Every Hollywood studio’s dream is to build a successful franchise out of their blockbusters. Creating a franchise out of a movie that audiences seem to love is a surefire way to get that same audience to return to see your movie.
Countless franchises have been attempted, with varying degrees of success as most attempts at big franchises seem to either fall flat or die out after a couple of sequels.
Studios should try to imitate what these 5 franchises have successfully managed to do as they are the top 5 highest grossing movie franchises of all time.
5
James Bond
Number of films: 24
Worldwide gross: €6,005,192,770
Highest grossing film: Skyfall - €935,047,660
Average gross: €228,433,341
One of the longest running franchises in Hollywood, James Bond has managed to stay relevant through 25 movies and 7 different James Bonds.
From Connery to Craig, each different Bond has its set of die-hard fans claiming their Bond is the best one.
Kicking off with 1963’s Dr. No, this franchise doesn’t show any signs of slowing down as it is set to release its 25th movie later this year.
4
Spider-Man
Number of films: 9
Worldwide gross: €6,092,826,087
Highest grossing film: Far From Home- €954,757,655
Average gross: €676,052,247
Easily one of the most iconic superheroes ever put to film, Spiderman has gone through multiple different franchises and portrayals.
From Tobey McGuire’s classic 2000’s trilogy to Tom Holland’s loveable performance as the webslinger in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this franchise has managed to produce memorable iterations of the same character to different generations.
3
Harry Potter
Number of films: 10
Worldwide gross: €7,772,328,049
Highest grossing film: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - €1,131,919,291
Average gross: €779,796,076
J.K Rowling’s series of books were an instant hit with fans and that didn’t stop with the movie adaptations.
Nearly all movies in this franchise have approached the $1 billion mark while also being a hit with fans and critics alike.
Following Harry Potter’s successful eight movies, Warner Bros continued this franchise with two Fantastic Beasts movies, with a third one coming to cinemas next year.
2
Star Wars
Number of films: 12
Worldwide gross: €8,706,984,038
Highest grossing film: The Force Awakens - €1,744,674,668
Average gross: €725,171,063
More than 40 years after 1977’s Star Wars: A New Hope, the franchise is still entertaining its old fans while gaining new ones along the way.
With a hiatus of more than 15 years between movies, this franchise has been making up for lost time ever since it was purchased by Disney in 2012.
With the Skywalker Saga coming to an end, fans are more excited than ever to see what the franchise will offer.
1
Marvel Cinematic Universe
Number of films: 23
Worldwide gross: €19,031,473,705
Highest grossing film: Avengers Endgame - €2,360,235,356
Average gross: €828,576,759
With 2 of the top 5 highest grossing movies of all time, the Marvel Cinematic Universe easily takes the cake for the highest grossing movie franchise.
With 23 movies in just 12 years, this set of movies managed to create and intricate universe with interwoven stories all culminating in 2019’ Avengers Endgame.
The MCU doesn’t show any signs of slowing down with 4 movies set to release in 2021.
