The 10 quickest films to reach $1billion at the box office
These days, trends are more important than ever. With social media operating as a huge engine of influence, fads spread like wildfire and our hardwired ‘need to know’ instinct draws us in like moths to a flame. Thus, it is perhaps no surprise to find that all of the fastest movies to surpass the whopping sum of $1 billion at the box office, have been released in the last 15 years. In fact, most of them hit the big screen in the five.
What’s more, the data also reveals the power of a franchise. It’s a question often asked, ‘why is Hollywood so obsessed with prequels, sequels, remakes and series’, but the answer is self-evident: they are a money-printing machine. If you already have an audience in place for the film, then half the battle is won. The first question producers will ask script-pitchers is, ‘who is going to watch it’, and when it comes to something like Avengers: Endgame, the answer is simple, the millions of people who watched all the others.
With that in mind, it is no surprise to see the Avengers franchise take the top two spots. Endgame hit the billion mark in a mere mind-bending five days, while Infinity War made it to the landmark in 11. Endgame was a predictable top spot which is why Marvel had no issue with throwing a massive $356-400million budget at the project. The film had the box office appeal of finality. That adds immediacy to the trend. If you wanted to be part of the discussion, even as a negative voice – your money counts just the same – then it was now or never.
The only film on the list without prequels supporting it is the first Avatar film. It might not have had a fanbase in place to serve to, but its innovative 3D technology meant that it did offer something different—it was a new cinematic experience. This not only drew curious punters, but it also ensured that it amassed column inches and such talk always results in profit. As fashion mogul, Jacqui Markham said, “Everything we do is driven by our customer who has a constant appetite for newness and approaches trends with a desire,” the same thing applies to film.
This vital mix of something new borne from something familiar is what keeps churning out hits for franchises. Therefore, it perhaps isn’t all that surprising to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens in third place. The fresh reimagining of the Star Wars universe only took 12 days to surpass $1billion which ties it with Spider-Man: No Way Home (narrowing nudging ahead on money earned).
With most of these films occurring in recent times, it is likely that they will continue to perpetuate Hollywood’s current tact for a little while longer. Despite some fans claiming to be jaded, the figures suggest that most people are still willing to be part of the buzz. The most notable feature in this sense is Avatar: The Way of Water. While the first film was criticised for having a very small cultural footprint outside of the earnings, and the follow-up received mixed reviews, the sequel still made it to a billion in only 14 days, five days faster than the original.
While rising box office ticket prices might also underline this, it also shows that there is life in the pre-generated buzz of a follow-up yet. The films, in essence, act as a golden lure to producers. The irony is, in trying to hit them, you can end up hoisted by your own petard as monumental financial flops like Pirate of the Caribbean 5: Salazar’s Revenge, Transformers 5: The Last Knight, The Mummy, Cars 3, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Alien: Covenant, Baywatch, and Despicable Me 3 all arrived within three months.
The 10 quickest films to reach $1billion at the box office from fastest to slowest:
- Avengers: Endgame (5 Days)
- Avengers: Infinity War (11 Days)
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens (12 Days)
- Spider-Man: No Way Home (12 Days)
- Jurassic World (13 Days)
- Avatar: The Way of Water (14 Days)
- Furious 7 (17 Days)
- The Fate of the Furious (18 Days)
- Star Wars: The Last Jedi (19 Days)
- Avatar (19 Days)
