(click to enlarge)
These statistics use the number of tickets sold in the United States since the release date / the US population of the year of the movie’s release date. Thus, since some movies have been re-released multiple times, these figures can be slightly misleading. None the less, they paint a convincing picture graph.
More stats bellow the jump.
| Movie | Year | % of US Population | US Population (est.) | Tickets Sold |
| Gone with the Wind | 1939 | 154% | 130,879,718 | 202,044,600 |
| Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | 1937 | 85% | 128,824,829 | 109,000,000 |
| Star Wars | 1977 | 81% | 220,239,425 | 178,119,600 |
| The Ten Commandments | 1956 | 78% | 168,903,031 | 131,000,000 |
| The Sound of Music | 1965 | 73% | 194,302,963 | 142,415,400 |
| Doctor Zhivago | 1965 | 64% | 194,302,963 | 124,135,500 |
| Fantasia | 1941 | 62% | 133,402,471 | 83,043,500 |
| E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial | 1982 | 61% | 231,664,458 | 141,854,300 |
| Jaws | 1975 | 59% | 215,973,199 | 128,078,800 |
| Ben-Hur | 1959 | 55% | 177,829,628 | 98,000,000 |
| 101 Dalmatians | 1961 | 54% | 183,691,481 | 99,917,300 |
| The Exorcist | 1973 | 52% | 211,908,788 | 110,568,700 |
| Pinocchio | 1940 | 51% | 132,122,446 | 67,403,300 |
| Titanic | 1997 | 48% | 267,743,595 | 128,345,900 |
| Bambi | 1942 | 47% | 134,859,553 | 63,712,400 |
| The Bells of St. Mary’s | 1945 | 45% | 139,928,165 | 62,745,100 |
| The Empire Strikes Back | 1980 | 43% | 227,224,681 | 98,180,600 |
| The Graduate | 1967 | 43% | 198,712,056 | 85,571,400 |
| The Sting | 1973 | 42% | 211,908,788 | 89,142,900 |
| Sleeping Beauty | 1959 | 41% | 177,829,628 | 72,676,100 |
| The Robe | 1953 | 41% | 160,184,192 | 65,454,500 |
| Mary Poppins | 1964 | 41% | 191,888,791 | 78,181,800 |
| Return of the Jedi | 1983 | 40% | 233,791,994 | 94,059,400 |
| Thunderball | 1965 | 38% | 194,302,963 | 74,800,000 |
| Raiders of the Lost Ark | 1981 | 38% | 229,465,714 | 88,141,900 |
| Around the World in 80 Days | 1956 | 38% | 168,903,031 | 64,615,400 |
| The Godfather | 1972 | 38% | 209,896,021 | 78,922,600 |
| The Jungle Book | 1967 | 37% | 198,712,056 | 73,679,900 |
| Cleopatra (1963) | 1963 | 36% | 189,241,798 | 67,183,500 |
| Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid | 1969 | 35% | 202,676,946 | 70,557,900 |
| Grease | 1978 | 35% | 222,584,545 | 76,921,800 |
| Goldfinger | 1964 | 35% | 191,888,791 | 66,300,000 |
| Love Story | 1970 | 34% | 205,052,174 | 69,998,100 |
| Jurassic Park | 1993 | 33% | 257,746,103 | 86,205,800 |
| Airport | 1970 | 32% | 205,052,174 | 66,111,300 |
| Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace | 1999 | 31% | 272,690,813 | 84,825,800 |
| American Graffiti | 1973 | 31% | 211,908,788 | 65,714,300 |
| Forrest Gump | 1994 | 30% | 260,289,237 | 78,545,600 |
| Ghostbusters | 1984 | 30% | 235,824,902 | 70,730,600 |
| The Lion King | 1994 | 30% | 260,289,237 | 77,231,800 |
| Blazing Saddles | 1974 | 30% | 213,853,928 | 63,227,500 |
| The Towering Inferno | 1974 | 29% | 213,853,928 | 61,375,700 |
| Beverly Hills Cop | 1984 | 28% | 235,824,902 | 67,150,000 |
| Home Alone | 1990 | 27% | 249,438,712 | 67,734,200 |
| Independence Day | 1996 | 26% | 265,189,794 | 69,268,900 |
| Batman | 1989 | 26% | 246,819,230 | 62,954,600 |
| Avatar | 2009 | 25% | 305,529,237 | 75,243,600 |
| The Dark Knight | 2008 | 24% | 303,824,640 | 74,282,100 |
| Shrek 2 | 2004 | 24% | 292,000,000 | 71,050,900 |
| Spider-Man | 2002 | 24% | 287,421,906 | 69,484,700 |
| Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest | 2006 | 22% | 300,000,000 | 64,628,400 |
| The Sixth Sense | 1999 | 21% | 272,690,813 | 57,579,100 |
| The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | 2003 | 21% | 294,043,000 | 61,538,100 |
| Spider-Man 2 | 2004 | 21% | 292,000,000 | 60,158,700 |
| Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith | 2005 | 20% | 290,000,000 | 59,324,600 |
| The Passion of the Christ | 2004 | 20% | 292,000,000 | 59,704,800 |
| The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | 2002 | 20% | 287,421,906 | 57,630,400 |
| Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone | 2001 | 20% | 285,102,075 | 55,913,000 |
| The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | 2001 | 19% | 285,102,075 | 54,703,900 |
| Finding Nemo | 2003 | 19% | 294,043,000 | 56,337,500 |
| Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones | 2002 | 19% | 287,421,906 | 53,468,500 |
| Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen | 2009 | 18% | 305,529,237 | 56,004,400 |
| Toy Story 2 | 1999 | 18% | 272,690,813 | 47,836,500 |
| Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl | 2003 | 17% | 294,043,000 | 50,648,900 |
| How the Grinch Stole Christmas | 2000 | 17% | 281,421,906 | 48,106,800 |
| Spider-Man 3 | 2007 | 16% | 301,621,157 | 48,914,300 |
Sources: Movie Tickets Sold, US Population
February 14, 2010 at 9:32 am
Thank you for recognizing this hugely important measure of movie popularity!
I’m sick and tired of hearing “Titanic this” and “Avatar that,” as the “highest-grossing film(s) of all time.” Are we really able to adjust for inflation? How often is that updated when comparing to ET and others from the past? What about the cost of IMAX tickets? The rankings certainly aren’t adjusted for that. ET and Jaws didn’t have IMAX opportunities! (Could you imagine that, though?)
Before reading your post, I had no idea GWTW was the Number One movie of all time in terms of tickets sold. I assumed it was ET or Star Wars.
Thank you!!