Blockbuster box office
The 97th Academy Awards are Sunday, March 2 in Los Angeles. Here’s a look at how high-grossing movies continue to dominate and whether women are increasing their impact in Hollywood.
Best and biggest picture
As with last year, two best picture nominees stand head and shoulders above the rest in box office receipts. As of late January, “Dune: Part Two” and “Wicked” had grossed $715 million and $710 million, respectively, as the only nominees to break $100 million.
Box office success doesn’t always translate to winning best picture, though. Here are this year’s nominees and what they’ve grossed so far. Some, like “A Complete Unknown,” were released as late in the year as December, giving them less time to earn.
Best picture Oscar nominees
Film/release month Global box office (as of Feb. 1)
“Anora,” October $33 million
“The Brutalist,” December $12 million
“A Complete Unknown,” December $75 million
“Conclave,” October $84 million
“Dune: Part Two,” Feb. 2024 $715 million
“Emilia Pérez,” November $13 million
“I’m Still Here,” November $15 million
“Nickel Boys,” January $1.9 million
“The Substance,” September $76 million
“Wicked,” November $710 million
10 biggest in 2024
Disney was the distributor with the highest box office sales.
1. “Inside Out 2” Disney $1.7 billion
2. “Deadpool & Wolverine” Disney $1.34 billion
3. “Moana 2” Disney $1.05 billion
4. “Despicable Me 4” Universal $970.1 million
5. “Dune: Part Two” Warner Bros. $715 million
6. “Wicked” Universal $710 million
7. “Mufasa: The Lion King” Disney $697 million
8. “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” Warner Bros. $572 million
9. “Kung Fu Panda 4” Universal $548 million
10. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” Paramount $483 million
“Inside Out 2” surpassed “The Lion King” to become the highest-grossing animated film ever and is currently the ninth-highest grossing film of all time. It reached $1 billion gross faster than any other animated film.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” became the 55th film to gross $1 billion worldwide. It had the highest-grossing opening weekend of any R-rated film and surpassed “Joker” (2019) as the highest-grossing R film.
“Despicable Me” became the first animated franchise to gross $5 billion with the release of “Despicable Me 4.”
“Wicked” became the first musical to gross over $164 million worldwide on its opening weekend, making it the highest opening worldwide gross for a film based on a stage musical since “Les Misérables” (2012).
Women in film
For 23 years, Martha Lauzen, founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University, has conducted research on the representation and employment of women on screen and behind the scenes in film and television.
In front of the camera
Lauzen released the report “It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World: Portrayals of Female Characters in the Top Grossing U.S. Films of 2024” in January. For the first time in recent history, the percentage of top-grossing films featuring female protagonists equaled the percentage of films with male protagonists at 42%, while 16% of films featured ensembles. Protagonists were defined as the characters from whose perspective the story is told.
You can find the full report here.
Behind the camera
Lauzen’s 2024 report noted the following: “70% of films employed 10 or more men in key behind-the-scenes roles, but only 8% employed 10 or more women. Women directed and wrote some of the year’s buzziest films, including ‘The Substance’ and ‘Babygirl.’ But their directors, Coralie Fargeat and Halina Reijn, remain exceptions, not the rule. The stunning successes enjoyed by high-profile women in the last few years — including Greta Gerwig, Jane Campion and Chloé Zhao — have not translated into opportunities for greater numbers of women. Visibility for a few has not generated employment for many.”
Sources: Investopedia; Martha M. Lauzen, “It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World: Portrayals of Female Characters in the Top Grossing U.S. films of 2024” and “The Celluloid Ceiling 2023 Report”; Box Office Mojo; Nielsen
