Every Superhero Movie That's Earned $1 Billion Worldwide

Like the creatures that prowl the ocean's depths of the DC Extended Universe, Aquaman's box-office haul is massive. Buoyed by an extended release in China, director James Wan's action-adventure is already the top-grossing DC movie overseas, and is on track to reach $1 billion worldwide by the end of its theatrical run.

It would be only the third DC release, and one of just 10 superhero movies, to reach that box-office milestone. It's an elite club, dominated by the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but with Aquaman, Warner Bros.' so-called DCEU may finally gain membership after falling short with the five previous films.

Here's the full list of superhero cinema's billion-dollar club:

9. The Dark Knight (2008)

It's likely that, for the foreseeable future, all Batman films will be compared to director Christopher Nolan's trilogy, and its second installment, The Dark Knight, in particular. The film introduced a chilling new version of the Joker, with Heath Ledger's performance earning universal acclaim, and a posthumous Academy Award.

Over the course of its theatrical run, The Dark Knight earned $534 million domestically and nearly $470 million abroad, making it the fourth film in history to reach $1 billion at the global box office.

8. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Tom-Hardy-as-Bane-in-The-Dark-Knight-Rises

There are many who consider The Dark Knight Rises to be average in comparison to the rest of Nolan's trilogy, which is understandable. However, whether it was because of the immense success of its predecessor or that it was the concluding installment in an almost universally praised trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises experienced slightly more commercial success than The Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight Rises grossed roughly $448 million domestically and $636 million internationally, for a total of $1.08 billion.

7. Marvel's The Avengers (2012)

It took several years of careful planning, and a lot of money to ensure the success of director Joss Whedon's The Avengers. After five films that introduced the major characters of the MCU, fans were eager to see their favorite superheroes unite against the forces of evil. Little did they know that The Avengers would be only the beginning.

The film enjoyed a fantastic summer release, and grossed $623 million domestically, with a foreign box office of $895 million, for a worldwide total of $1.5 billion. The substantial difference between domestic and international success would only grow as superhero movies increased in popularity. The success of The Avengers cemented Marvel Studios' place in Hollywood, helped to inspire rivals to plot their own cinematic universes, and started the MCU on its path to 2018's blockbuster Infinity War.

6. Iron Man 3 (2013)

Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark is arguably the most beloved superhero in the MCU, and the success of the Iron Man films reflect that. The character's last solo outing revolved around his life following the events of The Avengers. It humanized the superhero even further by reminding audiences who he was the armor and the wealth. Not only was director Shane Black's Iron Man 3 better received than its predecessor, it enjoyed phenomenal financial success.

Iron Man 3 earned $409 million domestically, and about $806 million internationally, for a worldwide haul of $1.2 billion. That's double the global earnings of Iron Man 2. As if that wasn't enough, the film also earned an Academy Award nomination for its visual effects. It turns out that, no matter what issues fans had with its depiction of The Mandarin, they loved the film enough anyway.

NEXT PAGE: Pixar Breaks Marvel's Hold on the Top 5

5. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

Four films after their first outing, Earth's Mightiest Heroes assembled again in director Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron to face an adversary that many now consider underwhelming. However, when the first trailer was released in 2014, the hype was very real, and audiences were excited to see the Avengers together again.

The film grossed $459 million domestically and a whopping $946 million abroad, for a worldwide total of $1.4 billion. Critics and audiences weren't as satisfied with the film as they were with The Avengers, but the film is still impressive in its own way.

4. Captain America: Civil War (2016)

What's even more spectacular than seeing a team of superheroes face off against an epic villain? Seeing a team of superheroes face off against each other, of course. That was the main selling point of Joe and Anthony Russo's Captain America: Civil War, which surround the climactic battle with a story worth telling.

How badly did people want to see Cap and Iron Man fight? The film grossed $408 million domestically, and $745 million overseas, for a worldwide total of $1.15 billion, which was sort of expected as the film was practically an Avengers sequel.

3. Black Panther (2018)

The success of director Ryan Coogler's Black Panther was largely unprecedented, earning near-universal acclaim for its acting, directing and screenplay. It also introduced the fully realized, futuristic African nation of Wakanda, and overcame the MCU's long-standing problem with one-dimensional antagonists.

The film earned $700 million domestically, and another $646 million internationally, for a global total of $1.3 billion. What's particularly interesting about these numbers is that the North American earnings topped its foreign gross, which doesn't happen often. The film has earned three Golden Globe nominations, and is widely viewed as a contender for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

2. Incredibles 2 (2018)

With the critical and financial success of director Brad Bird's The Incredibles, audiences expected Pixar to release a sequel ... for the first five or so years. That hope faded, only to be revived years later with the debut of a simple teaser poster for Incredibles 2. The film long last arrived in 2018, and it was everything fans (many of whom were by then adults) hoped it would be.

This long-awaited sequel earned $608 million in its domestic run, and $633 million internationally, for a total of $1.2 billion, making it the second highest-grossing animated film in history, behind Disney's Frozen.

1. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

Thanos uses the Infinity Gauntlet to pull down a moon in Avengers: Infinity War

All the films on this list have been impressive, but Joe and Anthony Russo's Avengers: Infinity War is in a league of its own. From the introduction of Thanos in the post-credits scene of 2012's The Avengers, Marvel Studios took the better part of six years to build to this blockbuster, depicting the Mad Titan as orchestrating the events from the shadows in many of its films as he sought out the Infinity Stones. And when he achieved that goal, not even the combined might of the Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy and their allies could stop him. Infinity War subverted expectations in clever ways, something crucial to a blockbuster that served as the culmination of the 18 films that came before it.

Raking in $679 million domestically and $1.3 billion internationally, Infinity War ended its worldwide release with $2.04 billion. With numbers like that, it should come as no surprise the film was able to break numerous box office records, including the fastest film to reach $1 billion (in only 11 days).