Production company A24 was founded in 2012, and over the last ten years it has produced many interesting, characteristically stylish movies across a range of genres. These include terrific sci-fi movies likeUnder the SkinandDenis Villeneuve’sEnemy; dramas likeLocke,Eighth Grade, and20th Century Women; and wacky genre hybridsSwiss Army ManandA Ghost Story. They also collaborated with HBO to produceEuphoria.
As a result, A24 has acquired a growing fan base, meaning bigger budgets and bigger stars. 2024 looks like it’ll be another big year for the company — it will see the release of many intriguing projects, includingCivil War. Without further ado,these are the highest-grossing A24 films to date, fromSpring Breakersto the critically acclaimedEverything Everywhere All at Once.
12’Spring Breakers' (2013)
Worldwide Earnings:$31,724,284
Spring Breakersis A24’s first real hit. It starsSelena Gomez,Vanessa Hudgens, andAshley Bensonas a group of college friends who get mixed up with a drug dealer (James Franco) and soon find themselves entangled in a world of crime and violence. It’s very tongue-in-cheek though, with a madcap sense of humor.
Earning over $31 million globally, this controversial Harmony Korine teen flick was surely a hit when it was released, though it did divide some audiences. While some perceived the film as sexist due to its objectification of women, others viewed it as a feminist or female-empowerment film. Nonetheless,Spring Breakers' popularity is given thanks to its well-crafted, provocative story and, of course, the fact that it starred one of the fan-favorite singers at the time. DirectorHarmony Korinesays he carefully selected the cast members to emphasize the movie’s themes: “There’s obviously something very exciting about working with these girls who are, in some ways, in real life, representative of that culture and that pop mythology; and also people who the public can identify as personalities that are complete contrasts to what they’re portraying in the film,“Korine has said in an interview.
Spring Breakers
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11’Room' (2015)
Worldwide Earnings:$35,401,758
Roomtells the story of Joy (Brie Larson), a young woman who is kidnapped and held captive for seven years. She is kept in a shed with her five-year-old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay). Despite the horrific situation, Joy tries to care for Jack and remain hopeful, even as the odds of them escaping seem more and more remote.
Directed byLenny Abrahamson, this intense Oscar-nominated flick is stillamong Brie Larson’s best, with the star winning Best Actress for the first time for her efforts in it. This is added tothe incredibly intense screenplay it features, so it is no wonder whyRoomhas scored over $35 million at the box office. “The most conventional romantic trope of all is that you put lovers under extreme pressure, where they have to make decisions that illuminate aspects of that bond,“directorLenny Abrahamsonexplains. “Roomdoes the same, but with the parent-child relationship.”
10’Ex Machina' (2014)
Worldwide Earnings:$37,394,629
Ex Machinawas the directorial debut by28 Days LaterscreenwriterAlex Garland. It’s a sophisticated thriller about an inventor (Oscar Isaac), his A.I. robot (Alicia Vikander), and a programmer (Domhnall Gleeson) with no idea what he’s getting himself into. It boasts great acting, a story full of twists, and plenty of thoughtful commentary about artificial intelligence.
On top of tackling technological advancement and its consequences, the thought-provokingEx Machinaalso provides a thoughtful commentary on misogyny and female objectification.“I just got very interested in the area of artificial intelligence and, in particular, how it relates to human consciousness because it’s about what we value about each other,“Alex Garland told NPR. “I could see that there was a lot of anxiety floating around about A.I.s. And I wanted to address it partly because I thought it was misplaced.” Thisincredible A24 sci-fi moviehas collected $37,394,629 worldwide.
Ex Machina
9’The Witch' (2015)
Worldwide Earnings:$40,423,945
The Witchwas the first feature for both directorRobert Eggersand starAnya Taylor-Joy. They hit the ground running, resulting in one of the most immersive and thoughtful horrors of the last decade. The film takes place in a New England settlement in the 1600s, where dark events begin to plague a family. Notably, the atmosphericThe Witcheschews jump scares for slow-burning tension and allegory.
“It’s about the family,“Eggers says in a conversation with Criterion. “One of the things I like about classic fairy tales is the same thing I like about myths: they explore complex family dynamics. The family drama is the most interesting drama; that’s whyHamletandKing Learare generally the most laudedShakespeareplays.” With the downfall of a puritan, dysfunctional family at its center, Eggers' 40-million-dollar folk horror deals with themes of generational trauma and oppression with fantastic results.
8’Midsommar' (2019)
Worldwide Earnings:$48,059,189
After the success ofHereditary, directorAri Asterteamed up withFlorence Pughfor this psychological slasher about a group of friends who attend a Swedish midsummer festival. After a while, it turns out that said locals belong to a cult that engages in human sacrifice.
Earning over $47 million dollars,Midsommaris unusual for a horror in that it takes place almost entirely in broad daylight. While it features incredibly striking cinematography,Midsommaris also unnerving and alarming at times, featuring no jumpscares, and relying on creepy imagery instead.According to Ari Aster, “The film is adjacent to horror; I wouldn’t call it a horror film. I think of it as a fairy tale with horror elements. It’s folk horror, but it’s being given to you with the trajectory of a high-school comedy.”
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7’Uncut Gems' (2019)
Worldwide Earnings:$50,023,780
Few films are as wild and frenetic as this crime thriller directed by theSafdie brothers. It centers on Howard (Adam Sandler), a jeweler with a gambling addiction who has to retrieve a gem to pay his debt to a crew of gangsters.Sandler delivers his darkest and most complex performancesincePunch-Drunk Love.
The anxiety-inducingUncut Gems, which highlights the self-destructive compulsion to win no matter the cost, undoubtedly makes it to the highest-grossing A24 films, earning $50,023,780 globally. It is not hard to understand why. “The idea is that [Howard is] rough on the outside, but if you scratched below the surface, you see the beauty, and you see these things that you didn’t quite know were there at first glance,“Benny Safdie has told Vulture. “You need to understand him to really love and know who he is.”
Uncut Gems
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6’The Whale' (2022)
Worldwide Earnings:$54,883,206
The Whalewas a pretty divisive film when it came out in 2022. Still,it delivered Brendan Fraser his due Academy Award, marking the actor’s comeback to the big screens.Darren Aronofsky’s movie depicts the story of an overweight and reclusive English professor who attempts to reconnect with his teenage daughter (Sadie Sink) after the loss of his boyfriend.
Now earning a spot among the highest-grossing movies by A24,The Whalehas grossed $54,883,206 at the international box office, despite often being criticized for not actually casting a 600-pound man for the role and, as some viewers believe, mocking obese people. Nonetheless, it wasan impressive comeback for Fraser, as Aronofsky would agree: “Once a movie star, always a movie star,” the filmmaker said in aconversation with the BFI. “And it’s just exciting to see that artist come back to life and be given such a complicated character."– Daniela Gama
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5’Moonlight' (2016)
Worldwide Earnings:$65,172,611
Moonlightis probably the studio’s most moving film and one ofA24’s best coming-of-ages. It tells the story of Chiron, a gay young man from Liberty City, Miami. Three different actors play Chiron; first as a boy, then as a teenager, and finally, as an adult. It represented a major step forward for directorBarry Jenkins, and went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture.
“When I first readTarell[Alvin McCraney]’s play, I told him it was like he took a memory of my memories and placed them into this fever dream,“Jenkins has revealed to the BFI. “I’m glad visually, that’s what the translation became. I’ve always tried to find a way to use the aesthetics of filmmaking to tap into the subconscious. That’s the power of cinema.” Elevated by its stunning visuals and touching narrative of identity, self-discovery, and sexuality,Moonlightis, as many would agree, a truly incredibly touching cinematic experience— its $65,172,611 earnings prove that.
4’Lady Bird' (2017)
Worldwide Earnings:$78,986,478
After proving herself as an actress in films likeFrances Haand20th Century Women,BarbiefilmmakerGreta Gerwigstepped behind the camera for this coming-of-age story about a teenage girl (Sairose Ronan) and her strained relationship with her mother (Laurie Metcalf).
The Oscar-winningLady Birdis not only one of the studio’s highest-grossing films, but also one ofA24’s most-watched movies.This makes sense, given how relatable of a story it can be to younger audiences, and how easy it is to sympathize with it no matter what age one is. “I wanted to explore the fact that I think when you’re a teenager, you’re trying to figure out who you are through the refraction of other people,“Gerwig admitted to NPR. “It’s reaching for a definition of oneself through relationships and sometimes rejecting the ones that are close to you because you are sure that someone else is better; someone would reflect a better self to you.”
3’Hereditary' (2018)
Worldwide Earnings:$82,729,816
Possibly Ari Aster’s most popular – and, arguably, best – project to date,Hereditaryhas grossed $82,729,816 globally. It is a truly terrifying horror centering around a grieving family tormented by a demonic entity after the death of the matriarch. Secrets about her dark past are slowly unearthed, shocking both the family at its center and audiences.
“I knew that I really wanted to make a film about the corrosive effects of trauma on a family unit,“Aster revealed to VOX, explaining the essence of the film. “I knew that I wanted to make a film that had sort of an ouroboros quality about a family that’s basically eating itself in its grief. It’s a story that I certainly had in me.” No doubt,Hereditaryturned out to be one of the most unnerving portrayals of grief anddysfunctional families in cinematic history.
