By Gavin Boyle
While people generally know which franchises are the most popular, the list of the highest grossing franchises of all time holds many insights into the content that runs the industry.
“Pokémon leads all media franchises with $115 billion in revenue from games, trading cards, TV and films,” Boardroom wrote on Instagram along with an image revealing the top five IPs.
Following Pokémon is Mickey Mouse and friends at $61.2 billion, with Winnie the Pooh ($50.2 B), Star Wars ($46.7 B) and Disney Princesses ($45.4 B) rounding out the top five. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Disney owns four of the five most popular franchises whose total revenue are helped by the company’s strong development of toys and merchandise along with shows and movies.
Related: Is Disney+ Giving Up on Children’s Content?
The list also points towards keys to a franchise’s success, such as longevity, multiple shows and movies and the ability to connect with multiple generations. Perhaps most importantly, the list also reveals that family-friendly content is the most lucrative in the industry as out of the five franchises, Star Wars is the only one arguably not aimed entirely at children; each of the last six movies received a PG-13 rating.
Though Disney owning four of these franchises, it does not seem to understand that family-friendly content is the way to go. With the combination of Hulu and Disney+ onto one platform, the company announced it will focus on adult content, rather than shows and movies for kids.
“We’re not really developing shows for kids and family, that’s really done by our global brands and IP,” Disney Television Studio boss Eric Schrier said in December. “So we’re really looking to do Hulu originals across the world, and showing people that there’s content for adults on Disney+.”
“We’re not dogmatic,” he added. “Obviously, comedies, dramas, limited series are the backbone of what we do. Unscripted is a big part of the Disney brand, and Disney+ and ABC in particular, whether it’s SECRET LIVES OF MORMON WIVES or our doc series or our true crime-based series. So we’re looking to do a portfolio of our content.”
Meanwhile, Movieguide® continues to find, year after year, that redemptive, family-friendly movies outperform every other type of content – a fact further reinforced by the list of the highest grossing franchises of all time.
“The findings of our 2025 Report to the Entertainment Industry show once again that movies with strong Christian, redemptive, biblical, and moral content and values did much better at the box office in 2024 than movies with excessive or graphic foul language, sex, nudity, violence, and substance abuse, or movies that rejected or mocked positive values. These movies also did much better overseas and on home video. That’s because most moviegoers, including families with children and grandchildren, want to see inspiring stories that enrich their lives,” explained Movieguide® Founder and Publisher Ted Baehr in last year’s Report to the Entertainment Industry.
Unfortunately, Hollywood still believes that audiences want excessive content, which is what the industry prioritizes every year. Looking at the list of the most popular franchises ever, however, reveals the truth that audiences have always wanted stories they can enjoy with their families. Hopefully Hollywood will continue to deliver this content alongside the excessive shows and movies that few people actually want.
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