Top 15 Highest Grossing Christmas Movies Ranked

Top 15 Highest Grossing Christmas Movies Ranked

Merry Christmas everybody! In the excitement for the Christmas spirit, I thought it would be fun to rank some Christmas movies. So here’s my ranking of the 15 highest grossing Christmas movies of all time. Let’s get started! 

15. Four Christmases: This movie was not good, this is a bad movie. It’s frustrating, because there’s an interesting concept here. What if a married couple has to go visit all of their parents on Christmas Day where they learn about each other and get caught in the hijinks of their familIes. The execution is so weird and bizarre and it does not work. Right off the bat our two leads, Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon are some of the most unlikable leads in a Christmas movie. You don’t care about them and they keep on putting them in situations that make you hate them. They make Vaughn’s entire family so unlikable and those situations so uncomfortable. It’s trying so hard to be funny, but it fails so badly at it. They introduce this idea that Vince Vaughn’s childhood best friend is now married to his mom. His dad and brothers are jerks and so crazy for the sake of being crazy. Also, every kid in this movie is presented as a jerk and you don’t care for them. And through this, they’re supposed to realize that they want to have kids. But if I was these characters, that would even further the idea that I wouldn’t want kids. I didn’t get this movie, it’s under 90 minutes long but felt dragged out. This movie is possibly the worst Christmas movie that I’ve ever seen. 

14. Arthur Christmas:This is a movie that several people my age I knew group with it. But somehow I’d never seen it and I didn’t even know the plot of the movie. Given how it ranks on this list. You can tell that I wasn’t a very big fan of it. Most Christmas movies try to find that fun modern spin on Christmas. What’s something new and different we can do with the Christmas mythology? Arthur Christmas treats their Christmas mythology like an army base. One of the main characters of the movie acts like an army general. While the new spin on Christmas is fun. I think with having it be this military inspired Christmas, it lacks the Christmas magic. It means that all of the characters are in this narrow head space. Where they’re very one note for most of the movie. They treat Santa like a failure for 75% of the run time. I don’t get why they did that. It just struck me as very weird that they’d take this jolly Christmas character and make him this unlikable character. Another thing that really didn’t work for me. The animation here isn’t very good. It looks so cheap and the design of the human characters is creepy. I know a lot of people my age are probably going to disagree with me on this. But I don’t think Arthur Christmas is a very good Christmas movie. 

13. The Nutcracker and the Four Realms: Of all the movies on this list, this is the one that’s just there for me. It’s harmless, but there’s not much here that made me interested. This movie reminded me of the world building of Alice in Wonderland with the fantasy elements of Harry Potter, that on paper should be good. But the overall execution wasn’t great and it felt so generic. On the positive, the production, costumes, and visuals were all fantastic. In those regards, this is a very well made movie that does a good job of transporting you into this world. And you can see where the pieces of this movie were to make for a solid movie. The overall execution isn’t the best and makes for a very generic movie. It tries to have this hero’s journey character arc for our lead, but it just does it in the most generic way possible that it doesn’t do anything interesting with it. This movie has a great cast with Keira Knightly, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman and that cast on paper should be really good. Knightly’s performance in this movie is so weird, her voice is so high pitched and what she’s good at with her performances isn’t at all present in this movie. There’s ideas in this movie that could have made it for this interesting fresh new take on Christmas. But it’s not as good as it could have and should have been.

12. Disney’s A Christmas Carol:Robert Zemeckis’ second Christmas movie. He applied the technology he applied to The Polar Express and told the classic Christmas story of A Christmas Carol. There’s a lot of creativity in this movie. It’s a solid telling of A Christmas Carol. To me, I found the animation very creepy and unsettling. This story is supposed to evoke this sense of joy from the audience. But with the off putting animation, it didn’t fully work for me. The cast for this movie is pretty stacked with Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, and more actors. On paper with this director, story, and cast I feel like this movie should be a lot better. That’s the most frustrating part about the movie, it all felt like wasted potential. It also takes way too long for things to get going. The movie is only 90 minutes long and takes almost 45 minutes for the time travel elements to kick in. Of the movies on this list, this is the one that’s just there for me. It’s fine. I wish that I could talk more about it. And explain more as to why it didn’t fully work for me. But it’s not a great Christmas movie. Perhaps if I grew up with this movie, I’ll rank it higher. 

11. The Grinch (2018): Illiumination’s animated take on the classic Christmas story with Benedict Cumberbatch as The Grinch. I saw this movie in the theater back when it first came out and I thought it was fun. But I don’t think it’s a great movie and it’s not a great telling of The Grinch. One of the things that Illumination is known for is having low hanging fruit humor and catchy pop songs. In their original IPs that works really well, but when they’re adapting classic properties like The Grinch, it doesn’t work and it feels out of place. The source material of The Grinch is some of the most iconic Christmas source material out there. And it feels very strange to take The Grinch that is good enough source material to stand on its own and mix with Illiumination’s typical format and structure. This movie works better as an Illumination movie rather than a Grinch movie. When I watched it, my audience was almost sold out and the kids were clearly having a lot of fun. It is funny, it is harmless and Benedict Cumberbatch does a very solid job as The Grinch. But when I’m in the mood for The Grinch, I’m going to the other versions first. 

10. The Santa Clause 2: I don’t think any of the sequels or the tv show come close to the quality of the original. But I think this is the best sequel/continuation because it still has a lot of the charm from the original movie. Tim Allen is the ultimate cinematic Santa Clause, he’s so much of the charm and the glue holding this franchise together. Tim Allen is a great comedic actor and brings all of his talents to this franchise, so in every entry he’s the best part about it. The idea of Santa Clause having to find a Mrs. Clause in order to remain being Santa is a fun continuation of the franchise. It provides a solid ticking clock as you know what the stakes are and what happens if his mission isn’t completed. The chemistry between the two actors is very good, you buy them in this situation. I think this movie does lose some of the magic of the original. There’s a fun idea in the first movie of what if your dad became Santa Clause. Once he already becomes Santa Clause, the magic is gone. Also, I don’t think the plot line with the evil Santa was necessary, it felt like a distraction from the main plot. There was already enough conflict with the romance side of things. 

9. The Polar Express: One of the many teams up between Tom Hanks and Robert Zemmeicks, this time they do a Christmas movie. This seems like the type of movie that if you didn’t grow up watching it, then this isn’t going to be one of your favorite Christmas movies. Simply because, the animation hasn’t aged the best in the last 20 years. They did something very interesting here with doing CGI animation with Tom Hanks in a motion capture suit. I don’t think the technology was quite there yet for them to pull it off. But honestly, I think this is just a charming and delightful Christmas movie. Like several movies on this list, they find this right new angle to tell a Christmas movie. This one explores the idea of what if there was a train that took kids to The North Pole on Christmas Eve. And there’s this sense of wonder and magic that comes with that, it does put you into the Christmas spirit. Robert Zemeicks, whether his movies are good or bad he does a good job of transporting you to different worlds with the character. Tom Hanks is of course so fun and charming and the fact that he’s playing multiple different characters in this movie is great. This is just a solid and fun Christmas adventure with an actor and director that I like. 

8. Red One: The latest Christmas movie on this list and a movie that’s one of the biggest box bombs of the year. But somehow, it managed to be in the highest grossing Christmas movie. This is a movie that seems to be the punching bag movie of the year and honestly that seems a bit far fetched. Is this movie good or as good as it could have been? No. But I went into the movie expecting a solid action Christmas movie with two actors I enjoy and I got that. If you go into this movie with proper expectations I think this movie works. Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans are two movie stars that can be very fun and charismatic, so partnering up for the entire film is a lot of fun. J.K. Simmons as Santa Clause is great casting. He can play this jolly and happy Santa so well. There’s a lot of jokes in this movie that work and do land, my audience was laughing out loud throughout the entire film. It’s just a fun and different enough spin on the Christmas genre and mythology that while it does have this generic, streaming vibe to the entire thing. There’s enough new lore added with the North Pole and Santa that it is a lot of fun. I can understand if people view this as mediocre and totally safe. The hate of calling it one of the worst of the year, that seems a bit far fetched. 

7. The Holiday: This was a first time watch for me, I’ve heard about this movie for a while now but I never got around to checking it out. I thought this was a solid Christmas movie that puts you into the Christmas spirit. There’s a number of similarities between this movie and Love Actually. I think this movie differs from Love Actually because it’s a more heartfelt movie. It has a lot of the same beats with the romance plot lines that’s revealed that they’re tied together through family. But it plays this template well and you do enjoy the characters and the presence, they’re fun characters to be around. All four of our leads with Kate Winslet, Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, and Jack Black can be fun and charming. They have fun chemistry with one another, you see the reasons why they would fall in love with each other. Each character needs a different character to grow and change throughout the movie. Also one of the best scores of this entire list, it’s composed by Hans Zimmer. That’s why the score stands out so much is because they got a legendary composer to compose the movie. The reason why this movie isn’t higher up on the list, isn’t anything that’s wrong with the movie. I think this is a good movie that’s worth checking out. But I feel like with Christmas movies, there’s a certain level of nostalgia that comes with them. So the ones you have nostalgia for, tend to to rank higher. Simply because I’ve only seen this movie once, I don’t think I can put it above some of the other Christmas classics higher up on this list. 

6. Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas: Jim Carrey and Ron Howard’s take on the Christmas classic and this is one that I’ve always enjoyed. Jim Carrey is clearing a lot of fun in this role, he nails all of the right mannerisms and quirks about the character so well. Despite him hating the makeup process for this movie, it doesn’t show at all through his performance. He’s given so many quotable and memorable lines that have become part of the vernacular during the holiday season. Through the production design and the costumes, it does transport you into Whoville that has such a distinct and whimsical look about it. Just the story and source material of The Grinch does provide some nice heartwarming moments with his character arc and the change of heart he has in the third act. It does provide the classic Christmas spirit that you want from a Christmas movie. This is another one that I think you had to have grown up with, otherwise you’re not going to look at it. I can understand why to some people, this version comes off as mean spirited and creepy. For me, that’s never been a thing for me. I've always been over to move past and enjoy Jim Carrey’s fun antics and the source material. 

5. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York: A shockingly good sequel to the original. This movie has been criticized for years about it just being a beat for beat rehash of the original. That’s 100% true with this movie, there are flaws with this movie. But it doesn’t change the fact that this movie has become part of the Christmas rotation for over 30 years now. Despite it being a beat for beat rehash, it still has all of the charm and magic that you want from this movie. It’s one of the rare beat for beat that’s very good and it’s fun to watch every year. The glue holding the first two movies together is Macaulay Culkin, who’s one of the best child actors out there and is so good as Kevin. It’s one of those castings that needed to work in order for the movies to work, it’s perfect casting and he’s fantastic in both movies. Tim Curry is a fun addition to this franchise, he knows how to be fun and over the top and him with Rob Schinder is a lot of fun. In a lot of ways I think this movie has a better set of side characters then the original. This movie delivers another slam bang third act where there’s more traps and the traps are deadlier than the original. Just another solid Christmas movie, that’s a lot of fun to watch around the Christmas season. 

4. Elf: This be a bit of an unpopular opinion to only rank Elf at #4. But I really like Elf, I think it's really good, there’s just more Christmas movies that I prefer to this one. All of the positives that I have about this movie is exactly what everybody else would say about this movie. This movie takes a fun idea of what if a Christmas elf goes to the real world and it turns into a fantastic fish out of water comedy. Where Buddy the Elf reunites with this father and falls in love (not with this father). It’s just a classic feel good Christmas movie. It has all of the hijinks you’d expect from a Will Ferrell comedy but with a Christmas skin that makes it extra special. The supporting cast for this movie all around is fantastic, of course James Caan is great as always and fits into this movie perfectly opposite Will Ferrell’s over the top comedy where he’s playing a man child. From there, this movie is filled with iconic and memorable sequences that have become part of the Christmas popular culture. Every 5-10 minutes is another iconic scene. It’s one of those movies that’s so obvious why people have loved it for 21 years now and will continue to love it for years and years to come. I don’t have any negatives with this movie, it’s just not a movie that I would put as a top tier Christmas movie. 

3. The Santa Clause: A true Christmas classic that probably has the most fun and creative concept for a Christmas movie of all time. But everything about it works so well and it’s one of the best Christmas movies ever made. The central idea and hook of what if your dad became Santa Clause is a fun idea. This movie does a very good job of fleshing that out and playing into all of the situations that would come with that and how would the people around him react to him. What’s so surprising about this movie is that there’s a lot of dark elements in it. In the first 30 minutes of the movie, Tim Allen’s character kills Santa Clause. Then later in the movie the ex-wife restricts Tim Allen from seeing his son around Christmas time. There’s a lot of moments like that that could be off putting. But there’s so much heart in this movie, that you can forgive it and move on. At the center of this movie is Tim Allen, the ultimate cinematic Santa Clause who’s just fantastic in this movie (and the entire trilogy). There’s scenes in this movie where he’s not very likable, but he’s able to play him so well and in a way that makes you still care about him. His rivalry and rudeness towards Judge Reinhold, their rivalry here is fantastic and it provides some of the best laughs of the entire movie. This is a Christmas classic that I have to watch every year, otherwise it’s not Christmas time. 

2. Home Alone: What’s so interesting about this movie is that there are so many reasons why you should not be rooting for this family. Therefore, you should not like this movie and it should not be a Christmas classic. But this movie has become a true Christmas classic for the past 34 years that families watch on loop every single December. This is a lightning in a bottle type movie, where you had so many elements that came together at the right time to make it fantastic. This movie has the best Christmas film score of all time and that’s because John Williams did the score. It just elevates the entire movie, when you get the greatest film composer of all time to compose this family Christmas movie and it just works so well. They got Joe Pesci to be in this movie and this months after Goodfellas came out and months before he won an Oscar. The fact that he went from Goodfellas to this movie is great, and he’s clearly having a lot of fun in this movie. Macaulay Culkin was the perfect age to be in this movie, like I said earlier it’s one of the best child performances of all time. It has all of the themes that you’d expect in a Christmas movie that provides a character arc for Kevin. It makes you feel good and it makes you realize that the true spirit of Christmas is the family. 

1. Love Actually: This is the greatest Christmas movie ever made, it’s  a movie that I find so charming, rewatchable, and funny. It takes this idea of having seven different plot lines going on that are all connected to one another that’s centered around Christmas. All of the plot lines have characters that you care about, you’re invested in and you care about the journey they’re on. It explores this idea of love in different storylines and in different ways. No plot lines feel the same and that’s hard to do, but Richard Curtis pulled it off and created this great movie. Another piece you have to talk about here is the cast, this is one of the best casts. It’s a fun mix of actors, famous people, people you don’t expect to be in this type of movie, and up and comers. Somebody like Hugh Grant you’d 100% expect to be in this movie, because he grew his career around rom coms. But then actors like Liam Nesson and Alan Rickman do more dramatic work, so they aren’t actors that you’d expect to be in this movie but they are and they’re so good. And then Kiera Knightly, Chiwetel Ejifoir, and Martin Freeman were these up and comers that have had solid careers for 20 years now. It’s this fun cast where everybody is fun and charming and you like being around them. Easily, this is my favorite Christmas movie of all time and I don’t see it being topped.