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The 40 Most Lucrative Movie Characters of All Time

The 40 Most Lucrative Movie Characters of All Time

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Along with dramatic tension and vivid scenes, creating memorable characters is crucial for filmmakers. Whether hero or villain, if personalities are compelling enough, audiences eagerly return to follow their new adventures.

Popularity doesn’t require being virtuous. Per Guinness Records, cinema’s most recurrent character is Dracula – portrayals span over 200 films since the silent era, plus 40+ TV series, with two new movies coming this year.

Other famous baddies driving box office success are Shere Khan, the murderous tiger in Disney’s The Jungle Book and its sequels, and Gru, the grumpy supervillain from Despicable Me. Though evil, both animated characters’ inherent appeal keeps fans coming back. (Click here to discover the 20 best animated films of all time.)

In order to compile a list of the 40 highest grossing movie characters of all time, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data from the film industry site The Numbers, ranking characters according to an index based on the domestic box office gross of the movies they appear in and the extent of their participation in those movies.

No one will be surprised to find such iconic film figures as Shrek, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, Rocky Balboa, Captain Jack Sparrow, Batman, or Luke Skywalker on the roster, but it’s nice to also find the forgetful blue tang named Dory from the Finding Nemo films represented.

Here are highest grossing movie characters of all time:

40. John McClane

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
  • Domestic box office value added: $414.0 million
  • Top grossing movie: Live Free or Die Hard (2007)

39. Dory

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $457.8 million
  • Top grossing movie: Finding Dory (2016)

38. Jack Ryan

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $478.4 million
  • Top grossing movie: Clear and Present Danger (1994)

37. Logan/Wolverine

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
  • Domestic box office value added: $483.9 million
  • Top grossing movie: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

36. Jack Byrnes

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $494.6 million
  • Top grossing movie: Meet the Fockers (2004)

35. Axel Foley

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $515.3 million
  • Top grossing movie: Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

34. Obi-Wan Kenobi

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $519.3 million
  • Top grossing movie: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

33. Martin Riggs

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $524.4 million
  • Top grossing movie: Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

32. Jason Bourne

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $532.2 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

31. Neo

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $546.5 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

30. Shere Khan

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion
  • Domestic box office value added: $549.9 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Jungle Book (2016)

29. Buzz Lightyear

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $575.3 million
  • Top grossing movie: Toy Story 4 (2019)

28. Ron Weasley

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $578.6 million
  • Top grossing movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II (2011)

27. Cruella de Vil

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Distribution Company

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Distribution Company
  • Domestic box office value added: $589.2 million
  • Top grossing movie: 101 Dalmatians (1961)

26. Gru

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $591.0 million
  • Top grossing movie: Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022)

25. Captain Jack Sparrow

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $601.6 million
  • Top grossing movie: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)

24. Cinderella

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $628.8 million
  • Top grossing movie: Shrek the Third (2007)

23. Superman

Superman | Henry Cavill in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $713.7 million
  • Top grossing movie: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

22. Bella Swan

Source: Courtesy of Summit Distribution

Source: Courtesy of Summit Distribution
  • Domestic box office value added: $728.8 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)

21. Sam Witwicky

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $760.6 million
  • Top grossing movie: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

20. Snow White

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $825.7 million
  • Top grossing movie: Shrek the Third (2007)

19. Owen Grady

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Universal Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $837.2 million
  • Top grossing movie: Jurassic World (2015)

18. Frodo Baggins

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema

Source: Courtesy of New Line Cinema
  • Domestic box office value added: $926.4 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

17. Katniss Everdeen

Source: Courtesy of Lionsgate

Source: Courtesy of Lionsgate
  • Domestic box office value added: $937.7 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

16. Moses

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $954.3 million
  • Top grossing movie: The Ten Commandments (1956)

15. Dominic Toretto

Source: Kevin Winter / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images

Source: Kevin Winter / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
  • Domestic box office value added: $989.9 million
  • Top grossing movie: Furious 7 (2015)

14. Ethan Hunt

Ethan Hunt | Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.0 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018)

13. Shrek

Source: Courtesy of DreamWorks Distribution

Source: Courtesy of DreamWorks Distribution
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.0 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Shrek 2 (2004)

12. Woody

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.0 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Toy Story 4 (2019)

11. Thor

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.1 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Avengers: Endgame (2019)

10. Pinocchio

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.1 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)

9. Rocky Balboa

Source: Courtesy of MGM/UA Entertainment Company

Source: Courtesy of MGM/UA Entertainment Company
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.1 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Rocky IV (1985)

8. Indiana Jones

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.3 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

7. Han Solo

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.4 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Star Wars Ep. VII: The Force Awakens (2015)

6. Harry Potter

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.5 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II (2011)

5. Peter Parker/Spider-Man

Source:

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.7 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Avengers: Endgame (2019)

4. Batman/Bruce Wayne

Batman/Bruce Wayne | Michael Keaton in Batman (1989)
Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

N/A

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.8 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Batman (1989)

3. Tony Stark/Iron Man

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $1.9 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Avengers: Endgame (2019)

2. Luke Skywalker

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $2.2 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Star Wars Ep. VII: The Force Awakens (2015)

1. James Bond

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
  • Domestic box office value added: $2.9 billion
  • Top grossing movie: Skyfall (2012)
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