Summary
- R-rated movies can be a box office hit, offering more creative freedom for actors and directors.
- The Hangover Part 2 was a surprising success despite poor critical reception for the unnecessary sequel.
- Logan and Deadpool proved that R-rated superhero movies can have a strong presence at the box office.
Studios should never underestimate the box office potential of an R-rated movie. What was once seen as a rating that would tank the potential gross of a movie, is now seen as a marketing bonus for the adults out there, allowing more curse words, foul actions, and violence to take the stage, where actors, directors, and writers can express their movies without worrying about appealing to children.
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To prove that R-rated movies are successful, it’s time to take a look at the highest-grossing R-rated movies of all time and see just where some classics and fan-favorites fit on the list. Whilst it might be obvious to see a superhero identity or two up on the list, it’s still interesting to see what makes for a highest-grossing movie in the R-rated category.
10 The Hangover Part 2
Worldwide Gross: $586,764,305
- Release Date: May 25, 2011
- Director: Todd Phillips
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 34%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 52%
The famed bachelor party in Las Vegas that involved Phil, Stu, and Alan trying to find Doug has come back to bite them, as this time around, they awaken in Thailand with no memory of the night before, and once again, no Doug. The trio of misfits have to explore the ins and outs of Thailand in this hilarious comedy that doesn’t hold back.
Despite poor reception, The Hangover Part 2 did absurdly well at the box office for a comedy. It’s surprising to see that the audience was clearly in attendance for the movie, considering it was regarded as a needless sequel, but it probably exists due to the instant classic status of the first movie.
9 The Passion of the Christ
Worldwide Gross: $612,060,372
- Release Date: February 25, 2004
- Director: Mel Gibson
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 49%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 80%
Mel Gibson takes the New Testament and creates a depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, expediting the downfall of Jesus through Judas’ lens. Jesus’ torture is for all to see, and his most passionate act of grace will be his final one in The Passion of the Christ.
For a time, The Passion of the Christ was the highest-grossing movie domestically, which isn’t surprising considering the faith of Christianity in America. Even with negative critical reactions, audiences were not deterred from seeing this telling of the Bible, and The Passion of the Christ did exceptionally well, especially for a 2004 movie.
8 Logan
Worldwide Gross: $619,180,476
- Release Date: March 1, 2017
- Director: James Mangold
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 94%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 90%
In the near future, Mutantkind is all but extinct, and an aging Logan (formerly Wolverine) spends his days caring for an ailing Professor X near the Mexican border. Coming into contact with a young and engineered Mutant, Logan is thrust into the role of a hero again, and for perhaps the last time, the Wolverine must unsheathe his claws to be the hero that he resents.
Logan is a tragic yet beautiful film, an epic and endearing finale to Hugh Jackman’s time as Wolverine. Hugh Jackman’s curtain call for the role of James Logan Howlett is wonderful, and the box office attributed to Logan can thank the bold story, incredible performance, and closure for Hugh Jackman, and Wolverine’s first R-rated movie allowing him to get loud and bloody.
7 It
Worldwide Gross: $704,242,888
- Release Date: September 6, 2017
- Director: Andy Muschietti
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 85%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 84%
Reminisce on the Summer of 1989, when a group of bullied children band together to uncover the mystery of child disappearances in the small Maine town of Derry and try and forget the terrifying Pennywise the Clown, a shape-shifting monster that preys on fear and eats the youth.
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Everyone loves a good horror story, and it seems like Stephen King is the man for the job. With his It story hitting the big screen with Part One, audiences amassed to get freaked out further by clowns from the heavily marketed and secret performance of Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise. It was a scary bundle of fun for sure.
6 The Matrix Reloaded
Worldwide Gross: $741,847,937
Release Date: May 15, 2003
Director: Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 73%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 72%
Return to the Matrix, where Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus risk their lives to lead a revolt against the machines that have enslaved the minds and bodies of humanity into a simulation. With extraordinary skills or martial arts and guns, Neo must uncover his pivotal role in freeing mankind.
The Matrix was truly revolutionary when it came to cinema and the theory of existence. The Matrix has heavily influenced thought and pop culture, so it’s no surprise to see just how well The Matrix Reloaded did when the first film was so beloved. A return of Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus, and the promise of a concluding part three were all people needed to turn up for this sci-fi and kung-fu-infused epic.
5 Deadpool
Worldwide Gross: $782,837,347
- Release Date: February 9, 2016
- Director: Tim Miller
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 85%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 90%
Wade Wilson is a wisecracking mercenary who is manipulated into becoming a tortured experiment in a vulnerable lie to cure his cancer. In a quest for revenge and to get the girl he lost, a hideously scarred and now immortal Wade Wilson dons a red costume and dubs himself Deadpool, a fourth-wall-breaking merc with a penchant for drugs, foul humor, and plenty of violence.
Deadpool was lightning in a bottle, and the risk that comic book movies needed, especially under the 20th Century Fox umbrella. Deadpool was perfect for the character, and audiences made that clear. It’s funny to think just how successful Deadpool is now as a franchise when Fox initially shelved the idea of a Deadpool movie in the first place. Word of mouth, hilarious jokes, meta-commentaries in the superhero genre, and low-budgeted stories with a hundred hearts are what made Deadpool so successful.
4 Deadpool 2
Worldwide Gross: $785,896,632
- Release Date: May 16, 2018
- Director: David Leitch
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 84%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 85%
Deadpool returns, but this time, with more emotion than ever. Not only is he furious that Wolverine died, but he also has to deal with the regret and grief of the loss of his own girlfriend. Now with no one, Deadpool must rely on the X-Men to find purpose again.
A bigger budget and bigger cast help Deadpool return to the big-screen, and earn more money in the process. Deadpool 2 did better than its predecessor, and there are probably a few reasons why. Not only was it the same year as Infinity War, but it was also after the death of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, so the superhero hype had never been higher or more intense, so Deadpool 2 really helped to bring forth humor to lighten the mood whilst still keeping the spandex in-tact.
3 Deadpool & Wolverine
Worldwide Gross: $903,315,851 (As of August 9)
- Release Date: July 18, 2024
- Director: Shawn Levy
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 78%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 96%
Deadpool is brought into the MCU thanks to the Time Variance Authority, who informs him that his world is dying, and there’s nothing he can do to save it. In an effort to defy the fate of his world, Deadpool ventures through the multiverse to find a Wolverine capable of saving the world and curing his existential crisis.
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Deadpool & Wolverine is extremely exciting, and a roller coaster of fun. The jokes land, the chemistry between Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman is like no other, and the cameos from other Marvel characters past and present are brilliant. The box office is still ongoing, but it’s no surprise to see it rise. It’s the best Marvel movie since Avengers: Endgame, and the return of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine is always welcomed.
Deadpool & Wolverine is still in theaters, so the MCU movie still has the potential to be the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time.
2 Oppenheimer
Worldwide Gross: $975,297,660
- Release Date: July 19, 2023
- Director: Christopher Nolan
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 93%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 91%
The biopic of J. Robert Oppenheimer details his life as an American scientist during the development of the atomic bomb, which was arguably the most pivotal creation in modern science and warfare. Oppenheimer deals with the consequences of nuclear weaponry, and the petty spout between Lewis Strauss and Oppenheimer that destroyed both their lives.
The fact that the second highest-grossing movie of all time is a biopic about J. Robert Oppenheimer is absurdly impressive. Christopher Nolan is like no other, and audiences loved the movie for its nuclear anxieties, tense scenes, beautiful imagery, performances, and perhaps even the friendly cinema competition of Barbenheimer, which saw Barbie and Oppenheimer released on the same day.
1 Joker
Worldwide Gross: $1,078,958,629
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- Release Date: October 2, 2019
- Director: Todd Phillips
- Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 69%
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 89%
Gotham City can be a lonely place, and one of its victims is Arthur Fleck, a vulnerable and mentally ill loner who just wants to be somebody. His career as a clown is failing, and his desire to be a comedian is even deeper in the gutter. Yet, Arthur begins to find comfort and his true identity when madness begins to take hold of him.
Nobody can doubt Joker’s presence and power as one of the greatest villains of all time, since a solo movie about Elseworld origins almost made more money than The Dark Knight. The factors that contributed to Joker’s success are unusual. Was it a good story? A beautiful soundtrack? Riveting performances? Or cautionary tales of mental illness and loneliness that drove people to theaters?
Source: Box Office Mojo