The 20 biggest Fourth of July box office openings ever

The third installment of the Ice Age franchise introduced dinosaurs to the mix in 2009, and it made over $41 million in its first weekend.

While $19 million might seem like a lot of money to make a movie, just compare that to the triple-digit budgets of superhero films. Well, that’s all the Wayans brothers had to work with when it came to making Scary Movie. However, they did manage to make more than double that in a matter of days when it opened in 2000. Twenty-five years later, the movie has made $278 million.

With over a decade separating Terminator 2  and its third, fans of the franchise showed up in droves to see Arnold Schwarzenegger back in action in 2003. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines wound up making over $44 million that opening weekend.

Opening a movie called Independence Day on the 4th of July weekend is next-level marketing. Not to mention, in 1996, no one was more coveted on screen than Will Smith. It was a year after Bad Boys took him from TV to movie star status, and the people couldn’t get enough. Independence Day made over $50 million when it hit theaters on July 3, 1996.

If there is one thing Hollywood follows, it’s money trails. After Independence Day stunned over the 4th of July weekend in 1996, no time was wasted before Will Smith was utilized again. Men in Black dropped a year later, topping Independence Day with over $51 million over the holiday weekend.

Will Smith didn’t disappear from movies after Men in Black, but he did have some hills and valleys between that and its 2002 sequel, with critics questioning Wild Wild West, but then getting an Oscar nomination for Ali. Smith did return to his Summer Blockbuster roots with a vengeance in ‘02 with Men in Black 2, earning over $52 million, and ensuring that he remains one of the most notable names when it comes to huge releases.

Superhero movies have proven that they can be released in the middle of a winter storm and still make major money, but they’ve also been known to take full advantage of the 4th of July. Andrew Garfield’s The Amazing Spider-Man proved that a new actor could most definitely step into the role and fans would love it, so much so that it made over $62 million in a matter of days.

Hancock made $62.6 million, the biggest opening any Will Smith movie has had on this particular weekend. This has left fans forever wondering when and if a Hancock 2 would ever see the light of day.

By the time The Twilight Saga: Eclipse dropped, people were already so deeply ingrained into the sparkly vampire lore of it all. Making $64 million in one weekend, but in total, the entire Twilight franchise took in over $3 billion worldwide.

Tom Cruise is no stranger to huge releases with Top Gun: Maverick and the Mission: Impossible series making that man’s net worth astronomical, but it was War of the Worlds that landed one of the biggest 4th of July weekend openings with $64.8 million.

Transformers was a highlight for many who grew up in the ‘80s, with the cartoon and toys being staples in many homes across America. So it was no surprise that a live-action movie featuring the likes of Optimus Prime and Bumblebee was a hit that took in over $70 million in one weekend, and over $700 million to date.

It is not easy to create an animated film with franchise appeal, but Illumination struck gold — well, it struck yellow — with Despicable Me. It’s not easy for a franchise to remain a constant hit, but even Despicable Me 4 was able to score big with over $75 million in July 2024.

When one takes Paul Rudd and places them in a superhero movie, then the result is $75.8 million over a weekend dedicated to fireworks and BBQs.

Despicable Me, in total, brought in over half a billion dollars. Those who think that’s wild, get ready because Despicable Me 2 made almost double that at the box office, and it all started with their July 2013 release, in which it made $84 million.

While Spider-Man 2 didn’t make as much as its predecessor in total, its opening weekend in July 2004 was more than enough to land on this list, as it made $88 million.

Spider-Man is a proven money maker. All three modern-day Spideys have made countless coins, but Tom Holland’s has been the most lucrative when it comes to July 4th releases. The second in his run as the masked crimefighter made over $92 million in a singular weekend.

The third time Michael Bay took on Transformers, it brought in an impressive $97 million. People will always love robot baddies and explosions.

The breakout star, or rather stars, of the Despicable Me franchise? The Minions. Those yellow creatures in overalls became instant staples in pop culture, so it was only right (and smart) to branch out and expand on the franchise with Minions: The Rise of Gru. That decision was lucrative, to say the least, with The Rise of Gru pulling in $107 million over the 4th of July weekend in 2022. That’s bananas.

Fans got a glimpse of what Tom Holland could bring to the role in Captain America: Civil War, and a year later showed up in mass to see even more of him as he took on a new Spider-Man franchise with Spider-Man: Homecoming, earning the film over $117 million over its opening weekend. It was safe to say after that, Holland was going to be rocking that suit for a while.

The first Pirates of the Caribbean was a hit, making over $640 million. However, no one could’ve guessed that its sequel, Dean Man’s Chest, would go above and beyond earning over $1 billion. Yes, that's a billion with a “B.” With that, it’s not shocking that when it opened in July 2006, it made some $135 million that weekend.