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Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Matthew Lewis as Neville Longbottom, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley in HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX (2007).
© Warner Bros. Pictures'

HARRY POTTER #1 Franchise of All Time

By: Jarrod Sarafin, News Editor
Date: Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Source: Warner Bros

You can bet there's a few Warner Bros executives with smiles the past few days as one of their top money makers hit the much coveted top spot. Yes, the HARRY POTTER franchise is now the top-grossing motion picture franchise in history surpassing 21 Bond films together and 6 Star Wars films (previous record holder). With the highly successful HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX, the franchise of films has garnered 4.47 billion in cash. All 5 films featuring the young wizard with friends are in the top 20 highest grossing films of all time category as well. They now that top spot with two more films scheduled for release, HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF BLOOD PRINCE (November 21, 2008 Release) & HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS (2010 Release).

Here's WB reaction to it through a press release:

In making the announcement, Alan Horn said, "It would be an understatement to say we are proud of the success of the 'Harry Potter' films. We also want to congratulate all of the extraordinary actors, filmmakers and artists who have shared this remarkable cinematic journey with us."

Dan Fellman, Warner Bros. Pictures President of Domestic Distribution, said, "It is a thrill to see the 'Harry Potter' franchise reach this unparalleled mark, and, with two movies yet to come, it is amazing to think what heights the franchise could reach by the end of the decade.

Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, Warner Bros. Pictures President of International Distribution, added, "This worldwide box office record once again proves that the appeal of the 'Harry Potter' movies knows no border, no age limit, and no language barrier. Each of the five films has captured the hearts and sparked the imagination of audiences everywhere."

The Special Edition DVD release for Order hits shelves on HD-DVD, DVD & Blu-Ray on December 11, 2007.

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Comments/Responses

jamesdalton • Sep 11, 2007, 05:41am •

RIDDIKULUS!

drvertigo • Sep 11, 2007, 06:42am •

Holy crap. I knew this would happen sooner or later, but it's amazing that they've already surpassed Star Wars with one less film, and James Bond's ***21*** films put together!

snallygaster • Sep 11, 2007, 06:51am •

I wonder if Lucas will decide to complete the third Star Wars trilogy in order to reclaim the top position... or maybe just re-release the existing six movies with a new gimmick (in digital 3-D perhaps).

metalwater • Sep 11, 2007, 06:58am •

Potter only won by default!!! Other movie franchises like Star Wars, Superman, Batman and Star Trek have all been horribly mis-managed over the years...and of late, the Lord Of The Rings franchise has been insnared in needless trouble. The future of the franchise has been mis-managed over the studio's stupid fight over profits with Peter Jackson!!!

kempmike79 • Sep 11, 2007, 07:16am •

Harry Potter hasn't won by default at all. You can't take the credit away by saying other people weren't as good - give credit where credit is due!

The way to take the credit away is this - surely Star Wars (and possibly Bond as well) has taken more money after allowing for inflation etc? Box office records are set all the time as the price of tickets keeps going up. A fairer way to lllok at it would be to ask how many tickets were sold, rather than adding the price of the tickets together.

In saying that, though, it is useful to know how much money was brought in against the budget when trying to ascertain how successful a film was, relative to its aspirations.

metalwater • Sep 11, 2007, 07:26am •

Garbage!!! Lucas' latest so-called Star Wars Trilogy was a mess...and I only saw one of the three movies in a threatre, the rest I saw on video and DVD...that's how lousy they were.

When the first Trilogy came out...ast least the first two movies, I repeatedly went back to a theatre to see them. Now, how many of you can say that for the prequel trilogy??? I now some people who saw the original Star Wars 25 times or more. but the new films, most people just weren't coming back for repeat viewings!!! However, I'm betting they were for the Potter films!!!

My point??? I find Potter boring and kiddie-fied, but it was better contructed than the Star Wars prequels in terms of quality control from start to finish...hence what I mean by mis-management on the part of George Lucas. If he had done a great job on the prequels, this would be no contest between Star Wars and the sissy-fied Nancy Boy driven Harry Potter films. The same is true of Batman and Superman...and their respective mis-managed film franchises...and we all know it!!!

SpideyBD • Sep 11, 2007, 07:46am •

I am sorry Lucas has never nor will be a good director or writer. His original trilogy was great because it was fresh and new. Up until then there was nothing like it. His new prequel trilogy was only amazing to mostly kids because this time was catered for them. Harry Potter was fresh and new too like the original star wars. I like HP and I give them the credit they deserve.

SpideyBD • Sep 11, 2007, 07:53am •

@metelwater

The reason for the mis-management on star wars was because George called ALL the shots as far as the writing and story telling. Thats why it evident he is a horrible writer/director. Great business man but thats it.

conman • Sep 11, 2007, 08:44am •

Adjusting for inflation is not a bad thought. I saw someone did that not that long ago for the Bond series and, as I recall, Thunderball and Moonraker were ranked above Brosnan's movies

snallygaster • Sep 11, 2007, 09:18am •

Here's the top 100 box office performers of all time, adjusted for inflation:

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm

Gone with the Wind is still tops, with Star Wars coming in number two.

I think Star Wars would still be the number one series after adjusted for inflation - all six SW movies are in that top 100 list, but only the first Potter movie.

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