All 8 Movies That Broke $1 Billion at the Box Office Since Covid

In 2020, audiences and film giants alike rightfully worried about the deep impact that the COVID-19 pandemic would have and how it would affect the future of cinema and theaters. Its effects are still, of course, felt today, as it has spiraled the film industry into a reliance on streaming, miniseries, and rushed production schedules that has severely underpaid and mistreated their crews all the meanwhile. In spite of the many obstacles faced in the industry and against Hollywood mega-corporations, the post-Covid cinema landscape has somehow seen some of the most successful releases in the history of the industry.

Though domestically, none of the box office numbers have surpassed James Cameron’s Avatar, many post-Covid releases have become incredibly close, and the list is continuing to be dominated by continuations of legendary franchises.

Though COVID has revealed even more of the quality and union rights issues that were already abundant in the film industry, this has not stopped the rush of people who are returning to cinemas after what seemed like the downfall of the entire movie industry.

8 Jurassic World: Dominion (2022)

$1.004 Billion

Making it just past the billion dollar threshold at $1.004 billion, Colin Trevorrow’s continuation of the Jurassic Park franchise after Isla Nublar’s destruction is 53rd in line for the biggest box office hits worldwide. Additionally, the film holds the record of being the fastest to 350 million dollars in film history. Just below The Dark Knight, Jurassic World: Dominion‘s 2022 release is an impressive feat in a post-Covid era.

The film’s success can also be attributed to its returning cast, which from the Jurassic World films, included Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. But the film’s draw was undoubtedly due to the original 1993 cast that all reprised their roles together for the first time, including Laura Dern, Sam Neill, and Jeff Goldblum.

Its June 10th release resulted in an opening weekend box office of over 145 million dollars, almost surpassing its original budget of 165 million dollars in one weekend. The original Jurassic Park, directed by Steven Spielberg in 1993, still surpasses Jurassic Park: Dominion by over 50 million dollars, but it is still surprisingly close considering each addition often declines in quality.

7 Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

$1.1 Billion

Starring Tom Cruise and Miles Teller and directed by Joseph Kosinski, Top Gun: Maverick is the wildly successful sequel to the original Top Gun film. The film revisits Tom Cruise’s character of Maverick as he mentors a new generation of “Top Gun” graduates, and Miles Teller plays Bradley, Goose’s son that he had before his gruesome death in the original Top Gun movie.

Top Gun: Maverick managed to beat the box office record of the original Top Gunby almost an astounding $1.1 billion, making it Tom Cruise’s most financially successful movie in his entire career. Domestically, Top Gun: Maverick is the 5th highest box office record, following James Cameron’s Avatar (2009). During the film’s opening weekend, the week of May 27th, 2022, the film soared past half of its original $170 million budget.

6 Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

$1.14 Billion

Reprising their roles, comedic duo Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds star in this multiversal and campy superhero film that gets Wade Wilson back on his feet. With a slurry of cameos, fan service, and incredible performances by the two, Deadpool & Wolverine currently stands as the #1 box office hit for a rated R movie domestically and worldwide.

So far, the film stands at almost $1.14 billion, making the film the latest entry to the top box office hits post-Covid. Deadpool & Wolverine has already made over 5 times its original budget of $200 million. In its opening weekend, the film surpassed that at $211 million. With the success of the film, Deadpool & Wolverine is also the 6th best-performing superhero movie of all time domestically, coming in above Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight and below The Avengers.

5 Barbie (2023)

$1.4 Billion

Set against a similar box office success, Barbie managed to pass the $1 billion threshold, unlike Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Greta Gerwig’s sensational exploration of womanhood and nostalgia made over $1.4 billion at the box office. Part of its success can no doubt be attributed to its incredible production design, as well as a star-studded cast which features Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as the classic Barbie and Ken.

Though “Barbenheimer” was such a massive phenomenon during the summer of 2023, Barbie still surpassed Oppenheimer by almost half a billion dollars, shooting the film up to the 15th highest box office in film history. During its July 21st opening weekend, the film made over $10 million more of its original budget of $150 million.

With its deserved success, Barbie has found itself as the most successful box office hit for a comedy film both domestically and worldwide. Domestically, Barbie passed Home Alone and Hangover II by a billion dollars. All around, Barbie‘s place at the box office makes it one of the top releases since the COVID-19 pandemic.

4 The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)

$1.4 Billion

Unexpectedly featuring voices such as Chris Pratt as Mario and Jack Black as Bowser, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a redemptive addition to Nintendo’s franchise. The film is surprisingly authentic and fun, especially when viewers compare it to the infamous 1993 attempt at a Mario movie, Super Mario Bros., featuring Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo as Mario and Luigi.

The new film, released in 2023, reached almost $1.4 billion at the box office, and it surpassed its budget of $100 million by over $50 million during its opening weekend.

The Super Mario. Bros Movie has become the third-highest box office hit for digital animation both worldwide and domestically, where the film was narrowly beaten by Frozen II, Inside Out 2, and The Incredibles 2.

3 Inside Out 2 (2024)

$1.6 Billion

Making almost $1.6 billion, the second installment to Pete Docter’s original Inside Out has recently made a very impressive debut. With its incredible success, Inside Out 2 has become the #1 digital animation release of all time across all domains. Featuring the same emotions as the first film and new emotions arriving as Riley goes through adolescence, Inside Out 2 even passed Frozen II by almost $150 million.

Moreover, the original 2015 release of Inside Out falls over $700 million short of Inside Out 2, revealing the franchise’s unexpected success.

Inside Out 2 has secured itself as Pixar’s most successful animation release, and the 5th most successful Walt Disney project. Within all of Walt Disney’s releases, Kelsey Mann’s continuation of Inside Out still rests just below Jon Favreau’s CGI adaptation of The Lion King that was released in 2019.

2 Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

$1.9 Billion

One of the first movies to release directly after the height of the pandemic, the tumultuous and tentative conclusion to Disney’s and Sony’s Spider-Man collaboration made over $1.9 billion at the box office. Even with this feat, Spider-Man: No Way Home still comes in just behind Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Avengers: Infinity War.

The film includes the pinnacle of fan service, with Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield all fighting together as Spider-Men against original villains across all the series, featuring Willem Dafoe returning as The Green Goblin, Alfred Molina as Doc Ock, Electro, Mysterio, Sandman, and The Lizard.

Domestically, the homage to the Spider-Man franchise is the second-highest box office hit for a superhero film, and the film comes in just $40 million behind the outrageously successful Avengers: Endgame. In its opening weekend after its December 17th, 2021 release, Spider-Man: No Way Home surpassed its original budget of $200 million by $60 million.

The overwhelming success of this movie after such an isolated period of history and cinematic history, undoubtedly revealed the passion that movie fans still possess, especially when the film is a heartwarming homage to Marvel’s legacy.

1 Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

$2.3 Billion

Directed by James Cameron, Avatar: The Way of Water proved to be an extremely successful second installment in the Avatar franchise. Returning to the sequel, Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, and Sigourney Weaver all-star in the film that has greatly expanded Pandora, taking place 16 years after the Na’vi first fought back against the RDA.

The predecessor itself, Avatar, still remains the highest-grossing film in industry history since its release in 2009. The first film reached an outstanding $2.9 billion box office.

Avatar: The Way of Watercontinues James Cameron’s legacy of creating spectacles and, of course, Titanic, which has also been one of the most successful films in box office history. Avatar: The Way of Water‘s box office comes in at over $2.3 billion. With this amount credited, Avatar: The Way of Water is now the third-highest box office in film history, just below Avengers: Endgame, which comes in at $2.7 billion.

Avatar: The Way of Water released December 16th, 2022 domestically, where its opening weekend made over $130 million. This already accounted for almost a quarter of the film’s $460 million budget.