A big Hollywood blockbuster often requires a lot of cash.
While it doesn't always take a big production budget to make a break-out hit, the most successful movies are often the costliest.
We turned to IMDB and Box Office Mojo to gather the priciest films ever made, and consulted the consumer price index to adjust for inflation.?
We've also included the original reported and estimated budgets for comparison. A few franchises make the list twice.
While none of this year's movies are among the most expensive, many of the most successful films ever made cost more than $200 million.
20. "The Amazing Spider-Man" (2012): $236.7 million
AP Photo/Columbia - Sony Pictures, Jaimie Trueblood
Original estimated budget: $230 million
Worldwide gross: $752.2 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $779.9 million
19. "Wild Wild West" (1999): $241.1 million
Murray Close/Getty Images
Original estimated budget: $170 million
Worldwide gross: $222.1 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $315 million
18. "Superman Returns" (2006): $244.9 million
Bryn Lennon/Getty Images
Original estimated budget: $209 million
Worldwide gross: $391 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $458.3 million
17. "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006): $246.1 million
20th Century Fox
Original estimated budget: $210 million
Worldwide gross: $459.4 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $538.3 million
16. "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" (2008): $246.9 million
Walt Disney Pictures
Original estimated budget: $225 million
Worldwide gross: $419.7 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $460.5 million
15. "Spider-Man 2" (2004): $250.1 million
Columbia Pictures / Marvel
Original estimated budget: $200 million
Worldwide gross: $783.8 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $980.3 million
14. "King Kong" (2005): $250.4 million
AP Photo/Universal Studios
Original estimated budget: $207 million
Worldwide gross: $550.5 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $665.9 million
13. "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" (2003): $256.8 million
Warner Brothers
Original estimated budget: $200 million
Worldwide gross: $433.4 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $556.5 million
11. "John Carter" (2012): $257.2 million
AP Photo/Disney
Original estimated budget: $250 million
Worldwide gross: $284.1 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $292.4 million
11. "The Dark Knight Rises" (2012): $257.2 million
AP Photo/Warner Bros.
Original estimated budget: $250 million
Worldwide gross: $1.08 billion
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1.1 billion
10. "The Hobbit" (2012): $257.2 million
AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures, Mark Pokorny
Original estimated budget: $250 million
Worldwide gross: $1.02 billion
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1.05 billion
9. "Avatar" (2009): $261 million
AP Photo/20th Century Fox
Original estimated budget: $237 million
Worldwide gross: $2.8 billion
Worldwide adjusted gross: $3.1 billion
8. "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (2006): $263.7 million
AP Photo/Disney Enterprises, Peter Mountain
Original estimated budget: $225 million
Worldwide gross: $1 billion
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1.2 billion
7. "Waterworld" (1995): $271.3 million
Getty Images
Original estimated budget: $175 million
Worldwide gross: $264.2 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $409.6 million
6. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" (2009): $275.3 million
AP Photo/Warner Bros., Jaap Buitendijk
Original estimated budget:? $250 million
Worldwide gross: $934.4 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1 billion
5. "Tangled" (2010): $281.7 million
AP Photos
Original estimated budget: $260 million
Worldwide gross: $590.7 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $641.1 million
The film usually raises eyebrows as one of the most costly films to make since it's an animated film. The high cost for "Tangled" was due in part to the complex blend of traditional hand-drawn animation from older films ("Beauty and the Beast," "The Lion King") with CGI to give the film the distinct feeling of one of the classics in the 21st century.
4. "Spider-Man 3" (2007): $293.9 million
AP Photo/Columbia Pictures
Original estimated budget: $258 million
Worldwide gross: $890.9 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1 billion
3. "Titanic" (1997): $294.3 million
AP Photo/Paramount Pictures
Original estimated budget: $200 million
Worldwide gross: $2.2 billion
Worldwide adjusted gross: $3.2 billion*
*Includes tickets for 2012 "Titanic 3-D" re-release.
2. "Cleopatra" (1963): $339.5 million
AP Photo
Original estimated budget: $44 million
Gross in 1963: $57.8 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $445.8 million
1. "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (2007): $341.8 million
Walt Disney Pictures
Original estimated budget: $300 million
Worldwide gross: $963.4 million
Worldwide adjusted gross: $1.1 billion
(All budget estimates have been adjusted for inflation.)
Click here for the full list.
