dark lands, fight against hordes of orcs, hide from the dragon, meet elves and humans. And all so that in the final five armies come together in a bloody battle, on which they spent most of the budget.

A worthy ending to the story, which managed to raise $ 950 million and recapture budget money.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

• Fantasy.
• UK, USA, 2009.
• Duration: 153 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 5.
• Stated budget: $ 250 million.

A screen adaptation of the penultimate book about a boy who survived, for which they did not spare money, given the people's love for this story. This is the first film on this list that doesn't look like a quarter-billion-dollar project. However, this did not stop the painting by David Yates from collecting a weighty $ 934 million.

Spider-Man 3: The Enemy in Reflection

• Fantastic thriller.
• USA, 2007.
• Duration: 139 minutes
• IMDb: 6, 2.
• Announced budget: $ 258 million.

The third part of the story about Peter Parker with the permanent director Sam Raimi was received by the audience and critics rather coolly. But this did not affect the quality of the picture and the scale with which the director approached the last film about the superhero in red and blue tights.

Here and the flying son of the Goblin, and the Sandman, and even Venom. Now, after two attempts by Sony to restart the franchise, Raimi's paintings look like something cult, and the collection of the third part, which stopped at 890 million, seems well deserved.

Rapunzel Tangled

• Cartoon.
• USA, 2010.
• Duration: 100 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 8.
• Stated budget: $ 260 million.

The only and also the most expensive cartoon in history. A classic fairy tale with charming characters, funny animals, a touching message and a happy ending. What else do you need for family viewing? The viewers also thought that this was enough, as a result, the cartoon grossed 590 million at the worldwide box office.

Superman returns

• Fantastic thriller.
• USA, 2006.
• Duration: 169 minutes
• IMDb: 6, 1.
• Stated Budget: $ 270 Million

The second expensive project from this collection, which brought losses to the studio. The story of Superman and his confrontation with Lex Luther did not impress critics or audiences. The final collection of the picture was only 390 million, and Warner suffered losses of 180 million. That is why they did not dare to shoot the sequel for a long time.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

• Fantasy.
• USA, 2007.
• Duration: 169 minutes
• IMDb: 7, 1.
• Stated budget: $ 300 million.

The most expensive film turned out to be the third part of "Pirates of the Caribbean", which has been holding the lead for 10 years. Most of the budget went to expensive sets, graphics and huge royalties from Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom.

Gore Verbinski not only grossed nearly $ 950 million worldwide, but also cemented the franchise's success as a whole, enabling Disney to take the universe further.

The list was compiled without taking into account inflation and marketing costs. The paintings that were released in 2017 were not included in the selection, since official information regarding the budget has not yet appeared for them.