The 10 Biggest Movies of 2022

Dec 31, 20220351

After two shaky years, the global box office sprung back to life in 2022, with audiences returning to cinemas. For the first time since the pandemic, three movies reached $1 billion at the global box office, and most of the top ten are made up of sequels. While it stole the hearts of millions this year, RRR sadly didn’t make the top 10 of biggest movies of the year, but it deserves a mention as it brought a wealth of new fans to Telugu movies, and it’s awesome. So, without further delay, here are the 10 highest grossing films of 2022.

10. Moon Men $460,237,662

The first of two Chinese movies to make the top ten, this science fiction comedy film was co-written and directed by Zhang Chiyu and told the story of an astronaut unexpectedly on the moon. However, his chances of rescue become reduced when an asteroid destroys the earth, leaving him as the last person in existence.

9. The Battle at Lake Changjin II aka Water Gate Bridge $626,571,697

The sequel to the 2021 film The Battle at Lake Changjin scored a massive opening weekend earlier this year, even though it didn’t manage to surpass the box office of the original, it still claims ninth place.

8. Thor Love and Thunder $760,928,081

In what might be the biggest Marvel misfire of the year, while it was full of neat bits (Christian Bale on full bad-guy mode making the most of limited screen time), the overall tilt to near parody levels of comedy was a tad much. Was it as bad as The Dark World? No, but it didn’t build on Thor’s development that spanned Ragnarok, Infinity War and Endgame.

7. The Batman $770,836,163

Matt Reeves’ take on the iconic character gave us the first of three outstanding performances from Colin Farrell (the other being After Yang and The Banshees of Inisherin), and a surprisingly good Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne/Batman.

6. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever* $808,448,513

While it’s still out in cinemas, the looming Disney+ release means the sequel to Black Panther will fall short of its predecessor. Ryan Coogler’s epic follow-up has the difficult task of addressing the death of its leading man, Cooglar’s heartfelt film is a tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman, featuring an Oscar-worthy performance from Angela Bassett.

5. Minions Rise of Gru $939,433,210

Another belated sequel/prequel to Despicable Me saw audiences show up, some of them were dressed in suits to mark the occasion as they were mere children when the franchise started. After five movies, you might think the franchise had run its course, but with Despicable Me 4 on the way and Minions 3 in development. This franchise isn’t going anywhere.

4. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness $955,775,804

Marvel’s highest-grossing movie of the year saw the long-awaited return of Sam Raimi to the world of Marvel. In fairness, the utterly inspired Everything Everywhere All At Once is the true Multiverse of Madness of 2022; now that was a good movie, brimming with ideas, teaming with heart, and filled with unexpected moments. Sorry, I got sidetracked; Doctor Strange’s second solo adventure was a box office high Marvel was unable to match for the rest of the year.

3. Jurassic World: Dominion $1,001,136,080

The return of OG cast members Laura Dern, Sam Neil, and Jeff Goldblum helped the third and final Jurassic World sequel end on a high, at least in box office terms. While it’s the lowest-grossing in the revived trilogy, it just about managed to cross the $1 billion mark, which is a considerable achievement.

2. Avatar The Way of Water* $1,168,717,914

Even though it has only been out for a couple of weeks, the long-awaited sequel to James Cameron’s Avatar has become the second biggest movie of the year. While it will overtake Top Gun Maverick throughout its run, the end of 2022 books will read that The Way of Water took second place.

1. Top Gun Maverick $1,488,732,821

If you thought the 13-year wait for Avatar 2 was long, that’s a walk in the park compared to the 36 years fans waited to see Tom Cruise back as Maverick. At a time when movie studios were finding new ways to release their big films, Top Gun Maverick delayed its release several times, and it was more than worth the wait. We laughed, we cried, and we felt slightly sick after watching it on an IMAX screen, here’s hoping we don’t have to wait another 36 years for the next instalment.