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What is the most expensive movie in the world

What is the most expensive movie in the world

Have you ever wondered how much money goes into making your favorite blockbuster movies? With multi-million dollar salaries for on-screen talent and production crew members, promotional, marketing, cgi and post-production costs, most of these movies have exorbitant budgets that can exceed $100 million. It’s no surprise, then, that superhero and fantasy movies with A-list casts often find a spot on the list of the most expensive movies ever made.

Although most major studios and companies refrain from giving an official statement on costs, rough estimates calculated by professional researchers and expert writers/journalists are available to the public. however, some production companies do provide official figures.

While independent films can be created on a shoestring budget, major studio films, including Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Justice League, have had huge production budgets.

these are some of the most expensive movies ever made worldwide

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ($379 million, 2011)

most expensive movies

Image credit: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides/© 2010 – Walt Disney Pictures/IMDb

The fourth instalment of the popular Pirates of the Caribbean series follows Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), who sets sail in hopes of locating the legendary fountain of youth. He encounters a beautiful and mysterious pirate from his past, Angelica (Penélope Cruz), while on this mission. She convinces him to chaperone her on a trip to the Queen Anne’s Revenge, the ship of the notorious Blackbeard (Ian McShane). They embark on this journey while combating several obstacles including Jack’s rival Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who also seeks the youth fountain.

The American swashbuckling fantasy film is one of the most expensive movies ever made in history. The cost includes filming in four different geographic locations, high-end 3D cameras and other equipment used, actors’ fees, and post-production.

Furthermore, the logistics behind shooting the film with the sea in the background naturally increased the cost of production. In addition, actor Johnny Depp was paid almost USD 55 million, which raised the costs. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ended up being the third highest grossing film of 2011.

avengers: endgame ($350 million, 2019)

Ten of the most expensive movies ever made

Image credit: Film Frame./©Marvel Studios 2019/IMDb

In this epic 2019 Marvel movie, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Junior) finds himself stuck in outer space without food or water. As his oxygen supply begins to diminish, he contacts Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) to signal for help. Meanwhile, the rest of the Avengers – Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) plan to gather their previously defeated allies to bring down Thanos (Josh Brolin), the evil demigod who destroyed the entire universe.

The two-part culmination (Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame) of the Infinity Saga remains Marvel Studios’ largest single investment, collectively grossing more than $4.8 billion in box office return. both films are part of the world’s top five highest-grossing films of all time. It should be noted that Junior Downey earned around $75 million from Avengers: Endgame.

retained the title of the world’s highest grossing film ever made between 2019 and 2021, until a re-release of james cameron’s avatar dethroned the film and took the top spot.

justice league ($300 million, 2017)

The fifth installment in the DC Extended Universe, follows the escapades of Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) as he seeks the help of his new ally, Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) to battle some common enemies. Inspired by the selfless act of Superman (Henry Cavill), the duo explore an assembly of metahumans to combat looming threats and save the world before it’s too late.

The dynamic league of heroes, including Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), and The Flash (Ezra Miller) come together to save the planet from a catastrophic disaster.

Director Zack Snyder left Justice League during post-production in 2017 for personal reasons, only to be replaced by Joss Whedon. this led to widespread reshoots and massive overhead costs, driving up the film’s budget, which had already ballooned. 2017’s Justice League had poor reviews and disappointing box office returns, despite its massive budget.

Fans then campaigned for Snyder to return to the franchise and release the original parts Whedon cut from the 2017 film. Warner Bros. He eventually gave in to fans’ pleas and released the Zack Snyder version through HBO Max in 2021. It went on to become the fourth most-watched movie of that year. The superhero movie grossed around $658 million against an estimated budget of $300 million.

alone: ​​a star wars story ($275 million, 2018)

The film follows young Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich), who is thrown into a massive heist with a group of galactic smugglers and a 190-year-old Wookiee named Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) in search of hyperfuel. he just gets caught up in underworld activities and meets people who change his life along the way.

Due to its messy production and expensive reshoots, the second Star Wars film, Solo: A Star Wars Story is the most expensive Star Wars film ever made, leaving The Force Awakens behind.

Original directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, were replaced by Ron Howard in the middle of filming. Howard decided to reshoot significant portions of the film to his artistic vision, adding another three months of production to the six months scheduled, further driving up costs. this ambitious reshoot cost the film, not only monetarily, but cast-wise as well. Michael K Williams, who was supposed to play Dryden Vos, was replaced by Paul Bettany as he couldn’t fit into the new schedule due to other commitments.

The filmmakers were given a budget of $275 million, but brought in a disappointing $393.2 million worldwide. Despite having big stars like Emilia Clarke and Ehrenreich, this movie failed to impress Marvel fans.

john carter ($264 million, 2012)

John Carter

Image credit: John Carter/©2011 Disney/IMDb

The film chronicles the adventures of John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), when he is transported to the wildly diverse red lands of Mars known as Barsoom. As the responsibility of handling the civil unrest in the battling kingdoms rests upon his shoulders, he learns about his superhuman capabilities. During this he also stumbles upon the absconding Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins) and rescues her.

With lackluster box office returns, the 2012 sci-fi flick cost Disney millions of dollars and flopped horribly. inspired by edgar rice burroughs’ epic barroom series, the sci-fi action film was poised to be a lavish, high-budget, cgi-heavy project meant to compete with other major league movie franchises, but it couldn’t. .

Disney’s John Carter soon became a warning sign in Hollywood, proving that while remakes, reboots, and acquisitions are safe investments, trying to establish new franchises is no easy feat.

Tangled ($260 million, 2010)

most expensive movies ever made

Image credit: Tangled/IMDb

This is one of the most expensive animated movies ever made. The 2010 movie is a modern adaptation of the classic tale of Rapunzel (voiced by Mandy Moore), the long and golden-haired princess. Unaware of her real identity, the princess is held captive in a tower by an evil old woman, Mother Gothel (voiced by Donna Murphy), who pretends to be her mother, only to make use of her magical hair to retain her youth forever.

When Rapunzel turns 18, she longs to escape the ghastly tower and explore the world outside. When a good-hearted thief, Flynn Rider (voiced by Zachary Levi) accidentally trips over her tower while he’s on the run from the police, she convinces him to help her get away from her.

The film took six years to produce using a combination of computer-generated imagery, non-photorealistic renderings, and hand drawings, greatly increasing costs. the acclaimed film grossed nearly $592 million at the box office worldwide.

beauty and the beast ($255 million, 2017)

Beauty and the Beast

Image credit: Beauty and the Beast/© 2016 Disney Enterprises inc./IMDb

This Disney classic follows the life of a village girl Belle (Emma Watson), who ventures to rescue her clockmaker father held captive by an arrogant prince (Dan Stevens), cursed to live as a horrific beast until he learns to love. Belle takes her father’s place as the beast’s prisoner. As she spends time with the enchanted prince, Belle begins to discover his sensitive side and campaigns to save him.

With Disney’s foray into turning all of its classic animated films into live-action films with star-studded casts, it’s no wonder the film starring Emma Watson cost $255 million to make. Beauty and the Beast earned nearly $1.3 billion in theaters worldwide. Watson pushed the cost of production even higher and charged $3 million upfront for her contribution to the film. it is believed that he earned an additional $15 million due to his high box office earnings.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ($250 million, 2009)

Harry Potter 6

Image credit: Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince/© 2009 – Warner Bros./IMDb

As Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) enters his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, both the wizard and muggle worlds are in shambles due to the lawless death eaters. Voldemort’s army becomes more powerful and threatens people with an aim to take over the Ministry of Magic. With fear abounding and a war looming, even Hogwarts is not the safe haven it once used to be.

The cost of making Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth installment in the Harry Potter series, was the highest ever with an estimated budget of $250 million, making it the most expensive film in the beloved franchise.

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the possible reasons for such high funds can be quite a few. one of them is that the contracts of the main star cast were in negotiation due to their long association with the franchise and their immense popularity. most of the film’s scenes also required heavy use of cgi and post-production, which is not a cheap deal. The film’s box office return was USD 934 million.

avatar ($237 million, 2009)

Avatar

Image: Courtesy of WETA – © 2007 Twentieth Century Fox/IMDb

Set in the distant future, Avatar’s plot revolves around Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), who is a paraplegic former Marine officer. He takes his twin’s place and is dispatched on a corporate mission in the alien world of Pandora, native to the highly intelligent beings called Na’vi. During his time here, he falls in love with a Na’vi woman (Zoe Saldana) and finds himself torn between following his orders and protecting his newfound home.

before the jungle book, the lion king or any other live action remake was made, james cameron’s avatar paved the way for cgi-based movies, making use of innovative 3d visual effects. It was the most expensive movie ever made when it was first released, but was soon superseded by massive blockbuster franchises like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film’s budget was approximately $237 million and it returned around $2.8 billion.

the rise of the dark knight ($230 million, 2012)

The Dark Knight Rises- most expensive movies

Image credit: Ron Phillips – © 2012 – Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. And Legendary Pictures Funding, LLC/IMDb

The Dark Knight Rises ends the list of the top 10 most expensive movies ever made, and follows Gotham’s Batman (Christian Bale), who is compelled to return from his eight-year-long exile to save the city from the lunatic terrorist Bane (Tom Hardy). An elusive jewel thief and femme fatale named Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) is potentially the key to stopping Bane, but whose side is she on?

After The Dark Knight garnered critical acclaim and box office success in 2008, expectations were high for its 2012 sequel, The Dark Knight Rises, given its larger budget and the demise of iconic prankster, Heath Ledger. Director Christopher Nolan had more money to play with the sequel, prompting the production team to invest in IMAX cameras and on-location footage to give it an authentic feel. the film cost $230 million to make and grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office.

(main and featured image credit: avengers: endgame/© marvel studios/imdb)

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