Christopher Nolan is one of the finest auteur filmmakers working today, and with just ten directed films in his filmography, the man has crafted one of the most consistently high-quality careers in cinema today. His films are blockbusters and somehow walk the line of big-budget spectacles and thought-provoking narrative perfectly.
Nolan is the king of the box office and nearly his entire filmography has had people flock into theaters. These box office hits are not just relating to films about a certain caped crusader though, there has been much more money made by the Brit besides with that trilogy. Here are all ten of Christopher Nolan's directed films ranked by how much they grossed, according to Box Office Mojo.
FOLLOWING (1999) - $48,482 WORLDWIDE
Following was the directorial feature film debut of Christopher Nolan and contains glimpses of his style and greatness to come. It is well crafted and brief, bringing in suspense and a noir feel to it, overall making it a good start to his career.
The film had a $6,000 budget, and in its limited release domestically brought in $48,482, this being the only money the film made in terms of theatrical releases makes it the only film of his ten not to crack $1,000,000.
MEMENTO (2000) - $39,723,096 WORLDWIDE
Memento is the second movie that Nolan ever made, and dives once again into drama, mystery, and suspense. The film is so clever, original, and suspenseful, and manages to deliver thrills, laughs, and questions as it delivers a huge payoff.
The movie had a higher budget of $9,000,000, reaching an opening weekend of $235,488 before grossing $25,544,867 domestically. Releasing at various times across the world in 2000 and 2001, the film earned $14,178,229 internationally, bringing its worldwide total to $39,723,096.
THE PRESTIGE (2006) - $109,676,311 WORLDWIDE
The Prestige was the film Nolan created in between his first two Batman movies and in it, Nolan gave fans a smart, engaging, thought-provoking period piece that had solid performances, great twists and delivered both in its dark comedy and its puzzle-box mystery.
In terms of the box office, Prestige had a $40,000,000 budget, which led to a $14,801,808 opening weekend, working up towards a $53,089,891 domestic total, which combines with its international total of $56,586,420 to make it's worldwide gross $109,676,311.
INSOMNIA (2002) - $113,758,770 WORLDWIDE
Starring Al Pacino in a great performance, Insomnia was Nolan's last film before his venture into his famous franchise work. The psychological struggle detailed throughout takes over from the mystery as the driving force of the movie, that overall is a great piece.
The movie had a $46,000,000 budget and opened at $20,930,169, going on to $67,355,513 domestically. This combined with its $46,403,257 international gross created its worldwide total of $113,758,770.
BATMAN BEGINS (2005) - $373,413,297 WORLDWIDE
Batman Begins is the first installment of the famous Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy and is one of the greatest superhero origin stories put to film, and unfairly overlooked due to the quality of its successors. Everything Nolan twisted together in the dark, gritty take on the iconic hero clicked, and it was the perfect start to an unbelievable trilogy.
The film's $150,000,000 budget was made back, with its domestic total of $206,852,432 kicking off with a $48,745,440 opening weekend. Its international total of $166,560,865 combined with this domestic gross took its worldwide earnings to $373,413,297, coming from its original run and one re-release.
DUNKIRK (2017) - $526,940,665 WORLDWIDE
Dunkirk is Christopher Nolan's latest film and is a war spectacle that details the events of Dunkirk during WWI. It lacks real characters despite its great performers, but Nolan deliberately focuses on its epic scale and the spectacle of it all, delivering a harrowing and beautiful movie.
The film made up half of its $100,000,000 budget in its opening weekend total of $50,513,488. Domestically the film earned $189,740,665 from its original run and a re-release, while internationally it soared to $337,200,000, making its worldwide gross $526,940,665.
INTERSTELLAR (2014) - $677,471,339 WORLDWIDE
Interstellar is an aesthetically gorgeous, thought-provoking, and immensely ambitious film that reaches for the stars both literally and figuratively, but perhaps, in terms of its vision, its reach is not long enough. Nevertheless, it is a stunning movie that, while divisive, is pretty incredible in a lot of ways.
One such way is in it's box office earnings. From its $165,000,000 budget, it opened to $47,510,360 leading to a $188,020,017 domestic total which combined with its $489,451,322 international earnings, gives Interstellar a worldwide total gross of $677,471,339.
INCEPTION (2010) - $829,895,144 WORLDWIDE
One of, if not the best sci-fi movie of the 2010s or perhaps ever, Inception is a mind-bending, challenging, genius, thrilling, and original movie by Nolan which was one of the blockbuster hits of 2010. It is filled with stunning effects and set pieces, a great ensemble cast, brilliant direction and is a gripping narrative.
In terms of the box office, the movie cost $160,000,000 and made $62,785,337 of that back during its opening weekend. From there the movie earned a domestic total of $292,576,195 and an international total of $537,318,949, which overall takes the movie to a total international gross of $829,895,144.
THE DARK KNIGHT (2008) - $1,004,934,033 WORLDWIDE
One of, if not the most iconic and greatest superhero movies of all time, The Dark Knight is a special movie which lies on the legacy of a special actor delivering an extraordinary performance. Ledger's Joker will live on for generations while Nolan's trilogy as a whole will be remembered for years to come in its dark, gritty, thrilling, captivating goodness.
From its $185,000,000 budget the film pulled in $158,411,483 on its opening weekend on route to a $535,234,033 domestic total. Internationally the film pulled in $469,700,000 taking its worldwide total gross to $1,0004,934,033 from its original run and two re-releases.
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (2012) - $1,081,041,287 WORLDWIDE
The ending to the aforementioned famous Nolan Dark Knight trilogy was highly anticipated and delivered big in the form of The Dark Knight Rises. Resting upon the shoulders of a slew of great performances, a compelling narrative, great action sequences, and iconography, the film disappointed some in its ending but is brilliant overall.
It is also Nolan's highest-grossing movie, and from its $250,000,000 budget its opening weekend came in at $160,887,295, which kicked off a domestic run that seen the film earn $448,139,099. Internationally it did better, scoring $632,902,188 and taking it's worldwide gross to $1,081,041,287.