As of 4/9/23, according to Box Office Mojo, here’re the top grossing movies of 2022, both nationally and internationally:
US Box Office:
- Top Gun: Maverick ($718 million) By far the biggest surprise of the year, Tom Cruise’s biggest blockbuster ever and his first unconnected to the Mission: Impossible films in years. Clearly audiences were ready to revisit the previous film. Strong X-Wing/ Star Wars vibes certainly don’t hurt.
- Avatar: The Way of Water ($682 million) They say never bet against James Cameron, except every time he comes out with a new film that’s exactly what everyone does, and he still comes out with a blockbuster. The last one was a phenomenon more than a decade ago.
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever ($453 million) After the huge success of the previous entry in this franchise, this was a disappointment by comparison. Still the biggest superhero success of the year, at least nationally.
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($411 million) After the huge success of the last Spider-Man movie, audiences were primed for another superhero flick with surprise appearances, which this one had with a few (basically) throwaway cameos.
- Jurassic World: Dominion ($376 million) The dinosaurs remained a huge draw in this franchise, wrapping up the sprawling saga.
- Minions: The Rise of Gru ($369.6 million) The biggest family hit of the year was another prequel in the series begun with Despicable Me.
- The Batman ($369.3 million) Technically the first “original” (not a sequel) hit on the list.
- Thor: Love and Thunder ($343 million) Superhero fatigue started to settle in officially with this one, leaning into the same comedic formula of its cult favorite predecessor, failed to find a happy audience.
- Sonic the Hedgehog 2 ($190 million) If you believe him, this is Jim Carrey’s last movie.
- Black Adam ($168 million) Dwayne Johnson took years to get around to making this one. Thought it would be embraced as a game-changer for DC movies. The studio changed the game on him instead.
International Box Office:
- Avatar: The Way of Water ($2.3 billion) The clear winner here was a little different.
- Top Gun: Maverick ($1.4 billion)
- Jurassic World: Dominion ($1 billion)
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($955 million)
- Minions: The Rise of Gru ($934 million)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever ($859 million)
- The Batman ($770 million)
- Thor: Love and Thunder ($760 million)
- Water Gate Bridge ($626 million) Here’s China’s contribution.
- Puss in Boots: The Last Wish ($480 million) The biggest gain on this list was the late entry in the Shrek franchise.
