A look back at the 2012 box office

2012 was an impressive year for movies (we had a lot of solid flicks come out), and was even more impressive on the money side. According to Box Office Mojo today, it is the highest grossing year in cinema history (domestically), with about $10.8 billion; surpassing 2009’s previous record of $10.6 billion. I wonder why that is…

Top Ten highest grossing films (domestically) of 2012

1. “The Avengers” earned a modest (haha) $623,357,910
2. “The Dark Knights Rises” took in $448,139,099 “The Dark Knight Rises” and “The Avengers” make up just about 10% of the total box office gross for the year.
3. “The Hunger Games” grossed about $408,010,692
4. “Skyfall” has earned $289,600,000, and just crossed the $1 billion mark worldwide
5. “The Twilight Sage: Breaking Dawn Part 2” brought in $286,039,065
6. “The Amazing Spider-Man” grossed $262,030, 663
7. “Brave” scored $237,259,580
8. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” has earned, so far, $221,743,000
9. “Ted” laughed its way to $218,665,740
10. “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” took in $216,391,482

At the other end of the spectrum we also had some disappointments. The five lowest grossing movies released in more than 2,000 theaters are as follows:

1. “Oogieloves In The Big Balloon Adventure” with $1,065,907
2. “Won’t Back Down” earned $5,310,554
3. “Chasing Mavericks” with $5,940,992
4. “Fun Size” which grossed $9,409,538
5. “The Words” with $11,494,838

Now just because they were the lowest grossing doesn’t mean it cost studios the most money. Believe it or not (when you account for worldwide grosses) even “John Carter” didn’t cost Disney that much money (it earned over $280 million worldwide). Forbes has compiled a list of some of the biggest box office fails this past year had to suffer. Keep in mind that the budget doesn’t factor in the marketing cost:

1. “The Oogieloves in The Big Balloon Adventure” earned $1 million on a $20 million budget
2. “A Thousand Words” took in $20 million, but cost $40 million
3. “Dredd” earned $28 million, but cost the studio $50 million
4. “Big Miracle” made $25 million, but its production cost $40 million
5. “Wanderlust” raked in $21 million, but cost $30 million to make
6. "Rock of Ages” scored a nice $56 million, but it cost the studio $75 million to make
7. “People Like Us” fared a little better with $12 million gross on a $16 million budget, but marketing costs were high
8. “That’s My Boy” scored $57 million, but cost $70 million
9. “Premium Rush” cost $35 million to make (seems high since it’s a movie about bikes), and only earned $29 million
10. “Red Tails” made $50 million, but cost $58 million (plus a huge marketing campaign)

This rings true the old saying, “You got to pay to play.” For every super dud a studio had this year they had a huge hit on the other end to make up for it. The circle of life continues.

Want to stay updated on movie news? Hit "Subscribe" above or join me on Facebook and Twitter, and check out more of my work below! Also, join our discussion about movies, and click the “Like” or “Tweet” button above to share with your friends!