2024’s Sequel Obsession Creates Unique Box Office Top 10

2024 has set a rare box office record as every movie in the worldwide box office Top 10 is a sequel. Moviegoers have often lamented that Hollywood relies too much on sequels and not enough on original ideas, and the cinematic receipts from 2024 certainly seem to support that, as movies like Inside Out 2, Deadpool & Wolverine, and Dune: Part Two were some of the most anticipated movies of the year. Even with many fantastic, original movies out — like Thelma, Anora, Challengers, Late Night with the Devil, In a Violent Nature, and We Live in Time to Live — those smaller films failed to draw the big crowds (and dollars) that most sequels inherently provide.

According to Total Film, all ten movies in the worldwide top 10, as of November 24, 2024, are sequels — the first time this has happened at the box office in history. No reboots or prequels, no biopics or adaptations of preexisting intellectual property, like video games, books, or comics — only continuations of major studio blockbuster hits. Even 2019 — a year which saw massive box office records broken by sequels like Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Jumanji: The Next Level — still had “new” movie franchises, like Captain Marvel and Joker or reboots like The Lion King and Aladdin, among their top box office stars.

Here is a look at the ten highest-grossing films of 2024 worldwide box office as of Nov. 24, 2024:

Placement

Title

Worldwide Box Office

#1

Inside Out 2

$1.69 billion

#2

Deadpool & Wolverine

$1.33 billion

#3

Despicable Me 3

$968 million

#4

Dune: Part Two

$714 million

#5

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

$571 million

#6

Kung Fu Panda 4

$547 million

#7

Venom: The Last Dance

$457 million

#8

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

$451 million

#9

Bad Boys Ride or Die

$404 million

#10

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

$397 million

The highest-grossing non-sequel movie at the worldwide box office would be It Ends With Us (#13), which has currently brought in $350 million for its studio, with The Wild Robot right behind (#14) at $307 million. However, both those titles are based on preexisting material (novels, in this case). To find a truly original film that is not based on an old television show, comic adaptation, or other pieces of preexisting material, the highest ranking title would be IF at #20 with $190 million.

‘Wicked’ Could Change the Game

This record of all sequels dominating the 2024 box office will likely be short-lived, however, as Wicked’s $114 million opening weekend suggests the movie will become one of the biggest hits of the year, and seems all but sure to enter the ten highest-grossing movies list. It already debuted with $164 million worldwide in its opening weekend to land at #24 on the worldwide box office, and will likely continue to soar over the coming weeks. While Wicked is an adaptation of a popular musical and book, based on characters from The Wizard of Oz, it does not technically qualify as a sequel. However, look for other sequels like Gladiator II, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Moana 2 to make a play for this top 10 box office.

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In many ways, this does stand in sharp contrast to 2023, where the top three highest-grossing “new” movies of the year were Barbie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Oppenheimer. While Barbie and The Super Mario Bros. Movie were based on preexisting material, and Oppenheimer was a biopic, all three were considered new properties, and beat out long-established box office franchises like Mission: Impossible, Indiana Jones, Transformers, and various comic book films, suggesting that audiences are looking for something, if not entirely original, at least new to the movies.

Yet 2024’s box office so far indicates that despite moviegoers’ frustration with a lack of original movies, they aren’t necessarily rushing to see them, either. One wonders how the 2025 box office top ten will look, with reboots like Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps on the horizon. But, really, how can original films compete with the noise made by the marketing budgets of major franchises like these?

The final box office top ten for 2024 won’t be known until the first week of 2025.

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