Jonathan Bailey Is 2025’s Box Office Winner, But 3 Actors Have A Shot At The Crown In 2026

by

Jonathan Bailey led the box office in 2025, but the competition is expected to be tighter in 2026. He first gained attention for playing Fiyero in the 2024 film Wicked, and his success continued in 2025 with leading roles in two major Universal movies: Jurassic World Rebirth and Wicked: For Good.

With a worldwide gross of $868.9 million, Rebirth is the fourth highest-grossing film of the year, demonstrating the continued success of the Jurassic series. Wicked: For Good also launched strongly, earning $393.3 million globally. Collectively, films directed by Bailey have generated $1.2 billion, and that total is expected to rise as Wicked 2 remains in cinemas.

Although some people might be surprised by Bailey’s success at the box office, he was one of the few actors in 2025 with leading roles in several big-budget films. The situation is different next year, though, with multiple actors appearing in multiple blockbuster movies. Currently, three actors are expected to be the top contenders for the 2026 box office crown.

Tom Holland Has 2 Major Roles, And A Possible Avengers Appearance

Tom Holland is potentially set to have an incredibly successful July in 2026 at the box office. His film, The Odyssey, comes out on July 17th, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day follows on July 31st. If both movies perform well – and they both have a good chance of earning over $1 billion – Holland could reach a total of over $2 billion in box office revenue for the year.

Everyone’s expecting Brand New Day to earn over $1 billion at the box office. The previous two Spider-Man movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe both surpassed that mark, and No Way Home nearly made $2 billion. While superhero movie success isn’t as predictable as it once was, Spider-Man remains the most consistently popular and highest-grossing hero worldwide.

Whether The Odyssey will become a billion-dollar film remains to be seen, but initial signs are promising. Tickets for screenings in 70mm IMAX sold out a year before the release, demonstrating strong excitement for Christopher Nolan’s new movie. His success with 2023’s Oppenheimer – which drew audiences despite being a three-hour, R-rated film – proves Nolan can still fill theaters.

Fans are wondering if Tom Holland will appear in Avengers: Doomsday. While he wasn’t initially announced as part of the cast, Kevin Feige has said they’ll be revealing more actors involved. If Holland does return as Spider-Man in the film, it’s likely to be a massive box office success, potentially adding another billion-dollar movie to his career total, and securing the top box office spot for 2026.

Pedro Pascal Could Win The 2026 Box Office Crown Through 2 Major Franchises

Pedro Pascal is set to be incredibly busy in 2026, appearing in several major films. He’ll reprise his role as Reed Richards in Doomsday and return to the Star Wars universe with The Mandalorian and Grogu. Although he appeared in three films in 2025 – Materialists, Eddington, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps – his upcoming projects are expected to be even bigger box office successes.

While Marvel movies aren’t as consistently huge at the box office as they used to be, the upcoming film Doomsday is expected to be a major success. It probably won’t make quite as much money as Infinity War and Endgame, but it should easily earn over $1 billion. A big draw for fans is seeing Robert Downey Jr. play Doctor Doom, plus the return of familiar X-Men characters from the movies previously made by Fox.

The Mandalorian and Grogu is the first Star Wars movie released in theaters since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker. Although The Mandalorian is very popular on Disney+, it’s difficult to predict how well it will do in cinemas. Dedicated Star Wars fans are likely to go, but it might not appeal to those who only occasionally watch the franchise.

The 2018 film Solo showed that not every Star Wars spin-off movie will be a huge success. Like with previous films starring Pedro Pascal, one of his movies is almost certain to do well, but the other is more of a gamble. Whether he tops the box office in 2026 will likely depend on how well his Star Wars film performs globally.

Zendaya Could Build Her Box Office Total Through Spider-Man 4, The Odyssey, And Dune: Part 3

Zendaya and Tom Holland are predicted to be a major draw at the box office in 2026. They’re both starring in the upcoming films Brand New Day and The Odyssey, although Zendaya might have a smaller part as MJ compared to previous Spider-Man movies. Still, Zendaya has an edge thanks to her role in Dune: Part Three.

Denis Villeneuve’s Dune movies have been critically and commercially successful, receiving awards and earning a lot of money at the box office. The second film made $714.8 million worldwide, surpassing the first one, and the upcoming third movie is expected to continue this trend, even if it doesn’t quite hit the $1 billion mark.

Looking at these three movies, Zendaya is currently predicted to be the highest-earning actor in 2026. However, this depends on whether Tom Holland secretly filmed a scene for the movie Doomsday as Spider-Man. If he appears in the next Avengers film, Holland could have a record-breaking year at the box office. But if he doesn’t, Zendaya is expected to be the top-grossing actor next year.

Read More

2025-12-07 03:10