Everyone has their own opinion when it comes what the best Christmas movie of all time is, it can be a very personal thing and can be dependent on many factors.
What’s interesting is to look at is which Christmas movies have done the best at the box office. It might be surprising to learn that beloved films such as The Muppet Christmas Carol (37th place with $27.28 million unadjusted) and Miracle on 34th Street (42nd place with $17.32 million unadjusted) don’t place highly.
So, what are the 25 top Holiday movies of all time at the U.S. box office to date? It’s been a few years since I last took a look at this and, thanks to the likes of A Bad Mom’s Christmas among others, a few have been bumped out of the top 25 – goodbye Krampus, The Night Before, Arthur Christmas, The Preacher’s Wife, and The Nativity Story. And for argument’s sake, I have not included the likes of Gremlins or Die Hard.
All figures reflect the domestic box office and have not been adjusted for inflation
25. This Christmas (Screen Gems) 2007
Final Box Office: $49.12 million
You might not have heard of this, a festive musical-comedy-drama based on the 1970 Donny Hathaway song of the same name, but the cast is impressive boasting Idris Elba, Delroy Lindo, Regina King, and Chris Brown. It tells the story about the Whitfield family, whose eldest has come home for the first time in four years. It was kept off the top of the box office charts by Disney’s Enchanted.
24. The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (Disney) 2018
Box Office: $50.05 million (As of 12/02/18)
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms has so far grossed over $129 million worldwide against a production budget around $132.9 million which isn’t great. The film’s stars include Keira Knightley, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman. The ambitious fantasy didn’t get much love from critics although it did get praise for its impressive visuals.
23. Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas (Lionsgate) 2007
Final Box Office: $52.54 million
This is the first Christmas themed film from Perry and adapted from his play of the same name. This was the seventeenth film by the writer-director and the eighth in the Madea franchise. A Madea Christmas was panned by critics and has a paltry score of just 18% on Rotten Tomatoes. It went on to make less than $1 million outside of the domestic market.
22. Office Christmas Party (Paramount) 2016
Final Box Office: $54.77 million
This bawdy offering boasts an ensemble cast that includes Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Kate McKinnon, Olivia Munn, T. J. Miller, and Jillian Bell. The R-rated comedy grossed $114 million worldwide against a $45 million budget but failed to secure the honor of being considered a classic and is now widely overlooked during the festive season.
21. Bad Santa (Dimension) 2003
Final Box Office: $60.06 million
Bad Santa grossed over $60 million domestically, more than $76 million worldwide and has become a holiday classic. Jack Nicholson and Bill Murray were both interested in playing the role of Willie but were committed to other projects, so the job went to Billy Bob Thornton. A sequel, Bad Santa 2, was released on November 23, 2016, to mixed reviews and lackluster box office.
20. Scrooged (Paramount) 1988
Final Box Office: $60.33 million
Now considered a festive gem, Scrooged was only a moderate box office hit taking in $13.027 million on its opening weekend and going on to become the 13th highest-grossing film of 1988 finishing with $60.33 million. Richard Donner directed Bill Murray in the lead role as the Ebenezer Scrooge-esque Frank Cross while Danny Elfman provided the score.
19. Jingle All The Way (Fox) 1996
Final Box Office: $60.59 million
Inspired by real-life Christmas toy sell-outs for products such as the Cabbage Patch Kids and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Arnold Schwarzenegger played one of two rival fathers, both desperately trying to get a Turbo-Man action figure for their respective sons on a last-minute shopping spree on Christmas Eve. Critics didn’t approve, but audiences lapped it up.
18. The Best Man Holiday (Universal) 2013
Final Box Office: $70.52 million
Starring Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Morris Chestnut, Regina Hall and Terrence Howard, and coming 14 years after The Best Man, this festive tale debuted with a $10.7 million Friday – that saw it beat Thor: The Dark World for the top box office spot of that day and went on to be the number two film of the weekend with $30.6 million. A third film in the series, The Best Man Wedding, was announced in 2014 but is currently on hold.
17. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Warner Bros) 1989
Final Box Office: $71.31 million
Written by John Hughes, based on his short story in National Lampoon magazine, “Christmas ’59,” Christmas Vacation is considered a modern Christmas classic. Despite getting mixed reviews from critics, it debuted in second place at the box-office behind Back to the Future Part II with a take of $11.75 million. Oddly, the film was released in UK cinemas in the middle of the summer in 1990.
16. Fred Claus (Warner Bros) 2007
Final Box Office: $72 million
Loosely based on Donald Henkel’s poem “A legend of Santa and his brother Fred,” Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti play Fred and Nicholas Claus respectively. Overall, Fred Claus was received poorly by critics, resulting in a 21% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, but it still managed to secure a worldwide gross of $97.84 million.
15. A Bad Moms Christmas (STX) 2017
Final Box Office: $73.11 million
Made for $28 million, this comedy sequel grossed $130 million worldwide. A Bad Moms Christmas follows the three moms from the first film (Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, and Kathryn Hahn) as they deal with their mothers (Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines, and Susan Sarandon) who are visiting during the Christmas holiday. It wasn’t great.
14. Christmas with the Kranks (Sony) 2004
Final Box Office: $73.78 million
Based on the 2001 novel Skipping Christmas by John Grisham, it starred Tim Allen, who was no stranger to holiday movies thanks to The Santa Clause films, and Jamie Lee Curtis. Critics hated this film that revolves around a couple who decide to skip Christmas one year since their daughter is away, but things change at the last minute.
13. Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas (Disney) 1993
Final Box Office: $75.08 million
The Nightmare Before Christmas was met with both critical and financial success and is the first stop-motion animated feature to be entirely converted to 3D. It earned $50 million domestically on its first theatrical run, a further $8.7 million in box office gross in its 2006 reissue and the 2007 and 2008 reissues earned $14.5 million and $1.1 million, respectively, increasing the film’s total box office gross to just over $75 million. It recently celebrated its 25th anniversary at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California.
12. The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (Disney) 2006
Final Box Office: $84.5 million
Critics had little love for The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, the third and final installment in The Santa Clause trilogy. Tim Allen reprised his role as Scott Calvin/Santa Claus. The first two films topped the box office on their openings weekends, but this one didn’t – Borat beat it.
11. Daddy’s Home 2 (Paramount) 2017
Final Box Office: $104.03 million
The comedy sequel reunited the original’s Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg and added John Lithgow and Mel Gibson. It didn’t get great reviews, but that did little to hurt it at the box office – it grossed over $180 million worldwide on a $70 million budget. That said, the film’s ticket sales fell seriously short of Daddy’s Home’s $242.8 million in 2015.
10. Four Christmases (Warner Bros) 2008
Final Box Office: $120.15 million
Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon are a couple visiting all four of their divorced parents’ homes on Christmas Day. The Hollywood Reporter called the film “one of the most joyless Christmas movies ever.” One of the film’s executive producers, Peter Billingsley, who had a starring role as Ralphie in the 1983 film A Christmas Story, has a credited role as an airline ticket agent.
9. A Christmas Carol (Disney) 2009
Final Box Office: $137.86 million
This Robert Zemeckis-helmed 3D extravaganza was Disney’s third film retelling of A Christmas Carol following 1983′s Mickey’s Christmas Carol and 1992′s The Muppet Christmas Carol. Jim Carrey voiced many characters including Ebenezer Scrooge, and despite getting a mixed reception from critics, it went on to take $318.48 million worldwide.
8. The Santa Clause 2 (Disney) 2002
Final Box Office: $139.24 million
The Santa Clause 2 had a budget of around $65 million, it took $139.2 million domestically and another $33.6 million internationally. Set eight years after the first film, The Santa Clause 2 was less well received than the previous one, despite all the main cast returning including Tim Allen.
7. The Santa Clause (Disney) 1994
Final Box Office: $144.83 million
The Santa Clause was directed by John Pasquin and starred Tim Allen – both had previously worked together on Home Improvement. The Santa Clause generally received positive reviews from the critics and a “fresh” rating of 75% on Rotten Tomatoes, earning itself the honor of being something of a festive favorite. It was also a hit earning $189.8 million at the worldwide budget against a budget of $22 million.
6. Elf (New Line) 2003
Final Box Office: $173.40 million
Elf earned $220.4 million worldwide on a $33 million budget and is loved by critics and audiences alike. Jon Favreau directed the Christmas comedy that stars Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, and Mary Steenburgen. It inspired the 2010 Broadway show Elf: The Musical and NBC’s 2014 stop-motion animated television special Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas.
5. Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (Fox) 1992
Final Box Office: $173.59 million
The sequel to Home Alone saw Macaulay Culkin reprise his role as Kevin McCallister for a second and last time alongside Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern as the Wet/Sticky Bandits. While it started off better than Home Alone, the final box office gross was much less with a domestic take of $173.58 million ($358.99 million worldwide). Although now somewhat beloved, at the time, critics gave it a negative response.
4. The Polar Express (New Line) 2004
Final Box Office: $183.37 million
The Polar Express is listed in the Guinness World Book of Records in 2006 as the first all-digital capture film and was nominated for three Oscars. Tom Hanks gives life to many characters including The Conductor and Santa Claus. If you include seasonal IMAX re-releases, The Polar Express made $182.7 million domestically with a worldwide gross of $306.85 million.
3. Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch (Universal) 2018
Box Office: $189.67 million (as of 12/02/18)
The third screen adaptation of the classic story, and the second animation, Benedict Cumberbatch voiced the titular green miser who plots to ruin Whoville’s Christmas celebration. Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch got mixed reviews from critics but has grossed over $225 million worldwide to date, $189.67 million of that at the domestic box office. It cost $75 million to make.
2. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Universal) 2000
Final Box Office: $260.04 million
Ron Howard directed Jim Carrey in this iconic role based on the Dr. Seuss character and 1957 story of the same name. It spent four weeks at the top of the domestic box office and went on to take over $345 million worldwide despite opening to middling and generally poor reviews. The film has proved to have an enduring appeal and has been immortalized as the annual Grinchmas event at the Universal Studios theme parks in Hollywood and Orlando.
1. Home Alone (Fox) 1990
Final Box Office: $285.76 million
Until The Hangover Part II overtook it in 2011, Home Alone was the highest-grossing live action comedy film of all time at the domestic box office. Home Alone was initially a Warner Bros. production but 20th Century Fox took over the project, and its budget grew from $14 million to $17 million. Home Alone proved so popular that it stayed in theaters well past the Christmas season and was the number one film at the box office for 12 straight weeks – from its release on November 16, 1990, through the weekend of February 1, 1991. Unadjusted for inflation, the final worldwide box office for Home Alone was $476.68 million.
