Johnny Depp is famous worldwide for playing Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean. His movies have made over $10 billion globally, proving he’s a huge star with fans of all ages.
But here’s a surprise. One of his lesser-talked-about films earned more than five times what it cost to make, and it’s not from the Pirates series. That film is Alice in Wonderland from 2010, directed by Tim Burton.
Alice in Wonderland made $334.1 million in North America and $691.2 million internationally, totaling over $1 billion worldwide. The film had a $200 million budget, so it earned about 5.13 times its production cost. Using the usual 2.5x rule to cover expenses, the movie needed around $500 million to break even. That means it likely made over $500 million in profit.
When we compare it to the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the numbers are impressive. Here’s how the first five Pirates films did in terms of earnings versus budget:
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Curse of the Black Pearl: 4.67x
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Dead Man’s Chest: 4.76x
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At World’s End: 3.2x
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On Stranger Tides: 4.2x
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Dead Men Tell No Tales: 3.46x
Even the best-performing Pirates film, Dead Man’s Chest, only earned 4.76 times its budget. Alice in Wonderland beats that with 5.13 times its budget, making it Johnny Depp’s most profitable film relative to its cost.
