Wes Andersonis an interesting filmmaker in terms of popularity. He is a cult name that has transcended his cinephile groupies and entered popular culture. Despite his coveted reputation for making idiosyncratic movies, jam-packed with eccentricity, personality, and this nth degree of attentiveness thatdefines Anderson’s style, the love for his movies doesn’t necessarily translate to bums-in-seats, which subsequently leaves big-budget, well-received movies little to show for at the box office.
Update August 18, 2025: In honor of the Netflix release ofThe Wonderful World of Henry Sugarand the release ofAstreoid City, this article has been updated with a complete list of Wes Anderson’s films ranked at the box office.
Yet the director still has been given many blank checks to make whatever movies he wants. Let’s take a look at the director’s filmography in order of box office return, beginning with his artful flops and building toward his most commercially successful films. We will be taking into account the worldwide box office numbers of his films.
11Bottle Rocket - $560,069
Bottle Rocket
Bottle Rocketwas Wes Anderson’s directorial debut, his “hello” to the world of filmmaking, and although it was deemed a box office flop, recuperating a pathetic $560,000 off its $5 million budget, it was adored by the critics, and ultimately launched his career in film. It has since gained a cult following and a strong lesson in playing the long game, where the payoff has been Anderson’s entire career.
10Rushmore - $17.1 to $19.1 Million
Anderson’s second feature,Rushmore, is acoming-of-age comedy-dramastarring Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray in the main roles, where the former plays a rebellious, eccentric schoolboy, and the latter portrays a business tycoon in the midst of a midlife crisis. While there is no definitive figure,Rushmoreis believed to have grossed between $17 and $19 million.
9The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - $34.8 Million
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Released in 2004,The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissouhas always divided opinion, though Zissou isplayed so emphatically by Bill Murray(and surrounded with such an astonishingly good ensemble cast), that the film seems impossible not to take to. It is a story of a group of oceanographers and documentarians who are victims to a shark attack during an expedition which kills a crew member.
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Driven by a morbid curiosity and desire for revenge (along with a need to reignite their careers), the team head out to sea to track down their friend’s killer. With a whopping budget of $50 million, the screenplay written by Anderson, along with friend and fellow director Noah Baumbach, flopped at the box office, recouping a meager $34.8 million.
8The Darjeeling Limited - $35.1 Million
The Darjeeling Limited
In this meandering tale of three brothers who journey across India in search of their mother at a Himalayan convent following the news of their father’s passing, the audience is taken on a spiritual journey of forgiveness, brotherhood, and whimsical self-reflection. Featuring Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman, as well as a brief cameo from a running Bill Murray,The Darjeeling Limitedcertainly isn’t short of respected actors. For all its artistic brilliance, exotic color palette, beautiful score, and wishy-washy comical undertones, the film made takings of $35.1 million.
7The French Dispatch - $46.3 Million
The French Dispatch
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the film industry’s release schedule,The French Dispatchwas subject to a lengthy delay. When it finally did reach our screens, it promised to be the most Wes Anderson-y of Wes Anderson films; in many ways, it was a lesson in hedonism, with the filmmaker indulging in all his quirks to an aesthetically gorgeous degree.
Based in a made-up French city, this comedy-drama follows the story of a group of American journalists covering the on-goings of their surroundings for the publicationThe French Dispatch.While it was debatably the director’s most unapologetically unrestrained movie to date, it took in $46.3 million at the box office.
6Fantastic Mr. Fox - $46.5 Million
The Fantastic Mr. Fox
Anderson has become rather a dab hand atRoald Dahl adaptations, with his latestThe Wonderful Story of Henry Sugarnow in post-production. However, it all began with his satirically quirky take onFantastic Mr. Fox.Starring some of Anderson’s usual roustabouts, including Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and of course, the silver fox himself, George Clooney, the film tells the story of Mr. Fox, a chicken thief who steals from the perilously unforgiving Boggis, Bunce, and Bean, three local farmers who are out for Mr. Fox and his family’s blood.Fantastic Mr. Foxtook home $46 million at the worldwide box office.
5Asteroid City - $53.2 Million
Asteroid City
Sitting relatively pretty in fifth is Anderson’s latest ultra-quirky theatrical installment. Receiving its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023, it would hit cinemas in June to a solid box office reception.Asteroid Citytells the tale of a group of junior stargazers and space cadets held up in a 1955 desert town in southwestern America. Documenting their astrological studies, the scientific community is thrown a major curveball when alien life arrives on Earth.
While by no means Anderson’s best movie, he is still trying to locate the form that saw him create the majestic hits ofThe Grand Budapest Hotel,The Royal Tenenbaums,andMoonrise Kingdom. Starting with a budget of $25 million,Asteroid Citywould go onto bank a reputable $52 million at the box office.
4Isle of Dogs - $64.2 Million
Isle of Dogs
Anderson’s 2018 stop-motion flickIsle of Dogsgot its name from the Isle of Dogs, a peninsula in East London. TheBottle Rocketdirector has built somewhat of a formidable reputation when it comesto stop-motion animation, with the triumph that was 2009’sFantastic Mr. Fox.Following a four-year hiatus after his last movie,The Grand Budapest Hotel,enjoyed the riches of both box office and critical success, the expectations on the Texan filmmaker’s shoulders were palpable. WhileIsle of Dogsdidn’t experience the same degree of acclaim, it grossed a respectable sum of $64.2 million.
Set in Japan, in the fictional city of Megasaki, by order of an official governmental decree, all canine pets are to be banished to Trash Island, a remote isle that is used as an extensive rubbish tip. The movie follows a group of stranded dogs from very differing backgrounds, as they attempt to return to the mainland, enlisting the help of a 12-year-old boy, Atari after his plane crashed on the island while looking for his dog, Spots.
3Moonrise Kingdom - $68.3 Million
Moonrise Kingdom
After the acclaim of Anderson’s run of beloved first films, his more fantastical and silly coming-of-age comedyMoonrise Kingdomwas rightly greeted with an air of real anticipation. It is a movie that concerns the love story of two of its protagonists, Sam and Suzy, who fall in love while Sam is on a scout’s expedition and decides to run away to unite with his pen pal. It is a charming tale of young love that recaptured the director’s form after a couple of disappointments (The Life AquaticandDarjeeling Limited) during the mid-2000s. It collected a very tidy $68 million at cinemas internationally.
2The Royal Tenenbaums - $71.4 Million
The Royal Tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums is a film directed by Wes Anderson, featuring an ensemble cast including Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, and Ben Stiller. The movie explores the estranged Tenenbaum family’s complex dynamics as they reunite in their New York City home. With each member facing personal struggles, they navigate the repercussions of their collective past while striving for reconciliation and redemption.
With their father practically on his deathbed, his estranged children, Richie, Chas, and Margot Tenenbaum, rally around him as a final act of solidarity and love. All talented in their own right, the children are an odd assembly of solemn-looking, self-pitying former child prodigies who all seem to be going through existential or artistic crises. Ostensibly damaged by their father’s absence, apparent disinterest, and brutal frankness, Royal Tenenbaum’s (Gene Hackman) kids have a quiet disdain for their oddball father as he plays his final redemption song.
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Awash with all of Anderson’s eccentricities, as well as the lengthy list of token A-listers,The Royal Tenenbaumsexceeded expectations at the box office with returns of $71 million, which with inflation is around $118 million in today’s financial climate. To many,The Royal Tenenbaumsremains close to Anderson’s best, and it’s likely that the combination of its amazing cast and the critical acclaim of his first two films led to this surprise box office hit.
