Heading down to the cinema is an experience in of itself, but sometimes the films that we end up going to see end up becoming box office hits. Others, however, completely bomb upon their release.

However, even a popular film that generates plenty of income can be seen as a box office bomb, if it barely makes any money compared to what its budget was. As much as fantasy epics are incredible, sometimes with so many sets needing to be designed, hundreds of extras and extensive computer graphics can end up leaving them not making much profit.

But what of the films that have managed to be both box office smashes and recoup their budget. Scroll down to see the five most profit-making films in history, including two from James Cameron…

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The 2009 film has commanded the box office since its release

Avatar

Given that Avatar is the highest-grossing film in history, it’s perhaps not a surprise to see James Cameron’s sci-fi epic here. Despite the extensive CGI used in creating the Na’Vi and the various biomes of Pandora, the film only cost $237 million to create.

Since its 2009 release, the film has grossed nearly $3 billion, giving it an incredible profit of $2.68 billion. The film has since spawned its own franchise, with The Way of Water also earning $2 billion at the box office, while Fire and Ash has generated an income of nearly $1.5 billion.

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The 2019 film had Marvel’s hopes rising on it

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel had one of the biggest challenges in 2019 when it needed to bring a satisfying conclusion to the saga featuring many of our beloved heroes from Iron Man to Captain America. The film, which has a run-time of just over three hours had one of the highest budgets of all time, believed to be between $350 million and $400 million.

Thankfully, audiences flocked to see how the saga would be concluded meaning that the film grossed $2.8 billion, meaning if the lower budget figure is taking, it made a profit of $2.44 billion.

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Ne Zha 2 only released last year

Ne Zha 2

Ne Zha 2 was a smash hit when it was released last year and broke all sorts of records, including becoming the first animated film to gross more than $2 billion and the highest grossing non-English language. The film follows the deity Ne Zha as he attempts to restore the body of his close friend Ao Bing and is based on the 16th century text Investiture of the Gods.

The film only had a budget of $80 million, meaning that when it grossed over $2 billion, it became one of the most profitable films in history. Overall, Ne Zha 2 made a profit of $2.18 billion.

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James Cameron knows how to make a blockbuster

Titanic

The only film not released in the 21st century to make the list, Titanic is James Cameron’s epic story of love on the doomed vessel. The film became the first in history to ever gross over $1 billion at the box office, and at the time, it was the most expensive film ever made, with a budget of $200 million.

Since its release in 1997, the film has generated over $2 billion in revenue, giving it a profit of $2.068 billion.

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The seventh entry reinvigorated the franchise

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

When Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise, all eyes were on it for how the iconic sci-fi series would be handled. The first piece of content was The Force Awakens, set after Return of the Jedi. The film introduced audiences to a set of new characters while also featuring some of the ones they’d come to love.

With Hollywood A-listers, thousands of extras and epic set-pieces, the film had a mammoth budget of over $400 million, and when it came to its profits, the film came in at a tidy $1.82 billion.