The 20 highest grossing summer blockbusters of all time

Released on Fourth of July weekend, the animated sequel would go on to earn $368 million domestically, making it the most successful movie of the franchise ("Minions" included). 

Easily the best of the Sam Raimi "Spider-Man" trilogy (thanks in large part to Alfred Molina's 'Doc Ock') brought in $373.6 million domestically. 

The last of the Star Wars prequels was also the best received critically. "Revenge of the Sith," which finally showed audience the moment Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader earned $380.3 million at the box office. 

Did you know that of the eight "Harry Potter" movies, only half of them were released during the summer? Of these, only "Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows" – the final installment of the saga – managed to crack this list. It made $381 million domestically. 

Director James Gunn outdid himself the second time around. "Guardians Of The Galaxy 2, Vol. 2" proved that the success of the first film was more than just a fluke, earning nearly $389.7 since it was first released on May 5 of this year. 

Michael Bay is the master of the summer blockbuster. Every one of his "Transformers" movies has made at least $130 million at the domestic box office. Of these," Revenge Of The Fallen" – the second in the series – has been the most successful, earning $402.1 million.  

The first of the many "Spider-Man" movies that currently exist was also the most successful. Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man," which featured Tobey Maguire in the lead role and Kirsten Dunst as love interest Mary Jane Watson, raked in $403.7 million. 

Arguably the best of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies,"Captain America: Civil War" pitted all of the Avengers against each other. The film made $408 million at the box office. 

Legendary scribe-turned-director Shane Black's first shot at making a comic book movie was very, very successful. "Iron Man 3," which explored Tony Stark's psyche in the aftermath of the first "Avengers" movie, made $409 million domestically. 

"Wonder Woman," the clear winner for 2017's biggest summer blockbuster of the year, used the Labor Day weekend to move ahead one spot in this list. As of this writing, "Wonder Woman" has made $409.5 million from ticket sales across the country. 

Woody, Buzz & Co. made mad bank at the domestic box office ($415 million) despite a near 11-year hiatus in the franchise ("Toy Story 2" came out in 1999). 

Like a lot of other franchises on this list, the second installment of the "Pirates Of The Caribbean" movies was also its most successful, making a whopping $423.3 million in domestic ticket sales. 

The worst movie in the "Star Wars" franchise (anyone who argues otherwise should never be allowed to comment on movies) was also its most successful at the domestic box office. It made $431.1 million. 

To this day, the "Shrek" movies continue to be the most successful animated franchise of all time. "Shrek 2," which came out on May 19, 2004, made $441.2 million domestically. It is the highest grossing non-Disney/Pixar animated film on this list. 

The last of the Christopher Nolan "Batman" trilogy made a whopping $448.1 million in domestic ticket sales. It also inspired countless of memes thanks to Tom Hardy's portrayal of the super villainous Bane. 

The movie that gave us James Spader as a bad guy in the form of artificial intelligence (otherwise known as Elon Musk's worst nightmare) made $459 million domestically after it was released on May 1, 2015. 

"Finding Dory," the emotional roller coaster in the form of a movie about a fish with short term memory loss, is the biggest animated summer blockbuster to date. It made $486.3 million at the domestic box office. 

To this day, "The Dark Knight" is the gold standard in superhero movies. Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker was so good that he won an Oscar for it, which was sadly awarded posthumously. It would go on to make $533.3 million domestically, the first movie to ever break the $500 million barrier. 

Fans flocked to the movie theater in droves when "The Avengers" assembled for the first time in 2012. The Joss Whedon movie is currently the most successful superhero movie to date, making $623.4 million in domestic ticket sales. 

It's very fitting that the most successful summer blockbuster of all time belongs to a franchise built by Steven Spielberg, the mastermind behind "Jaws," the original blockbuster. "Jurassic World," which is a sequel and not a reboot, made $652.3 million at the domestic box office.