Christopher Nolan’s Highest-Grossing Movies, Ranked by Box Office Earnings

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Christopher Nolan is widely considered one of the most talented directors of the 21st century. He’s become a well-known and reliable name in filmmaking, and his involvement alone draws large audiences to his movies. It’s unusual for a director to have this kind of pull, especially now that movie stars aren’t as consistently popular. In recent years, only a handful of directors have been able to generate this much excitement and consistently attract big crowds.

Looking at Christopher Nolan’s career, it’s clear that The Dark Knight was the turning point for wider public recognition – that film’s box office numbers really put him on the map. While he had a dedicated following before then, The Dark Knight is when he became a household name. However, Nolan wasn’t a box office newcomer; he’d been building a solid career for years. Now, with his twelfth film, Oppenheimer, he’s once again delivered a major blockbuster, proving his continued success in 2023.

Here’s how each of his films ranks by box office performance, from lowest to highest earner.

‘Following’ (1998)

$240,495 at the Box Office


Momentum Pictures

It’s understandable that Following is Christopher Nolan’s least successful film, considering it was his very first movie. Many viewers aren’t even aware of it. Released in 1998, it only played in a couple of theaters at a time across the United States. Made on a tiny $6,000 budget, Following was a labor of love for Nolan, created with the help of his friends who shared his passion for filmmaking.

Despite being shown in only a few theaters and made on a very limited budget, Following earned nearly $250,000 at the box office, which is quite a feat. Most of that money – over $192,000 – came from international audiences, while it made $48,000 in the U.S. A lot of this international success was likely due to the film’s connection with the U.K., where director Christopher Nolan is from and both studied and filmed Following. This film is a true example of independent filmmaking and is definitely worth watching for fans of Nolan’s later work.

‘Memento’ (2000)

$40 Million at the Box Office


Newmarket Films

Christopher Nolan’s Memento launched his career as a major filmmaker. It first premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2000, and was then distributed in the United States by Newmarket Films. The movie earned over $25 million domestically and $14 million internationally, totaling nearly $40 million on a $9 million budget – a significant improvement over Nolan’s earlier film, Following. In 2020, Memento surpassed $40 million in total earnings thanks to a limited release in South Korea.

Although Christopher Nolan was a rising talent, his film Memento didn’t immediately become a mainstream success. While it impressed critics and industry professionals, it hadn’t yet reached the level of popularity his future films would achieve. Released in the US in 2001 in only 500 theaters (compared to over 3,000 for most major releases today), Memento‘s biggest accomplishment was its recognition through awards. The film received two Academy Award nominations: Dody Dorn for editing, and Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan for the screenplay.

‘The Prestige’ (2006)

$110 Million at the Box Office


Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

This ranking of Christopher Nolan’s box office hits starts to differ from the order in which he made his films here. While Insomnia came after Memento in 2002, it’s The Prestige from 2006 that appears next on this list. Many Nolan fans consider The Prestige to be his best work. It was released after Batman Begins in 2005, kicking off his Dark Knight trilogy. Featuring a stellar cast including Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Scarlett Johansson, Michael Caine, Rebecca Hall, Andy Serkis, and David Bowie, The Prestige proved to be a big hit with audiences.

In the United States, the film was released by Buena Vista Pictures, a part of Disney, and earned over $53 million. Warner Bros., a frequent partner of the director, handled international distribution, where it made $56 million. This brought the film’s total worldwide earnings to $109 million – a solid result considering its $40 million budget. The film was well-received by critics and continues to have a loyal fanbase. It also received two Academy Award nominations: for Wally Pfister’s beautiful cinematography and for the art and set design by Nathan Crowley and Julie Ochipinti.

‘Insomnia’ (2002)

$114 Million at the Box Office


Warner Bros. Pictures

Christopher Nolan’s third film, Insomnia, garnered significant attention as it followed his critically acclaimed Memento. Having established himself with his previous work, Nolan was able to attract major stars like Al Pacino, Robin Williams, and Hilary Swank for this project. Insomnia is a dark and intense crime thriller, and stands out as being quite different from most of Nolan’s other films. This is likely due to the fact that it’s the only movie he’s directed without also writing the screenplay.

Released in 2002, Insomnia was well-received as a strong second film from director Christopher Nolan after Memento. While it wasn’t nominated for any Academy Awards, the film was lauded for Nolan’s directing and the performances of the lead actors. Insomnia also performed well commercially, building on Memento’s $40 million earnings by grossing $67 million domestically and $46 million internationally, for a worldwide total of over $113 million.

‘Tenet’ (2020)

$365 Million at the Box Office


Warner Bros. Pictures

Christopher Nolan’s Tenet was one of the first big movies shown in theaters after they started reopening following the pandemic. Nolan strongly believed in showing films in theaters, but Warner Bros. was hesitant to release it so soon. After some discussion, Nolan convinced them. Originally planned for an early July 2020 release, Tenet eventually premiered internationally in late August and in the US over Labor Day weekend due to pandemic-related delays.

Despite ongoing theater closures, the film continued to show in over 2,900 locations. It earned only $20 million during the holiday weekend in the US. However, because few competing films were released, Tenet enjoyed several months as the top box office draw. In the end, it made a little over $58 million in the US. Considering the challenges, Tenet did quite well internationally, earning over $300 million abroad. This brought its worldwide total to $365 million.

The film’s international success was mainly thanks to strong performances in China and Europe. Surprisingly, it earned more in China than in the United States, opening with nearly $30 million and eventually grossing $66 million. It also did well in other markets, bringing in $25 million in Japan and around $20 million combined in the United Kingdom, Germany, and France.

‘Batman Begins’ (2005)

$373.7 Million at the Box Office


Warner Bros. Pictures

The strong box office performance of Batman Begins is a noteworthy success story. While the film clearly showcases Christopher Nolan’s style, and now fits well within his overall body of work, it also benefited from being a Batman movie. When Batman Begins came out, Christopher Nolan hadn’t yet become the well-known director he is today—his previous film was 2002’s Insomnia. Therefore, the film’s success was largely due to the popularity of the Batman franchise, rather than anticipation for a new Christopher Nolan movie.

Compared to other Batman movies, Batman Begins was a solid success. Although it didn’t make as much money as Tim Burton’s Batman from 1989, it earned more than all three of the Batman sequels released in the 1990s (Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman & Robin). This was Christopher Nolan’s most successful film to date, and it successfully brought the Batman series back to life with a fresh, new approach, establishing Christian Bale as the definitive Batman. The movie made over $370 million globally, with $205 million coming from the US and Canada, and $165 million from international markets.

‘Dunkirk’ (2017)

$527 Million at the Box Office


Warner Bros.

I’ve been a huge Nolan fan for years, and while he became known for these massive, spectacle-driven movies after Batman Begins, it was great to see him return to more grounded, dramatic stories with Dunkirk. When it came out, a lot of us fans thought Dunkirk was finally going to get him the awards attention he deserved. He’d been nominated before for films like Memento and Inception, but hadn’t actually won an Oscar yet. Sadly, even with Dunkirk, he didn’t get the win! It was nominated for Best Picture and Best Director, but he ended up going home empty-handed that night.

The movie Dunkirk recounts the true events of the Dunkirk evacuation during World War II. Released in July 2017, the film performed well in theaters, largely due to director Christopher Nolan’s established reputation for creating captivating and visually impressive movies. It opened with over $50 million in the US, eventually earning $188 million domestically. With international earnings of $337 million, Dunkirk ultimately grossed $525 million worldwide.

‘Interstellar’ (2014)

$701.7 Million at the Box Office


Paramount Pictures

Christopher Nolan’s 2014 film, Interstellar, is a prime example of how popular he is with moviegoers. It’s a nearly three-hour-long, serious science fiction movie that explores big ideas about love and the future of humankind. Studios rarely take a chance on films like that these days, and it wouldn’t naturally appeal to a wide audience. Interstellar succeeded because of Nolan’s strong reputation and the trust audiences have in his work. The film likely wouldn’t have found an audience without him.

In the United States and Canada, Interstellar performed similarly to Dunkirk a few years later, opening with $47 million and eventually earning around $188 million. However, Interstellar was much more popular internationally, bringing in $489 million overseas for a worldwide total of $677 million at its initial release. Its popularity has continued to grow over time, and with several re-releases—particularly in China, South Korea in 2020, and Australia in 2021—the film’s total box office earnings have increased to $716 million.

‘Inception’ (2010)

$837 Million at the Box Office


Warner Bros.

Christopher Nolan was becoming a well-known director after the huge success of The Dark Knight, but it was his 2010 film, Inception, that truly cemented his status as a filmmaking legend. Before Inception, Nolan had already created two popular Batman movies and critically praised dramas like Memento and The Prestige. Inception successfully combined his ability to appeal to wide audiences with his talent for making thought-provoking films, becoming one of the best heist thrillers of the 21st century.

Inception was a long-held dream for director Christopher Nolan. He spent almost ten years developing the script. While he first presented the idea to Warner Bros. in the early 2000s, it wasn’t until the success of his large-scale Batman films that the studio agreed to fund his complex movie about stealing secrets from people’s dreams. The film was a huge commercial success, becoming a major cultural phenomenon in 2010 and one of the year’s highest-grossing movies. In total, Inception earned over $292 million in the US and $533 million internationally, reaching a total of $826 million during its initial release.

‘Oppenheimer’ (2023)

$958.8 Million at the Box Office


Universal Studios

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer lived up to the hype. The film earned over $900 million in theaters, making it Nolan’s third-highest-grossing movie ever, surpassing hits like Inception and Dunkirk. It’s a deep look into the life and mind of J. Robert Oppenheimer (played by Cillian Murphy), the American physicist who played a key role in creating the atomic bomb, and a famously complex figure.

The film was a huge hit with both audiences and critics, proving the cast delivered stunning performances and Christopher Nolan is a master of creating both high-quality and commercially successful movies. It quickly became the favorite to win at the Academy Awards, and finally earned Nolan the recognition he deserved. Oppenheimer ultimately won several Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director for Christopher Nolan, Best Actor for Cillian Murphy, and Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr., among other awards.

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2026-02-26 23:08