Most Expensive Comedies Ever Made

Published: May 4, 2024 by 24/7 Tempo Staff

Somebody — perhaps a now forgotten character actor named Edmund Gwenn — supposedly once said “Dying is easy; comedy is hard.”

Comedy can also be expensive, on screen at any rate, especially if it involves special effects (think “Space Jam” or “Ghostbusters” in any of their incarnations) and/or big-name stars (like comedy stalwarts Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell, Steve Carrell, Jennifer Aniston, the late Robin Williams).

Another factor in escalating comedy movie budgets is the changing (or changed) nature of the genre in general. In the old days, especially in the first half of the 20th century, comedies on film were silent slapstick (as in all those classics from Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and their contemporaries); sheer wacky romps (say hello to the Marx Brothers and the Three Stooges); sophisticated smile-inducing relationship stories, often taking place primarily in workplaces or conjugal bedrooms, starring people like Cary Grant, Clark Gable, and Doris Day; or early modern character-driven rom-coms involving such stars as Julia Roberts, Diane Keaton, Tom Hanks, Jennifer Aniston, and Hugh Grant. (These are the 19 best comedy films ever made.)

Today, graphic gross-out humor, elements of sci-fi and fantasy, and interleaved animation, all of which can add up in the budget, are common in such movies. (So, for that matter, are not infrequent flashes of nudity, earning a number of film comedies an R rating, though not obviously adding to their production costs.)

To determine the most expensive movie comedies ever made, 24/7 Tempo reviewed historical data on production costs from film industry site The Numbers. Comedies were ranked based on total reported production budget, adjusted for inflation. Data on worldwide box office is also from The Numbers. Production budget and box office figures were adjusted for inflation using historical ticket data from the National Association of Theatre Owners. Supplemental data on IMDb user rating is current as of April 2024.

The films listed here cost anywhere from $100 million to $233 million to produce (adjusted for inflation), and while some of them brought in healthy multiples of their production costs, a number of them were just barely profitable, and 18 of these movies actually lost money, sometimes quite a bit — perhaps suggesting that comedy isn’t just hard but also hard to make pay.

50. Rumor Has It… (2005)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $100.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $127.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (56,104 reviews)
Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Mark Ruffalo, Shirley MacLaine

49. The Flintstones (1994)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $101.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $804.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.9/10 (78,616 reviews)
Starring: John Goodman, Rick Moranis, Rosie O’Donnell

48. The Family Man (2000)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $102.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $211.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.8/10 (106,454 reviews)
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Téa Leoni, Don Cheadle

47. Almost Famous (2000)

Source: Courtesy of DreamWorks Distribution

Production budget: $102.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $80.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 7.9/10 (279,276 reviews)
Starring: Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson

46. Four Christmases (2008)

Four Christmases (2008) | Robert Duvall and Katy Mixon Greer in Four Christmases (2008)

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

N/A

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

Production budget: $102.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $214.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.7/10 (67,726 reviews)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Vince Vaughn, Mary Steenburgen

45. Get Smart (2008)

Get Smart (2008) | Alex Kudrytsky in Get Smart (2008)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $102.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $289.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.5/10 (210,318 reviews)
Starring: Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Alan Arkin

44. Talladega Nights: the Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $102.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $227.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.6/10 (174,863 reviews)
Starring: Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Sacha Baron Cohen

43. The Adventures of Ford Fairlane (1990)

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Production budget: $106.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $44.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (17,740 reviews)
Starring: Andrew Dice Clay, Lauren Holly, Wayne Newton

42. Be Cool (2005)

Source: Courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Production budget: $107.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $135.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.6/10 (68,532 reviews)
Starring: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Dwayne Johnson

41. Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $108.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $90.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (98,179 reviews)
Starring: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, John Glover

40. Edtv (1999)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $108.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $63.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (42,713 reviews)
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Jenna Elfman, Geoffrey Blake

39. My Favorite Martian (1999)

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Production budget: $108.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $66.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.1/10 (13,306 reviews)
Starring: Christopher Lloyd, Jeff Daniels, Elizabeth Hurley

38. The Campaign (2012)

The Campaign (2012) | The Campaign (2012)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $109.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $120.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (127,588 reviews)
Starring: Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Jason Sudeikis

37. Sex and the City 2 (2010)

Sex and the City 2 (2010) | Chriselle Almeida in Sex and the City 2 (2010)

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

N/A

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

Production budget: $110.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $342.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.5/10 (76,574 reviews)
Starring: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis

36. The Kid (2000)

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Production budget: $110.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $118.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (41,368 reviews)
Starring: Bruce Willis, Spencer Breslin, Emily Mortimer

35. Spanglish (2004)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $110.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $80.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (81,770 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni, Paz Vega

34. Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Production budget: $112.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $267.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.6/10 (79,167 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jon Tenney, Joey Travolta

33. I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $113.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $247.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.9/10 (143,974 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Jessica Biel

32. The Nutty Professor (1996)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $114.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $567.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.6/10 (113,752 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jada Pinkett Smith, James Coburn

31. Bewitched (2005)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $114.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $187.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.8/10 (70,920 reviews)
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Shirley MacLaine

30. You Don’t Mess with the Zohan (2008)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $114.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $258.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (195,781 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, John Turturro, Emmanuelle Chriqui

29. Tropic Thunder (2008)

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Production budget: $114.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $243.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 7.0/10 (394,563 reviews)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr.

28. Click (2006)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $115.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $332.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (316,296 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, Kate Beckinsale, Christopher Walken

27. Casper (1995)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $115.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $594.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (126,809 reviews)
Starring: Bill Pullman, Christina Ricci, Cathy Moriarty

26. The Hangover Part III (2013)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $116.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $407.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (302,293 reviews)
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms

25. Little Fockers (2010)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $116.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $360.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (109,644 reviews)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Robert De Niro

24. The Other Guys (2010)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $116.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $198.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.7/10 (252,773 reviews)
Starring: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Derek Jeter

23. The Longest Yard (2005)

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Production budget: $117.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $273.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (169,218 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, Burt Reynolds, Chris Rock

22. Practical Magic (1998)

Practical Magic (1998) | Sandra Bullock in Practical Magic (1998)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $117.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $133.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.3/10 (76,176 reviews)
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Stockard Channing

21. Holy Man (1998)

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Production budget: $117.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $23.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.9/10 (19,653 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jeff Goldblum, Kelly Preston

20. 1941 (1979)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $118.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $351.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (32,543 reviews)
Starring: John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Treat Williams

19. Bandits (2001)

Source: Getty Images

Production budget: $121.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $116.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.5/10 (66,926 reviews)
Starring: Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Cate Blanchett

18. Land of the Lost (2009)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $122.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $84.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.3/10 (68,641 reviews)
Starring: Will Ferrell, Danny McBride, Anna Friel

17. Bruce Almighty (2003)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $123.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $735.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.8/10 (384,011 reviews)
Starring: Jim Carrey, Jennifer Aniston, Morgan Freeman

16. Mystery Men (1999)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $123.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $60.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (65,061 reviews)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy

15. Jingle All the Way (1996)

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Production budget: $124.3 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $269.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.6/10 (96,319 reviews)
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sinbad, Phil Hartman

14. Primary Colors (1998)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $127.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $76.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.7/10 (28,358 reviews)
Starring: John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Kathy Bates

13. Evolution (2001)

Source: Courtesy of DreamWorks Distribution

Production budget: $129.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $159.4 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (124,976 reviews)
Starring: David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Julianne Moore

12. Showtime (2002)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $134.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $124.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (61,864 reviews)
Starring: Robert De Niro, Eddie Murphy, Rene Russo

11. Life (1999)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $135.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $133.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.8/10 (48,079 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence, Obba Babatundé

10. Little Nicky (2000)

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

Production budget: $136.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $99.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.3/10 (101,788 reviews)
Starring: Adam Sandler, Patricia Arquette, Harvey Keitel

9. Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $142.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $282.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.4/10 (49,890 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Janet Jackson, Larry Miller

8. Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $150.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $144.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 4.5/10 (80,185 reviews)
Starring: LeBron James, Don Cheadle, Cedric Joe

7. Ghostbusters (2016)

Source: Christopher Polk / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images

Production budget: $152.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $242.5 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.5/10 (212,573 reviews)
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon

6. Haunted Mansion (2023)

Source: Eamonn M. McCormack / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images

Production budget: $157.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $75.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.3/10 (9,132 reviews)
Starring: LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson

5. The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $157.9 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $11.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 3.8/10 (25,354 reviews)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jay Mohr, Randy Quaid

4. Flubber (1997)

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Production budget: $159.7 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $355.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.3/10 (86,990 reviews)
Starring: Robin Williams, Marcia Gay Harden, Christopher McDonald

3. Fathers’ Day (1997)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Production budget: $169.6 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $71.2 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.3/10 (15,328 reviews)
Starring: Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, Julia Louis-Dreyfus

2. Fun with Dick and Jane (2005)

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Production budget: $200.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $290.1 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 6.2/10 (140,643 reviews)
Starring: Jim Carrey, Téa Leoni, Alec Baldwin

1. Evan Almighty (2007)

Evan Almighty (2007) | Morgan Freeman and Steve Carell in Evan Almighty (2007)

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Production budget: $233.0 million (inflation-adjusted)
Worldwide box office: $231.8 million (inflation-adjusted)
IMDb user rating: 5.4/10 (143,003 reviews)
Starring: Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman, Lauren Graham