It is astonishing how much money goes into Hollywood franchise movies. Between the actors' multi-million-dollar salaries and the salaries of thousands of crew members to post-production and marketing, the budgets for some films certainly make you realize just how little we, as an audience, are in comparison to the giants of the film industry. It is certainly predictable that big blockbusters are the most expensive movies, but the specific figures of each movie are sure to make you blink twice.
Updated July 19, 2025: This article has been updated with new films and recent box office additions to various entries on the list.
Of course, a movie with a high budget does not necessarily mean that it is certain to make a satisfactory profit in return or, for that matter, be a well-crafted and entertaining story. Disney, for example, invests millions in all of its projects, but that does not stop the major studio fromexperiencing its box office bombsnow and then. With all that in mind, which films truly were the most expensive to produce? The results may surprise you. Without further ado, here is a look at the most expensive movies ever made, unadjusted for inflation.
25Furious 7 (2015) - $250M
Fast and Furious 7
Furious 7was, until recently, the most expensive film in the Fast & Furious franchise. Following how well the previous two entries had done, Universal Pictures decided to increase the budget for the seventh film to deliver an epic spectacle. Sadly part of the inflated budget also was due to the tragic passing of star Paul Walker in the middle of filming, which forced a break in filming while the filmmakers decided how to proceed. By the time the film came out, it was a massive box office hit and grossed $1.5 billion worldwide and is the highest-grossing film in the franchise.
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24Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) - $250M
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Princeis the most expensive film in the Wizarding World franchise. It is unclear why the sixth entry and neither part of the two-part finale carries a higher budget. Released during the height of Potter-mania, the film notable was delayed just three months before its release moving from November 2008 to July 2009. It paid off asHarry Potter and the Half-Blood Princegrossed $934.5 million at the worldwide box office.
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23Beauty and the Beast (2017) – $255M
Beauty and the Beast
Disney spent $255 million onBeauty and the Beast, a live-action remake of one of the studio’s most iconic and beloved films. The move paid off asBeauty and the Beastgrossed $174 million in its opening weekend and went on to gross $504 million domestically and $1.2 billion worldwide. This proved to Disney there was a lot of money to be made remaking the Disney Renaissance films.
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22Spider-Man 3 (2007) – $258M
Spider-Man 3
Sam Raimi’s finalSpider-Manmovie,Spider-Man 3, sees Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) battle himself after a symbiote turns his suit black and brings out his dark side. At the time of its release,Spider-Man 3was the most expensive movie ever made, with some believing the budget even went past $300 million – which Sony denied. The movie drew nearly $900M in box office earnings, and while the effects were praised, the rest of the reviews were more negative, leading to the cancelation of future MaguireSpider-Manmovies.
21The Lion King (2019) – $260M
The Lion King
Jon Favreau took on the directorial duties forThe Lion Kingremake after helming the reimagining ofThe Jungle Book. Favreau and his team pushed the envelope of what existing CGI is capable of and creating life-like animals. Some Disney followers were happy, but others were not. Regardless, the extremely expensive end result, which cost $260 million, surpassedFrozenas the highest-grossing animated film of all time.
Remaking one of the most beloved and popular animated films was an investment that paid off. Featuring an all-star cast, including Donald Glover and Beyoncé, with James Earl Jones reprising his iconic Mufasa role,The Lion Kingwas certainly strong enough to greenlight a prequel film. The upcoming film will serve as both a prequel and a sequel,director Barry Jenkins recently revealed.
20Tangled (2010) – $260M
The animated movieTangledretells the story of Rapunzel, a young princess with magical hair who is trapped in a tower, and begins an adventure when she finally escapes the tower.Tangledhad been in development for six years at Disney, resulting in a massive budget that is estimated at $260M. This would make it themost expensive animated movie ever made. The movie’s beautiful visuals earned high praise, along with its story and characters, and was a financial success.
19Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) – $263M
Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice
More than $260 million was used to makeBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,and yet it did not perform as well asAquamanorWonder Woman. The film earned over three times its budget during its theatrical run but suffered a major drop after an incredible opening weekend where it set a record for the biggest opening weekend during the Easter holiday.
Some fans argue the movie lived up to the hype and found joy in seeing the DC trinity (Henry Cavill’s Superman, Ben Affleck’s Batman, and Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman) united on screen. Others, however, were less enthusiastic about the film and criticized the darker tone and storytelling. Warner Bros. invested a great deal in the movie and practically bet ten years of their future on this movie, one that sadly did not pay off and is about to be reset, meaning thatthe Snyderverse is over, dead, and gone.
18John Carter (2012) – $264M
John Carter
John Carteris one of the few movies that holds two drastically contrasting titles: it is one of the most expensive movies ever made, but it is also one of the biggest box office bombs (though its lead actor Taylor Kitsch would disagree). The sci-fi epic used a budget of $264 million and only grossed $73 million domestically.
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Even with an impressive $284 million worldwide total, when everything was added up,John Carterwas a massive bomb for Disney. The only good news was that two months later,The Avengerswas released and helped recoup any lost money fromJohn Carter. Disney of course, did not expect this movie to perform so poorly at the box office as they had plans to make a wholeJohn Carterfranchise.
17Jurassic World Dominion (2022) – $265M
Jurassic World: Dominion
The epic conclusion in the Jurassic World trilogy brings back original cast members Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum to deal with dinosaurs as they have free roam of the Earth.
The most recent addition to theJurassicfranchise,Jurassic World Dominionis also boasting an incredibly high budget. Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum’s highly anticipated return to the series was a huge moment and something that would only add on to the costs. While the majority of that was spent on bringing dinosaurs to life, filming at the height of COVID-19 cost them millions of extra dollars. The 18-month shoot was the first blockbuster movie to start shooting during the pandemic as they tried to navigate that new world.
Despite the high budget, the film managed to make just over$1 billion. This made it only the third movie to reach that milestone after the pandemic, showing that the franchise is still a hit among audiences despite the harsh critical reception. Bringing in a total net profit of $230 million, the film proved to be a success for Universal. With continued interest shown in the franchise,it’s only a matter of time before another moviearrives with potentially an even higher budget.
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16Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) – $275M
The second live-actionStar Warsanthology film,Solo: A Star Wars Storycenters on a young Han Solo that is not played by Harrison Ford.Solois infamously known for its difficult production, with original directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller being removed far from the filmmaking process. Bringing on Ron Howard as a new director and requiring major reshoots of scenes that had already been filmed ballooned the budget for what was intended as a lower-costStar Warsmovie.
The film became the firstStar Warsbox office bomb, grossing $393.2 million worldwide, which, in comparison, fell drastically short ofThe Last Jedi’s $1.333 billion. Due to the failure ofSolo: A Star Wars Story, Lucasfilm pivoted away from anthology films and moved its focus towards series on Disney+. HadSolonot had the additional reshoot cost added on, there is a chance it could have turned a profit.
