Box Office Top 10: Independence Day’s Top-Grossing Movies

As the summer movie season (such as it is) rolls on, Boxoffice Pro presents the ten highest-grossing films on July 4.

Note: this list is ordered by domestic revenue earned during a film’s July 4. It does not take into account admissions, re-releases, or figures adjusted for inflation. 


#1: Transformers

2007’s Transformers launched a six-movie franchise, buoyed by a $29.1M July 4 opening, a record which stands to this day. Paramount decided not to mess with success and released all subsequent films in the franchise—aside from spinoff Bumblebee, released December 2018—in late June or early July. 

#2: Spider-Man: Far From Home

Far from Home‘s 2017 predecessor Spider-Man: Homecoming came out on July 7, just missing the opportunity to qualify for this list. 2019’s sequel came out on July 2 and earned $25.7M on July 4. 

#3: Despicable Me 2

All four films in the Despicable Me franchise have opened somewhere around July 4; 2010’s original installment came out on July 9 and 2015’s spinoff Minions on July 10, arriving just slightly too late for potential inclusion on this list. 2013’s second installment, though, came out July 3 and made $24.5M the next day. 2017’s sequel Despicable Me 3 came out before the holiday, but its earnings just missed the cut on this list.

#4: The Amazing Spider-Man

2012’s Spider-Man reboot, with Andrew Garfield in the title role, spun its web to $23.3M on July 4 en route to a $262.0M domestic total. 2014’s sequel The Amazing Spider-Man 2 came out in early May, instead.

#5: Spider-Man 2

The second installment of the original Spider-Man trilogy, with Tobey Maguire in the title role, was released in late June 2004, with the other two both arriving in early May. Spider-Man 2 earned $22.0M on July 4, meaning three of the top five entries on this list feature Spider-Man—with all three actors who played the character being represented.

#6: Hancock

2008’s action comedy Hancock stars Will Smith as a former superhero who’s now alcoholic and unemployed. The only entry on this list not connected to a larger franchise, it earned $18.5M on July 4.

#7: Transformers: Dark of the Moon

2011’s third Transformers installment made $18.0M on July 4. If both the first and third installments made this list, where’s the second installment? 2009’s Revenge of the Fallen came out a week earlier on the calendar, meaning its Independence Day weekend fell during its second weekend rather than its opening one, thus limiting its grosses. Nonetheless, it still ranks as the #17 biggest Independence Day earner ever.

#8: Independence Day

What did you expect? 1996’s apocalyptic alien invasion movie was a must-see for many on its title day, earning $17.3M. 2016’s sequel Independence Day: Resurgence was unable to replicate the same success, making only $5.0M on July 4, nowhere near enough to qualify for this list.

#9: Men in Black II

2002’s sci-fi action comedy sequel Men in Black II made $16.5M on July 4. The next two films in the franchise didn’t come out around the holiday, though: 2012’s Men in Black 3 shifted to a late May release date, while 2019’s Men in Black: International came out in mid-June. 

#10: Men in Black

The original Men in Black, which kicked off the franchise in 1997, made $15.7M on July 4. That gives Will Smith an impressive four of the top 10 films on this list. 

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