Worldwide gross figures have been rounded up or down to the nearest million or billion dollars and are sourced from Box Office Mojo.
By and large, 2024 proved to be an excellent year for cinema across the board. Thebest movies of 2024boasted a diverse lineup of genres and styles from familiar faces and new upstarts alike, featuring everything from spectacular sci-fi epics and riotous action comedies all the way to wickedly satirical body horrors and smash-hit musicals. Among the year’s best cinematic offerings, 2024 also played host to a number of standout moviesequels that beat their predecessors at the box office.
Whether the movie in question was the latest outing in an up-and-coming series, or a seemingly long-dead franchise triumphantly shaking off the cobwebs years after the original debuted, a number of 2024’s most prominent sequels shattered box office records despite receiving mixed reviews from fans and critics. In a world where many superb movies never receive asequel despite deserving one, this may seem desperately unfair, but serves to underline the inescapable fact that commercial returns will always trump critical acclaim in Hollywood.
Terrifier 3
Cast
Terrifier 3 follows Sienna and her brother as they attempt to move past the traumatic events of Art the Clown’s Halloween massacre. As they embrace the Christmas season, Art reemerges, intent on turning their holiday into a nightmare, continuing his reign of terror.
The third installment in Damien Leone’sTerrifiermovie franchise, 2024’sTerrifier 3continued the supernatural slasher film series' remarkable run of critical and commercial success.Chronicling the return of David Howard Thornton’s Art the Clown against the backdrop of the Christmas holidays,Terrifier 3received glowing reviews, clocking in with an impressiveRotten Tomatoes scoreof 78% after premiering at Fantastic Fest in September.
Terrifier 3 Box Office Climbs 2024’s Highest-Grossing Movies List While Just $5M Behind Joker 2’s Spot
A new box office update reveals that Terrifier 3 has passed yet another milestone, with the horror flick just $5 million from passing Joker 2’s spot.
However, the 2024 film wasn’t just an unlikely critics' darling. MakingTerrifier 2’sworldwide gross of $15.7 million look like chump change,Terrifier 3earned just under $89 millionat the box office worldwide against a paltry budget of a little over $2 million. Quadrupling its predecessor’s financial returns with a considerable amount of change left over, Leone’s chaotically violent picture was one of the highest-grossing horror movies of 2024.
9Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram
Worldwide Gross: $108 Million
The twenty-seventh installment in the JapaneseCase Closedfilm series,Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagramis conceivably the most successful movie of 2024 that most casual cinema-goers won’t have heard of.An animated mystery offering from Chika Nagoaka chronicling the latest adventures of the titular character,The Million-Dollar Pentagramreceived largely mixed reviews from critics.
The firstCase Closedmovie,Case Closed: The Time Bombed Skyscraper, debuted in Japanese theaters in 1997.
Fortunately for the team behind the film, these misgivings did not translate into the movie’s titanic commercial returns. Nagoaka’s picturegrossed more than $108 millionworldwide; an even more impressive state of affairs given the film’s more limited audience. Just eclipsing its predecessorDetective Conan: Black Iron Submarine’sworldwide gross of $106 million,The Million-Dollar Pentagramlanded as the highest-grossing Japanese movie of 2024, as well as the mostcommercially successfulCase Closedmovieever made.
8Alien: Romulus
Worldwide Gross: $351 Million
A standalone spin-off sequel set between the events ofAlienandAliens, 2024’sAlien: Romulusproved to be a glorious return to the silver screen for one of sci-fi horror’s most beloved franchises.Evil Deaddirector Fede Álvarez’s foray into the storied series followssix young colonists who encounter the Xenomorphs aboard a derelict spaceship.The film received excellent reviews, with some going as far as to label the director’s efforts as the bestAlienmovie since 1986’sAliens.
Unsurprisingly,Alien: Romulusproduced the box office returns to match the film’s laundry list of glowing reviews, with Alvarez’s pictureraking in $351 millionupon release in August.Alien: Romulusbears the lofty accolade as the second highest-grossing outing in the entireAlienfranchise, trumped only by the eye-watering $402 million turned in by 2012’s prequel story,Prometheus.Furthermore, the Cailee Spenny-led offering ended the year as thehighest-grossing horror movie of 2024.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is the sequel to the original Tim Burton classic that starred Michael Keaton and Wynona Rider in a horror-comedy that involved ghosts trying to scare off new homebuyers from taking their house. The sequel brings back Michael Keaton as the hilarious and sleazy ghost with selfish intentions, now joined by Jenna Ortega in a new role.
The follow-up outing to 1988’sBeetlejuice, Tim Burton’s 2024 horror-comedyBeetlejuice Beetlejuicesaw Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder reprise their roles from the original to a fanfare of positive feedback.Chronicling Betelgeuse’s return as he reappears in Lydia Deetz’s life,Beetlejuice Beetlejuicereceived similarly positive reviewsto the original movie, courtesy of Burton’s inimitable style of direction and a memorable lead performance from Keaton as the titular character.
83%
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice(2024)
76%
Earning a whopping $84.6 million against a budget of $15 million,Beetlejuicewas a veritable success story from a commercial perspective, but still paled in comparison to 2024’s follow-up outing.Beetlejuice Beetlejuicetook home an enormous worldwide gross ofmore than $451 million, justifying the sequel’s considerable budget of approximately $100 million and cementing its status as one of the year’s standout cinematic offerings.
Kung Fu Panda 4
Kung Fu Panda 4 is the fourth film in the animated martial arts adventure franchise. The film will see Po leave his home and enter the city to search for his future Dragon Warrior replacement while dealing with a dangerous shapeshifting foe known as The Chameleon.
Featuring the return of Jack Black as the titular character following a hiatus of more than eight years,Kung Fu Panda 4chronicles Po’s efforts to train a new Dragon Warrior and defeat apowerful new villain; an evil shape-shifting sorceress known as the Chameleon. The movie received generally positive reviews from critics, despite an inescapable sensation that the long-running animated martial arts comedy franchise had largely begun to run out of steam.
2011’sKung Fu Panda 2is the highest-grossing entry in the franchise with a worldwide gross of more than $665 million.
With that being said,Kung Fu Panda 4’senviable box office success is an extremely strong indication that audiences haven’t seen the last of Po just yet. The movie took homenearly $548 million worldwideagainst a budget of $85 million, eclipsingKung Fu Panda 3’sreturn of $521 million. However, despite landing as the eighth-highest-grossing movie of 2024,Kung Fu Panda 4is only the third-highest-grossing entry in the series, highlighting the franchise’s stratospheric commercial returns in sharp relief.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire unites iconic monsters Godzilla and Kong in a colossal confrontation. As these ancient titans clash, humans delve into their shared origins and explore the enigmatic secrets of Skull Island.
The fifth film in theMonsterversefranchisedepicting the titular behemoths' efforts to defeat the malevolent ape, Skar King,Godzilla x Kong: The New Empireserves as the sequel to 2021’sGodzilla vs. Kong.Adam Wingard’s picture garnered an approval rating of just 54% on Rotten Tomatoes, with many arguing that the film didn’t present anything compelling outside its blockbuster visual effects and monster-on-monster action sequences.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empireproved to be a monster hit at the box office, raking in more than $572 million globally to trumpGodzilla x Kong’searnings by more than $100 million.
However, as is often the case in cinema, this state of affairs didn’t prove to be a stumbling block from a commercial perspective. Boasting a stunningopening weekend at the box office,Godzilla x Kong: The New Empireproved to be a monster hit. The movie raked inmore than $572 millionglobally, trumpingGodzilla x Kong’searnings by more than $100 million. Wingard’s picture ended 2024 as the seventh-highest-grossing movie of the year, as well as theMonsterverse’smost commercially successful endeavor to date.
Dune: Part Two
Dune: Part Two continues the epic saga of Paul Atreides as he allies with Chani and the Fremen. Pursuing retribution for his family’s devastation, Paul grapples with a significant decision impacting his personal desires and the universe’s future, attempting to avert a dire destiny that only he anticipates.
The sequel to 2021’sDune, it speaks volumes to the wave of acclaim received by 2024’sDune: Part Twothat the film is already being touted as one of thebest movie sequels of all time.Chronicling Paul Atreides' crusade to retake the desert world of Arrakis from House Harkonnen,Denis Villeneuve’s movie received rave reviews from critics, with the vast majority labeling the sci-fi epic as superior to its predecessor across the board.
This enviable state of affairs was decidedly not limited to the sequel’s reviews. WhileDune’sworldwide gross of $408 million was nothing to sniff at,Dune: Part Twoblew its predecessor out of the water with a jaw-dropping global return ofmore than $714 million. Landing as the fifth-highest-grossing movie of 2024, Villeneuve’s sequel stands as one of the most impressive sophomore attempts in cinematic history.
Moana 2
Moana 2 is the sequel to the 2016 animated film Moana. Directed by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, the film continues the journey of Moana as she embarks on new adventures, exploring the vast Pacific Ocean while encountering new characters and challenges along the way.
Picking up the story three years after the events of 2016’sMoana, 2024’sMoana 2saw the majority of the original film’s cast reprise their roles against the backdrop ofa hunt for the mysterious lost island of Motufetu.However, in contrast to the first movie,Moana 2received considerably more mixed reviews from critics, with many deeming the follow-up outing as inferior to the original across the board.
Ending 2024 as the fourth highest-grossing movie of the year just behindDespicable Me 4, the animated musical adventure offering grossed more than $960 million worldwide…
With that being said, a lukewarm critical response had absolutely zero bearing onMoana 2’sstratospheric box office results. Landing as the fourth-highest-grossing movie of the year just behindDespicable Me 4, the animated musical adventure offering earned nearly $300 million more thanMoana’sreturn of $687 million, almost a decade after the original debuted. By the time the curtain had rolled on 2024,Moana 2had grossedmore than $960 million worldwide.
Deadpool & Wolverine
A follow-up to the highly successful Deadpool and Deadpool 2 films starring Ryan Reynolds as the Merc with a Mouth. The third film will be the first in the franchise to be developed under the Marvel Studios banner following Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox.
Following a six-year hiatus for popular culture’s favorite foul-mouthed mercenary,Deadpool & Wolverineproved to be a much-needed shot in the arm for the flagging MCU. Ryan Reynold’s third appearance as Deadpool saw himjoin forces with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine to save the worldin one of the best action-comedies in recent memory, with the nostalgia-tinged buddy-superhero effort garnering a respectable approval rating of 78% on Rotten Tomatoes to match the movie’s tidal wave of fanbase acclaim.
Deadpool(2016
$783 Million
Carrying on the proud tradition of its predecessors,Deadpool & WolverinetoppledJokerandOppenheimerto become thehighest-grossing R-rated movieof all time in short order; a top five that incidentally features every singleDeadpoolmovie. Shawn Levy’s picture also obliterated predecessorDeadpool 2’sglobal return of $785 million, flexing an eye-watering worldwidegross of more than $1.3 billionas 2024 drew to a close.
Inside Out 2
Inside Out 2 is the sequel to the 2015 original film, which starred a young girl named Riley with a head full of emotions. - literally. With Amy Pohler as Joy, Bill Hader as fear, Mindy Kaling as Disgust, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, and Lewis Black as Anger, the all-star cast brought to life the emotions that adolescents face as they grow, change, and adapt to new situations. This sequel, currently in development, will bring Amy Pohler back as Joy, with Riley, now a teenager.
The sequel to 2015’sInside Out,Kelsey Mann’sInside Out 2has proved to be an unmitigated success story that highlights why Pixar is reversing itslong-held stance on sequels. An animated coming-of-age story depicting an array of personified emotions housed in a young girl’s mind, the movie boasts an ensemble cast including the likes of Amy Poehler, Maya Hawke, and Lewis Black. Mann’s picture received glowing reviews, butInside Out 2’scritical accolades pale in comparison to the movie’s commercial laurels.
Inside Out 2 Broke The Second Longest Box Office Streak In Recorded History With Rare Animated Movie Accomplishment
Inside Out 2 is the highest-grossing movie of 2024 by a wide margin, and it’s the first animated film to top the year’s box office in a long time.
The original 2015 installment earned more than $850 million worldwide; a staggering return in any other context that didn’t even come close to making a dint in the sequel’s final tally ofnearly $1.7 billion worldwide. In addition to easilybeating its predecessor at the box office in 2024,Inside Out 2was the highest-grossing movie of the year, as well as the highest-grossing animated film of all time.
