Believe it or not, but only 22 films in the history of cinema have made it to the one billion dollar mark. In 2016, though, that number could increase by 9. If that sounds like wishful thinking, cast your gaze across the following plethora of upcoming blockbusters, all of which are sure to set the box office on fire when they're unveiled next year - each and every one carefully designed to captivate the masses and rake in the big bucks for the studios who spent hundreds of millions of dollars making them. Of all the films set to be released in 2016, these are the ones that look to have the largest box office potential; movies that are likely to capture the zeitgeist and enter the all-time pantheon of insanely profitable motion pictures. And if some of them don't quite make it to that elusive billion dollar mark... well, you can bet that they'll come really, really close...
9. Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice
Estimated Box Office Gross: $1.2 Billion For as long as there have been superheroes, there have been those who want said superheroes to battle against one another - you know, just to see what happens. Whilst comic books frequently indulge in these stories - be they of the canon or fantastical variety - Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice marks the first proper time that two very, very iconic superheroes will do battle with one another on the big screen. And with such a huge budget at hand, too, there are no worries about things looking underwhelming. Batman v Superman is a movie designed as a provocation. It practically forces you to go see it on the promise of its title alone: who can resist such delicious premise? Not to mention that people are literally dying to see Batman on the big screen again, and already catapulted the last two Batman flicks - The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises - past $1 billion. Then there's the controversial casting decisions, like Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne, and Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor... even if you want the movie to fail (and many do), it's still a major event. Fans and haters are sure to swarm into theatres everywhere to see how it all goes down: crash and burn, or come out soaring, Batman v Superman is going to pull in over a billion dollars at the box office regardless.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
