The 25 highest all-time grossing films in the U.S.

We start this list, fittingly, with the film that truly birthed the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There had been Marvel movies, but this is the one that brought the team together. It was the first massive hit for the MCU, and made it into the behemoth that dominated the movie landscape for over a decade.

If you were a kid in the '90s, you probably watched "Grease." You heard that soundtrack over and over. Then you grew up, reconsidered the film, heard "Greased Lightning" with adult ears, and thought, "Wait, what?" It's a bizarre film, but the songs are clearly bangers. Plus, it made a ton of cash.

Julie Andrews had starred in "My Fair Lady" on stage. However, for the film adaptation they cast Audrey Hepburn, even though she didn't do her own singing. "My Fair Lady" won Best Picture for 1964, but Andrews won Best Actress over Hepburn. Plus, "Mary Poppins" is on this list, and "My Fair Lady" is not.

"Forrest Gump" has a strange legacy. Clearly, it was an unequivocal hit. Not only that, but it won Tom Hanks his second Best Actor Oscar in a row, and also won Best Picture. Then, a lot of people turned on "Forrest Gump," considering it some ultimate Boomer fantasy. Of course, in turn some revisited the film to note there is more skepticism within it than you may recall. All in all, a polarizing movie.

Given that “The Godfather” is rated R, it’s pretty impressive it made this list. There are only a handful of R-rated films that made the cut. Of course, “The Godfather” isn’t just a box office smash. The movie won Best Picture and is considered one of the best films ever made.

Until “Endgame” took the title, “Avatar” was the highest-grossing movie ever. And yet, based on inflation, it’s only 15th. “Avatar” has largely been forgotten, but it came out at the heyday of 3-D movies having their resurgence. That led to pricier tickets and boosted the box office take.

This is the most-recent film on the list, as obviously adjusting for inflation does little for films from the last few years. During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, filmgoers were unable to go to theaters for months. "No Way Home" was one of the first major film events after theaters were viable again, and also it had three Spider-Men. That all came together in a major way for this MCU outing.

Disney has made a lot of successful movies, but we bet you didn’t expect “Fantasia” to be on this list. It’s a largely silent movie built around several different segments of classical music matched with animation. You may remember Mickey Mouse as the sorcerer’s apprentice, but this movie isn’t one that a lot of people talk about these days.

In this era of comic book movies and sci-fi films dominating the box office, it feels strange to remember a time when a serious-minded character study like “The Graduate” could be tops in ticket sales. Dustin Hoffman stars as a wayward college graduate who begins an affair with an older neighbor, the famed Mrs. Robinson. Maybe people just really wanted to hear Simon and Garfunkel.

George Lucas and Stephen Spielberg dominate this list, and they joined together on this film. Lucas brought his love of old-time serial movies, while Spielberg brought his skill with action directing. This began the Indiana Jones franchise, and it’s still the best of the bunch.

Apparently back in the day people loved to go see Best Picture winners. “The Godfather” won Best Picture in 1972, and the next year “The Sting” got the Oscar. Robert Redford and Paul Newman, two of the biggest stars of the era, joined forces again for this Depression Era heist movie.

The photorealistic remake was a weird one, even with Beyonce involved. We’ll stick to the original animated film. We know the songs are stuck in your head already but, you know, Hakuna Matata.

This is the first of several movies from the "Star Wars" universe you will see on this list. It’s also the least popular of the bunch. People were hyped for the first prequel, and the first "Star Wars" movie in over 15 years. Alas, “The Phantom Menace” turned out to be a big disappointment to many. There’s a reason no other prequel made this list.

Spielberg is back, and he brought dinosaurs with him. At the time, the special effects of “Jurassic Park” were incredible. CGI was still relatively new, and Spielberg mixed that and practical effects with aplomb. It’s also just an exciting movie with some great actors in it.

For years, this was thought of as the final "Star Wars" film. “Return of the Jedi” gave us Ewoks and the end of the Empire. Some think it’s a little too cutesy, but that didn’t stop people from flocking to the box office to see it. Plus, there have been all the rereleases of George Lucas’ original trilogy.

Not adjusted for inflation, “Endgame” is the highest-grossing movie of all time. However, we are making that adjustment, and by this measure it ranks only 16th. That’s still incredibly impressive, but it doesn’t sound as good as being No. 1. “Endgame” does impressively tie a ton of story together and bring the overarching Marvel Cinematic Universe events to a satisfying conclusion.

Hollywood doesn’t make epics like these anymore, by and large, but they were huge back in the day. “Ben-Hur” didn’t just make a ton of cash. For years, it was the reigning Oscars champion. It won a whopping 11 Oscars, including Best Picture.

Another "Star Wars" film. “The Empire Strikes Back” is the middle film of the original trilogy. It’s the dark one that ends on kind of a somber note. Oh, and it’s also the one where we find out about Luke Skywalker’s patronage.

You made a nice family film back in the day and you’d get a lot of people to go see it. Like “Fantasia,” “101 Dalmatians” isn’t a particularly beloved Disney movie. You can name maybe one song from it and may only know Cruella de Vil. Back in the ‘60s, though, it was absolutely huge.

Only one movie from the most recent trilogy of "Star Wars" films makes this list, and it’s the first one. Once more, people were excited for the first new "Star Wars" film in over a decade. At least this time we got a good movie too. “The Force Awakens” brought a bunch of new characters into the world of "Star Wars," and there was no controversy about any of them.

We break into the top 10 with the earliest movie on this list. In fact, the Disney classic is the first ever feature-length cel-animated movie. Over the years, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” has been rereleased repeatedly, which has helped boost the box office.

If we’re being honest, this is the most surprising movie on the list. “The Exorcist” in the top 10? This is the only horror movie in the top 25, and it’s a particularly brutal one at that. “The Exorcist” gave people nightmares. However, apparently people couldn’t get enough of that.

At least with “Doctor Zhivago” you get bang for your buck. David Lean’s epic is 193 minutes long. That’s over three hours. People complained about having to watch “The Irishman” and they could do that on Netflix! And yet “Doctor Zhivago” is one of the highest-grossing movies ever. Maybe movie-watchers had more patience in the ‘60s.

With “Jaws,” Spielberg basically invented the summer blockbuster. Movies used to be taken on the road and would be shown in only a few cities at a time. “Jaws” was given one big release, and people flocked to see it. You could argue that, like “The Exorcist,” “Jaws” in a horror film. It did at least make a lot of filmgoers afraid to go into the water.

Imagine a massive biblical epic being released right now. Would it be a huge blockbuster? Possibly, but it seems unlikely. Cecil B. DeMille’s epic starring Charlton Heston as Moses wowed people. Back then, spectacle meant a lot in movies. Plus, most people didn’t have TVs in 1956.

For many years, “Titanic” was the highest-grossing movie ever. It ruled until another James Cameron film “Avatar,” took over. By this standard, though, “Titanic” still has a leg up on both “Avatar” and “Endgame.” Our hearts will go on.

This is Spielberg’s final movie on the list. Yes, it’s “E.T.” that made the most money of his many, many films. “E.T.” is the story of a boy and an alien who form a bond, a feel-good twist on Spielberg’s earlier movie “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” This family movie was evidently more popular.

The hills are alive with the sounds of cash registers. Back in the ‘60s, people loved musicals, and “The Sound of Music” was the most popular of the bunch. It’s a brightly colored film starring Julia Andrews busting out tune after tune. The affinity many people have for “The Sound of Music” has boosted it to being the third-highest-grossing film ever.

You knew “Star Wars,” aka “A New Hope” was going to show up. Are you surprised it finished only second? George Lucas’ movie changed the film landscape. This isn’t hyperbole. All those sci-fi films and franchises we see now are largely because “Star Wars” was such a massive hit. It’s also been rereleased a few times, of course, which helped boost the box office. There’s a big gap in adjusted gross between “The Sound of Music” and “Star Wars,” but Luke and Co. still are runners-up.

Yes, to this day, “Gone with the Wind” remains the highest-grossing movie when adjusted for inflation. Given that it came out in 1939, that’s a ton of inflation. This Best Picture winner was based on a popular book and stayed in theaters forever. It also got rereleased several times. It would be years before TV was invented, so if you wanted entertainment, you had to go to the movies. Want to know just how popular “Gone with the Wind” has been? The estimated tickets sold for “Star Wars” is about 178 million. For “Gone with the Wind” it’s about 202 million. Frankly, my dear, that’s impressive.