This list charts the most successful films at cinemas in Italy by box office sales, in euros and admissions. It also lists the most popular Italian productions in terms of admissions.
The following is a list of the highest-grossing films in Italy. The list is topped by James Cameron's Avatar (2009) which surpassed his Titanic (1997) to take the local record. The highest-grossing Italian film is Quo Vado? (2016) starring Checco Zalone and directed by Gennaro Nunziante. This surpassed their Sole a catinelle (2013) as the top Italian film as well as their What a Beautiful Day (2011), which held the record prior to that. All three are still among the top six. Zalone also directed and starred in Tolo Tolo (2020), currently in fifth place. Prior to these Italian films, the highest-grossing Italian film was Roberto Benigni's Life Is Beautiful (1997). This remains the highest-grossing Italian film worldwide with a gross of over $230 million.[1] Of the current top 20, Titanic has the most admissions with 13.7 million, which ranks 12th all-time in Italy.
Background colour indicates films currently in cinemas as of 31 July 2024
| Rank | Genre | Title | Year | Gross (€) | Tickets sold | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Science fiction | Avatar | 2009 | 68,675,442[2] [3] | 7,919,514[4] | |
2  * | Comedy | Quo Vado? | 2016 | 65,341,588[5] | 9,354,698 | |
| 3 * | Comedy | Sole a catinelle | 2013 | 51,948,550[6] [7] | 8,005,352 | |
| 4 | Romantic, Disaster | Titanic | 1998 | 50,217,865[8] | 13,708,208 | |
| 5 * | Comedy | Tolo Tolo | 2020 | 46,201,300[9] | 6,674,622 | |
| 6 | Comedy drama | Inside Out 2 | 2024 | 43,872,313[10] | 6,025,697 | |
| 7 | Science fiction | 2022 | 44,798,350 | 5,058,147 | ||
| 8 * | Comedy | What a Beautiful Day | 2011 | 43,475,840 | 6,831,460 | |
| 9 | Musical | The Lion King | 2019 | 37,514,061 | 5,694,038 | |
| 10 * | Comedy drama | C'è ancora domani | 2023 | 36,795,665[11] | 5,441,291 | |
| 11 | Fantasy, Comedy | Barbie | 2023 | 32,122,053[12] | 4,390,410 | |
| 12 * | Comedy drama | Life Is Beautiful | 1997 | 31,231,984[13] | 9,702,524 | |
| 13 | Fantasy | Alice in Wonderland | 2010 | 30,397,548 | 3,511,206 | |
| 14 | Superhero | 2019 | 30,282,559[14] | 4,098,421 | ||
| 15 * | Comedy | Benvenuti al Sud | 2010 | 29,841,490 | 4,903,480[15] | |
| 16 | Comedy | 2009 | 29,705,584 | 4,055,708[16] | ||
| 17 | Psychological thriller | Joker | 2019 | 29,566,127 | 4,228,544 | |
| 18 | Biographical musical | Bohemian Rhapsody | 2018 | 29,053,485[17] | 4,154,275 | |
| 19 | Thriller | The Da Vinci Code | 2006 | 28,690,407 | 4,656,409 | |
| 20 * | Comedy | Chiedimi se sono felice | 2000 | 28,458,894 | 6,855,948 | |
| Films marked as * are Italian productions | ||||||
The following are the films with the most cinema admissions in Italy since 1945. Doctor Zhivago (1966) tops the list with 22.9 million admissions. War and Peace (1956), in fifth place with 15.7 million admissions, is the highest placed Italian production.
Background colour indicates films currently in cinemas
| Rank | Title | Year | Tickets sold[18] | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doctor Zhivago | 1966 | 22,900,000 | United Kingdom |
| 2 | The Godfather | 1972 | 21,810,000 | United States |
| 3 | The Ten Commandments | 1956 | 16,800,000 | United States |
| 4 | Goldfinger | 1964 | 15,800,000 | United Kingdom |
| 5 | War and Peace | 1956 | 15,707,723 | Italy United States |
| 6 | Last Tango in Paris | 1972 | 15,623,773 | Italy France |
| 7 | Ben-Hur | 1959 | 15,400,000 | United States |
| 8 | A Fistful of Dollars | 1964 | 14,797,275 | Italy Spain West Germany |
| 9 | Trinity Is Still My Name | 1971 | 14,554,172 | Italy |
| 10 | For a Few Dollars More | 1965 | 14,543,161 | Italy Spain West Germany |
| 11 | Thunderball | 1965 | 14,100,000 | United Kingdom |
| 12 | Titanic | 1998 | 13,708,208 | United States |
| 13 | La Dolce Vita | 1960 | 13,617,148 | Italy France |
| 14 | Little World of Don Camillo | 1952 | 13,215,653 | Italy France |
| 15 | Ulysses | 1954 | 13,170,322 | Italy |
| 16 | The Leopard | 1963 | 12,850,375 | Italy France |
| 17 | Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing | 1955 | 12,600,000 | United States |
| 18 | Beautiful but Dangerous | 1955 | 12,592,231 | Italy France |
| 19 | Malicious | 1973 | 11,756,327 | Italy |
| 20 | Miracle of Marcelino | 1955 | 11,559,217 | Spain Italy |
| 21 | The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | 1966 | 11,364,221 | Italy |
| 22 | The Longest Day | 1962 | 11,300,000 | United States |
| 23 | Watch Out, We're Mad! | 1974 | 11,246,906 | Italy Spain |
| 24 | 1966 | 11,245,980 | United States Italy | |
| 25 | Il Decameron | 1971 | 11,167,557 | Italy |
The following are the Italian films (including co-productions) with the most cinema admissions in Italy since 1950. The leader, War and Peace (1956), is ranked fifth when considering productions from other countries (see above table). Of films listed in the highest-grossing list above, Life Is Beautiful, with 9.7 million admissions, ranks 31st and Quo Vado?, with 9.4 million admissions, 34th.
Background colour indicates films currently in cinemas
| Rank | Title | Year | Tickets sold[19] | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | War and Peace | 1956 | 15,707,723 | Italy United States |
| 2 | Last Tango in Paris | 1972 | 15,623,773 | Italy France |
| 3 | A Fistful of Dollars | 1964 | 14,797,275 | Italy Spain West Germany |
| 4 | Trinity Is Still My Name | 1971 | 14,554,172 | Italy |
| 5 | For a Few Dollars More | 1965 | 14,543,161 | Italy Spain West Germany |
| 6 | La Dolce Vita | 1960 | 13,617,148 | Italy France |
| 7 | Little World of Don Camillo | 1952 | 13,215,653 | Italy France |
| 8 | Ulysses | 1954 | 13,170,322 | Italy |
| 9 | The Leopard | 1963 | 12,850,375 | Italy France |
| 10 | Beautiful but Dangerous | 1955 | 12,592,231 | Italy France |
| 11 | Malicious | 1973 | 11,756,327 | Italy |
| 12 | Miracle of Marcelino | 1955 | 11,559,217 | Spain Italy |
| 13 | The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | 1966 | 11,364,221 | Italy |
| 14 | Watch Out, We're Mad! | 1974 | 11,246,906 | Italy Spain |
| 15 | 1966 | 11,245,980 | United States Italy | |