Top Movies of the 2000s

This page offers lists of the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by two different metrics. The first list is based on box office and the second is based on critics’ picks.

Box Office: Top 25 of the 2000s These are the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by worldwide box office gross. The first number indicates dollars made in millions.

1. 2923.71: Avatar (2009) 2. 1147.63: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) 3. 1066.18: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) 4. 1026.41: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (aka “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”) (2001) 5. 1006.23: The Dark Knight (2008) 6. 961.69: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007) 7. 942.86: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) 8. 941.64: Finding Nemo (2003) 9. 941.06 :Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) 10. 938.24: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) 11. 932.53: Shrek 2 (2004) 12. 898.47: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) 13. 891.68: Spider-Man 3 (2007) 14. 888.17: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009) 16. 882.74: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) 17. 850.04: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) 18. 836.30: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) 19. 825.03: Spider-Man (2002) 20. 808.49: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) 21. 808.31: Shrek the Third (2007) 22. 795.11: Spider-Man 2 (2004) 23. 791.22: 2012 (2009) 24. 786.60: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) 25. 760.01: The Da Vinci Code (2006)

Critics’ Picks: Top 25 of the 2000s These are the top 25 movies of the decade as determined by a combination of the movies’ ratings points and awards points.

1. No Country for Old Men (2007) 2. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) 3. Brokeback Mountain (2005) 4. The Hurt Locker (2009) 5. Slumdog Millionaire (2008) 6. The Dark Knight (2008) 7. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) 8. Pan’s Labyrinth (El Laberinto del Fauno) (2006) 9. Sideways (2004) 10. Gladiator (2000) 11. There Will Be Blood (2007) 12. Avatar (2009) 13. Chicago (2002) 14. A Beautiful Mind (2001) 15. The Departed (2006) 16. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) 17. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Wo hu cang long) (2000) 18. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) 19. Wall-E (2008) 20. Juno (2007) 21. The Pianist (2002) 22. Million Dollar Baby (2004) 23. Lost in Translation (2003) 24. Spirited Away (Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi) (2001) 25. Ratatouille (2007)

Resources: Dave’s Movie Database: Eras Dave’s Movie Database: Movies of the Year Dave’s Movie Database: Box Office Dave’s Movie Database: Awards Page Dave’s Movie Database: Ratings Page Originally posted 3/5/2025.

Avatar released

Avatar Released: December 18, 2009 Studio: 20th Century Fox Genre: sci fi/fantasy Box Office (numbers in millions) Domestic: 760.50 Worldwide: 2923.71 Adjusted for Inflation: Domestic: 911.79 Worldwide: 3824.00

Directing: James Cameron Screenwriting: James Cameron Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Sigourney Weaver Review: “It might be more impressive on a technical level than as a piece of storytelling, but Avatar reaffirms James Cameron’s singular gift for imaginative, absorbing filmmaking.” RT The movie held the title for biggest box office hit for a decade before being overcome by Avengers: Endgame. The original story by Cameron focuses on Jake Sully (Worthington), a former marine confined to a wheelchair. He is recruited to go to an outpost on Pandora, where a rare mineral could solve Earth’s energy crisis. However, the Na’vi, the natives of Pandora, stand in the way and the toxic atmosphere means humans can only enter via remote-controlled biological bodies which mix the DNA of humans and the Na’vi. As an avatar, Jake can walk again. In his mission to infiltrate the Na’vi, he falls for Neytiri (Saldana) after she saves his life and he becomes part of her clan. He gains appreciation for their way of life and ends up leading the Na’vi in battle to defend Pandora against the military operation set to destroy them. Sources: RT Rotten Tomatoes

Awards/Honors/Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Genre Lists: Awards: Box Office: Awards: Oscars: Wins: 3: Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Visual Effects Nominations: 9, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing Other Lists/Honors: First posted 9/6/2019; last updated 2/25/2025.