Adjusted Box Office 6/4/18

The idea of the adjusted all-time box office never appealed to me.  It always seemed like a way to hang onto the idea that movies that were once popular technically still counted as popular.  Another way might be that movies today maybe really aren't as popular as they used to be, which is unsettling to think.  Today we have outrageous box office totals compared to just a handful of years ago.  But the fact is, even those hits barely scratch the surface of all-time popularity.  People just don't go to the movies like they used to.  The idea of adjusted grosses helps put into perspective the ridiculousness of inflation most of all.  That's just one indication of where the economy still has a long way to go to recover from the Great Recession.  Folks, we're not even close, but a lot of people decided it was good enough years ago.

So, after a long time silently (mostly) protesting the idea of the adjusted gross, let's see what it looks like, the top fifty movies, and where current massive hits fall within them:

1. Gone with the Wind (adjusted: $1,850B; unadjusted: $198M) (1939)
This has always been the most problematic element of the adjusted box office list.  In hindsight it's a massive indication of how far the culture had to go from segregated times, as it celebrates the Lost Cause, which itself was all about being unapologetic about the slave-holding past.  Even as we condemn a president many claim is motivated by racist views, the most successful movie in American history suggests the rest of us aren't really any better.

2. Star Wars (adjusted: $1,631B; unadjusted: $460M) (1977)
In the modern era, Star Wars defined the blockbuster, made the blockbuster, and its legacy is still felt today in a continuing series of sequels and spin-offs.  Until inflation went into overdrive, it was still firmly nestled in the unadjusted top ten.  Here it's still up there, and unlikely to leave anytime soon.

3. The Sound of Music (adjusted: $1,304B; unadjusted: $158M) (1965)
Today it seems totally impossible for a musical to be a massive hit without being a kid's animated flick, but the genre used to be a reliable source of big business.  This was the last and biggest of them.

4. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (adjusted: $1,299B; unadjusted: $435M) (1982)
The truth is, Steven Spielberg's instincts became adopted by kids animated flicks, too.  That's exactly what this would be in 2018.

5. Titanic (adjusted: $1,241B; unadjusted: $659M) (1997)
The last of the adult dramas to hit big, and to hit so big it was totally inconceivable.  Also since ignored as an object lesson is box office projecting; everyone said this would be a disaster of a different kind.

6. The Ten Commandments (adjusted: $1,199B; unadjusted: $65M) (1956)
Arguably, after Star Wars this is the old-time blockbuster with the longest legs: it's still broadcast every year at Eastertime.

7. Jaws (adjusted: $1,173B; unadjusted: $260M) (1975)
Along with Star Wars, gave birth to the modern blockbuster.

8. Doctor Zhivago (adjusted: $1,137B; unadjusted: $111M) (1965)
A somewhat lost famous example of the classic Hollywood historic epic.

9. The Exorcist (adjusted: $1,013B; unadjusted: $232M) (1973)
The prototype of the horror genre, still completely unmatched, except by the recent trend of microbudget productions.

10. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (adjusted: $998M; unadjusted: $84M) (1937)
This is how Disney happened, and what Disney chased for years, until it had enough money to buy blockbuster franchises.

11. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (adjusted: $990M; unadjusted: $936M) (2015)
The biggest modern hit doesn't even crack the top ten!  Its box office total looks completely ridiculous because it is, but it does represent a lot of money, and exposure.  That's more than any other Star Wars movie besides the original made.  Clearly that means a lot of people who weren't around for the original's release saw it and tried to comprehend what they saw, and are still trying to reconcile the saga with today's movies.  That's what's happened to the last few movies.

12. 101 Dalmatians (adjusted: $915M; unadjusted: $144M) (1961)
In hindsight it's not surprising that this was the first movie Disney translated from animated to live action, years later.  What's surprising is that Disney still hasn't done it for its biggest hit.

13. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (adjusted: $899M; unadjusted: $290M) (1980)
The somewhat screwy economics of the few years between the second and third entries in the saga, apparently, mean the third made more at the time, but less in hindsight.

14. Ben-Hur (adjusted: $897M; unadjusted: $74M) (1959)
The shifting values of the population means that one of the biggest box office successes in one era was a total flop, as a remake, in another.

15. Avatar (adjusted: $891M; unadjusted: $760M) (2009)
James Cameron's massive success a second time became something a lot of people struggled to downplay.  The real results won't be known until the sequels finally appear.

16. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (adjusted: $861M; unadjusted: $309M) (1983)
This is that third Star Wars movie.

17. Jurassic Park (adjusted: $839M; unadjusted: $402M) (1993)
Spielberg made Jaws and helped set the stage for Star Wars; years later he made this, and did it again.

18. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (adjusted: $827M; unadjusted: $474M) (1999)
Looking at the adjusted grosses, it doesn't seem so surprising that the prequels proved less popular than the original Star Wars movies; the unadjusted grosses tell a very different story.  They really were less popular all along.

19. The Lion King (adjusted: $816M; unadjusted: $422M) (1994)
The artistic high point of the Disney animated renaissance.

20. The Sting (adjusted: $816M; unadjusted: $156M) (1973)
This may be the epitome of Old Hollywood, the system where stars sold the material above everything else.  This is the second teaming of Paul Newman and Robert Redford, after Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

21. Raiders of the Lost Ark (adjusted: $811M; unadjusted: $248M) (1981)
Spielberg and Star Wars creator George Lucas collaborate for the ultimate combination of old and new Hollywood: Harrison Ford, emerging as a star, in blockbuster material.

22. The Graduate (adjusted: $783M; unadjusted: $104M) (1967)
Dustin Hoffman, once dismissed as unlikely to be a star, proved to field one of the most successful star-based movies ever.

23. Fantasia (adjusted: $760M; unadjusted: $76M) (1941)
Arguably still the most innovative movie ever made.

24. Jurassic World (adjusted: $724M; unadjusted: $652M) (2015)
After the second and third in the franchise underperformed, it seemed as if this concept was done, but the fourth brought it back to blockbuster status.

25. The Godfather (adjusted: $722M; unadjusted: $134M) (1972)
Heralded a new era of superstar directing in Hollywood and highlighted Marlon Brando one last time and Michael Pacino for the first.

26. Forrest Gump (adjusted: $720M; unadjusted: $330M) (1994)
A lot of people struggle to interpret this one's draw, and that's when you know the era of the star was effectively over, because it's really down to Tom Hanks.

27. Mary Poppins (adjusted: $716M; unadjusted: $102M) (1964)
Disney magic pure and simple.

28. Grease (adjusted: $705M; unadjusted: $188M) (1978)
The musical and the bad boy tale (Rebel Without a Cause, The Wild One) converge to solidify John Travolta for the first time in his career as a star.  The rest of his career is further proof of the death of the star.

29. Marvel's The Avengers (adjusted: $704M; unadjusted: $623M) (2012)
Proof of concept for the further franchise.

30. Black Panther (adjusted: $699M; unadjusted: same) (2018)
Here's the biggest hit of 2018, which seems like it made totally outlandish money.  But in reality good enough for thirtieth on this list.

31. Thunderball (adjusted: $685M; unadjusted: $63M) (1965)
In unadjusted grosses Daniel Craig's James Bond movies were the most successful ever.  But here we see Sean Connery officially earning his legendary status.

32. The Dark Knight (adjusted: $682M; unadjusted: $534M) (2008)
A huge part of this one's success was seeing Heath Ledger posthumously fulfill his early potential as a new Hollywood star.

33. The Jungle Book (adjusted: $674M; unadjusted: $141M) (1967)
One of Disney's last big hits from its original golden age.

34. Sleeping Beauty (adjusted: $665M; unadjusted: $51M) (1959)
I don't know about you, but I know this one a lot more because I know it exists than remember having ever actually seen it.  It feels like a belated attempt to recapture the original Disney princess magic.

35. Ghostbusters (adjusted: $651M; unadjusted: $242M) (1984)
The '80s, where combining blockbuster elements and comedy was a thing well before Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.

36. Shrek 2 (adjusted: $650M; unadjusted: $441M) (2004)
The biggest non-Disney animated success is perhaps predictably a satire of the traditional Disney archetype.

37. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (adjusted: $646M; unadjusted: $102M) (1969)
Here's Newman and Redford in their first big success!

38. Avengers: Infinity War (adjusted: $643M; unadjusted: same) (2018)
Here's the other big 2018 success, in perspective.

39. Love Story (adjusted: $641M; unadjusted $106M) (1970)
I'm sure there are still big fans of this one, but it's a notable exception to everything else on the list so far, which require no reminder for what it actually is. 

40. Spider-Man (adjusted: $636M; unadjusted: $403M) (2002)
There will always be speculation that this was as big a hit as it was because it's set in New York City, after 9/11.

41. Independence Day (adjusted: $634M; unadjusted: $306M) (1996)
Besides Jurassic Park this was the movie that opened the door for blockbusters again.

42. Home Alone (adjusted: $620M; unadjusted: $285M) (1990)
Made child actors capable of being stars again and totally redefined slapstick humor.

43. Star Wars: The Last Jedi (adjusted: $619M; unadjusted: $620M) (2017)
Interestingly it's actually lost a little money; that's inflation working for you!  But you can again see where older Star Wars fans can be resentful; the new movies are getting comparable exposure to the original ones.

44. Pinocchio (adjusted: $617M; unadjusted: $84M) (1940)
Another Disney animated classic.

45. Cleopatra (adjusted: $615M; unadjusted: $57M) (1963)
This was the template Titanic was trying to improve on, a famously expensive movie that was a perceived box office failure because of how much it needed to make to cover expenses.  Hollywood is once again reaching that point, pouring more and money into movies expected to be blockbusters, and risking bigger and bigger disappointments.

46. Beverly Hills Cop (adjusted: $615M; unadjusted: $234M) (1984)
Eddie Murphy later struggled to maintain his status as a big star, but clearly he earned it early in his career.  But he really shouldn't feel too bad: he was one of the last true stars Hollywood ever found, and what happened to him meant...no one really followed after him.

47. Goldfinger (adjusted: $607M; unadjusted: $51M) (1964)
Here's another Sean Connery turn as James Bond, in case you were doubting his massive success.

48. Airport (adjusted: $605M; unadjusted: $100M) (1970)
Inarguably became much better known in parody form: Leslie Nielsen's later Airplane!

49. American Graffiti (adjusted: $601M; unadjusted: $115M) (1973)
Star Wars fans like to assume George Lucas made his name with Star wars.  Well, no.  He made his name with American Graffiti.  Proof.

50. The Robe (adjusted: $599M; unadjusted: $36M) (1953)
The most successful movie featuring Jesus ever made; technically a follow-up, featuring what happens after the crucifixion.

B = billion, M = million

Source: Box Office Mojo