BY NOW, EVERYONE ON THE PLANET KNOWS THAT AVATAR

Is the HIGHEST GROSSING FILM of all time… so it’s made the most cash… but that doesn’t mean it’s the most successful movie of all time. The most successful film would be the one which the most people have seen, and according to ticket sales, that movie is (drum roll please)

OF COURSE GONE WITH THE WIND! With 202,044,600 tickets sold
So, what other movies made the cut?
JAMES CAMERON’S Avatar is the highest-grossing film worldwide of all time and the second highest-grossing in U.S. box office history — behind only Titanic — but if you judge success by the number of tickets sold domestically, the sci-fi adventure is way down on the list, below JOHN TRAVOLTA’s Grease, according to the website BoxOfficeMojo.com.
The reason for the disparity between money earned and tickets sold is simple. Back in the day, tickets cost less than they do today. That means even though a contemporary film can earn far more than an older film, older films on balance can still be more successful, when judged by the number of tickets sold. By that barometer, the most successful film of all time was released 75 years ago: 1939’s Gone with the Wind. Avatar is 26th on the list.
Here are the top movies in U.S. history, based on estimated tickets sold, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com:
1. Gone with the Wind – 202,044,600 tickets sold
2. Star Wars – 178,119,600f
3. The Sound of Music – 142,415,400
4. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial – 141,854,300
5. The Ten Commandments – 131,000,000
6. Titanic – 128,345,900
7. Jaws – 128,078,800
8. Doctor Zhivago – 124,135,500
9. The Exorcist – 110,568,700
10. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – 109,000,000
11. 101 Dalmatians – 99,917,300
12. The Empire Strikes Back – 98,180,600
13. Ben-Hur – 98,000,000
14. Return of the Jedi – 94,059,400
15. The Sting – 89,142,900
16. Raiders of the Lost Ark – 88,141,900
17. Jurassic Park – 86,205,800
18. The Graduate – 85,571,400
19. Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace – 84,825,800
20. Fantasia – 83,043,500
21. The Godfather – 78,922,600
22. Forrest Gump – 78,545,600
23. Mary Poppins – 78,181,800
24. The Lion King – 77,231,800
25. Grease – 76,921,800
26. Avatar – 74,823,000
27. Thunderball – 74,800,000
28. The Dark Knight – 74,282,100
29. The Jungle Book – 73,679,900
30. Sleeping Beauty – 72,676,100
31. Shrek 2 – 71,050,900
32. Ghostbusters – 70,730,600
33. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – 70,557,900
34. Love Story – 69,998,100
35. Spider-Man – 69,484,700
36. Independence Day – 69,268,900
37. Home Alone – 67,734,200
38. Pinocchio – 67,403,300
39. Cleopatra – 67,183,500
40. Beverly Hills Cop – 67,150,000
41. Goldfinger – 66,300,000
42. Airport – 66,111,300
43. American Graffiti – 65,714,300
44. The Robe – 65,454,500
45. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – 64,628,400
46. Around the World in 80 Days – 64,615,400
47. Bambi – 63,712,400
48. Blazing Saddles – 63,227,500
49. Batman – 62,954,600
50. The Bells of St. Mary’s – 62,745,100