
It's just days away from losing its box office crown to the Disney/Pixar movie "Up," but "Star Trek" can finally celebrate one last milestone it has been fighting to reach: It undeniably is now the highest grossing film in the Trek franchise, even when adjusted for inflation.
"Star Trek" picked up another $570,000 Monday, according to Showbiz Data, bringing its total domestic haul to $240.8 million. That's just $100,000 behind "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," which earned $82.3 million in 1979, which equates to about $240.9 million today. Although official numbers are not out yet for Tuesday, "Star Trek" easily made more than $100,000 to pass "The Motion Picture" and earn its franchise crown.
The movie from J.J. Abrams likely will end its run with just under $250 million domestically, totally blowing away the previous film in the franchise, "Star Trek: Nemesis" which earned just $43.1 million in 2002.
Based on a previous study by Airlock Alpha, that now shifts the inflation-adjusted list of films.
Outside of "Star Trek: First Contact," Trek films took a definite slide beginning with "Final Frontier" despite the fact that its predecessor, "The Voyage Home" at the time was the biggest raw box office grosser in franchise history.
About the Author:
Michael Hinman is the founder and site coordinator for Airlock Alpha and the entire BlipNetwork. He owns Quantum Global Media Inc., the parent corporation of the BlipNetwork. He's a print journalist by day, and lives in Tampa, Fla.