17. Ice Age (2002-2012)
20th Century FoxThe Ice Age series is the second-highest grossing animated franchise in history, and one that has seen its box office returns continue to defy expectations over the last decade. With over $2.8bn in box office takings so far and a fifth movie penciled in for July 2016, it remains to be seen whether the decade-old franchise will retain its appeal after three sequels of ever-diminishing quality. The first movie, despite a familiar and derivative plot, is elevated by a sense of wit and charm and was a solid if unspectacular hit with over $380m in worldwide grosses. The popularity of the movie on home video saw the sequel almost double those numbers, despite the humour and storytelling being inferior to the original. Dawn of the Dinosaurs marked a commercial high-point for the franchise with an $886.7m total, but franchise fatigue was beginning to set in as the excellent animation failed to cover the uninspired story, while Continental Drift is sorely lacking in creativity and recycles ideas from the franchises past. It remains to be seen whether the fifth installment will manage to recapture the spirit of the original, or will be content with mediocrity given that financial success is a virtual guarantee.