There was a time when the Academy Award for Best Picture was give to films that were not just critical darlings , but commercial-grade successes as well . This was the case for decennium , in fact , asGone with the Windstill stand as the most successful moving-picture show of all time when adjusted for pretentiousness and from the 1920s to the 70s , there was typically a strong correlation between a movie being identification number one at the box function and taking home the big dirty money on Oscar night . However , more and more we ’re find the Best Picture Oscar go to motion picture that oecumenical hearing have little pursuit in realize . Mind you , this does n’t mean that these movies are undeserving of the accolades they experience , but more that what Academy voter and the average American wish to see are becoming increasingly disparate .

With that in mind , here are the 15 lowest - grossing Best Picture winner of all time , adjusted for inflation .

15. Crash (2005)

Original Gross:$54,557,348

Adjusted Gross:$69,713,284

One of the most controversial Best Picture winners in Oscar story , Crashbeat out the running favoriteBrokeback Mountainto bring home the bacon the top prize at the 78th Academy Awards . The profits sparked allegation of anti - brave persuasion among Academy elector , while others simply felt thatCrashwas undeserving of the accolades it obtain . boast a large ensemble cast including actor such as Sandra Bullock , Matt Dillon , Don Cheadle , and Thandie Newton , the fervor surroundingCrashdid not transform to overwhelming corner office winner , as the motion-picture show earned a respectable , though far from solid ground - shattering $ 54.5 million   ( $ 69.7 M in today ’s dollars ) .

http://www.sky.com/tv/movie/crash-2004 Source : Sky.com

14. The Shape of Water (2017)

Domestic Gross:$63,842,519

The most recent Best Picture winner , Guillermo del Toro ’s run , fantastical photographic film about a deaf woman who falls in lovemaking with a occult brute jail in a government facility was believably never going to set the box office on firing even with the accolades it receive . That being said , The Shape of Waterdid see a substantial increase in domestic lucre surveil the announcement of its 13 Oscar nomination in January 2018 and finished its streak with $ 63.8 million . While this madeThe Shape of Watera small hit in the grand schema of things , it ’s still the best box office functioning from a   Best Picture winner since Ben Affleck’sArgogrossed $ 136 million in 2012 .

http://www.dreadcentral.com/editorials/268073/shape-water-power-silent-performance/ Source : Dread Central

13. Gigi (1958)

Original Gross:$7,300,000

Adjusted Gross:$63,036,131

This 1958 musical theater directed by Vincente Minnelli is wide consider to be the last gravid   Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer musical production , a distinction that is reflected in its then - criminal record breaking cleanup on Oscar night . Gigiwon nine prize at the 1959 ceremony , the most ever by a exclusive film up to that point . However , Gigi ’s achievements would not prevail for recollective , as the record was broken the very next year whenBen - Hurwon 11 Oscars . In term of box office , Gigiturned a lucre and earned $ 7.3 million domestically , which when adjust for inflation convert to just over $ 63 million – not a tatty take by any means , but definitely not anywhere near the top of the Best Picture all - clip leaning .

http://www.cinematrove.com/gigi-1958/ Source : Cinema Trove

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Original Gross:$56,671,993

Adjusted Gross:$60,709,583

When you take into account its intense study matter,12 year a Slaveactually performed very well at the box agency . Though a chip deadening to start , Steve McQueen ’s adaption of Solomon Northup ’s agonizing 1853 memoir of the same name gained a lot of grip once awarding season rolled around and the film received a gross ton of nominations.12 Years a Slavewent onto win three Oscars , including Best Picture , Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong’o and Best Director . Domestically , the film earned $ 56.6 million but perform much better overseas with $ 131 M earn in foreign markets , make 12 eld a Slave – which only cost $ 20 million to make – a commercial success overall .

Fox Searchlight

11. The Great Ziegfeld (1936)

Original Gross:$3,000,000

Adjusted Gross:$53,860,575

A fictionalize tribute to Broadway theater showman Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. , Robert Z. Leonard ’s 1936 musical ended up becoming of the most successful film of the 1930s , earning three Academy Awards :   Best Picture , Best Actress for Luise Rainer , and Best Dance Direction for Seymour Felix . While the movie is still regarded as one of the best musical to arrive out of Hollywood ’s Golden Age , The Great Ziegfeldhasn’t age as well as its accolades would suggest , with contemporary critic consider it overlong and excessively showy . In condition of box office functioning , The Great Ziegfeldearned some $ 3 M , which was an impressive haul back in the mid-30s at the height of the Great Depression , but by today ’s standards makes it a scummy Best Picture performing artist .

MGM

10. The Artist (2011)

Original Gross:$44,671,682

adjust Gross:$49,560,089

This modern Clarence Day mum picture and love alphabetic character to classic Hollywood took the 84th Academy Awards by storm when it win five of the ten categories it was nominated for , include   Best Director for Michel Hazanavicius , Best Actor in a Leading Role for Jean Dujardin , Best Costume Design , Best Original Score and of course , Best Picture . However , much like almost everyone has already forgotten about this film ’s existence , The Artistdidn’t exactly light up the box office chart , finishing with $ 44.6 meter in domestic receipts , making it the tenth lowest grossing Best Picture succeeder of all clip .

Film International

9. Spotlight (2015)

Original Gross:$45,055,776

Adjusted Gross:$47,438,998

Out of the   eight films propose for 2015 ’s Best Picture , Spotlightranked third overall in terms of profitability , earning just over $ 45 metre domestically against a $ 20 metre budget . This was honest enough for an calculate lucre of $ 10 million , which is pretty salutary for a serious dramatic play about Boston newspaper reporters trying to expose child gender abuse in the Catholic church . Still , this pales in comparison to the corner authority draw of one ofSpotlight’scompetitors , The Martian , which earn over $ 600 M worldwide and had a profit of $ 100 M or higher . Sure , that ’s like compare apples to oranges , butSpotlightwas still part of a downward tendency in Best Picture net income in the 2010s , which only proves that Oscar pull ahead can only get you so far when it comes to seek to convince people to see your pic .

Open Road Films

8. It Happened One Night (1934)

Original Gross:$2,500,000

Adjusted Gross:$46,558,582

A screwball drollery classic direct by Frank Capra and star Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert , It find One Nightwas the first film to get ahead all five of the top Oscar categories : Best Picture , Actor ( Cable ) , Actress ( Colbert ) , Director ( Capra ) , and Screenplay . This is a feat that would n’t be repeated untilOne Flew Over the goose ’s Nestaccomplished it in 1975 . In terms of Box Office carrying out , It Happened One Nightis yet another case of old Hollywood succeeder being unmanageable to compare to forward-looking trend , as the motion picture ’s $ 2.5 MB haul made it Columbia ’s high-pitched grossing film up to that tip but when adjusted for inflation , this number fail to move and puts Capra ’s plastic film on the lower end of Best Picture achiever net .

Columbia Pictures

7. Birdman (2014)

Original Gross:$42,340,598

aline Gross:$44,633,117

Coming in as the 82nd highest grossing film of 2014 ,   Alejandro G. Iñárritu’sBirdman or ( The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)was a box office disappointment overall and one of the scummy gross Best Picture winners of the modern geological era . Whether it was the unknown title or the bewildering subject matter at the spirit of   Iñárritu ’s dark comedy , not many moviegoers were interested in discover Michael Keaton bring a wash up actor trying to launch his Broadway career .

http://www.hitfix.com/movies/birdman Source : Hitfix.com

6. An American in Paris (1951)

Original Gross:$4,500,000

adjust Gross:$43,192,038

Yet another Vincette Minnelli - direct Best Picture - winning melodious , An American in Parisis still regard as one of the large motion picture musicals ever made . Though the film proved financially successful in its prison term , bring in $ 4.5 thousand for MGM and turning a profit in the appendage , An American in Paris’adjusted profits home it on the depressed conclusion of Best Picture winners when rank by box office carrying out .

5. Marty (1955)

Original Gross:$4,000,000

Adjusted Gross:$37,246,865

The placement ofMarty – Delbert Mann ’s 1955 drama about a mid-30s butcher living in the Bronx who unexpectedly retrieve love life – in the top 5 rate needs to be clarified a bit . Though the film ’s box office net are quite humble compared to the legal age of other Best Picture winners out there , the fact that the flick was made for just $ 350,000 mean that it was still quite profitable . That being read , this is one of those films that critics and film buff adore but you ’d probably be hard - pressed to see it discussed   much by the average movie fan .

https://medium.com/@jordanarobison/watching-marty-1955-for-the-first-time-with-my-wife-d4e063ed7b28 Source : intermediate

4. All The King’s Men (1949)

Original Gross:$3,500,000

adjust Gross:$36,699,117

Based on Robert Penn Warren ’s Pulitzer Prize get ahead novel of the same name , All The King ’s Menfollows the raise of Willie Stark from rural politician to unpitying regulator was a smash with critics and a box office winner in its metre with $ 3.5 million in pay . However , when adjusted for ostentatiousness , this figure only translates to around $ 36.7 M , makingAll The King ’s Menone of the weakest Best Picture winner of all metre in terms of total earnings .

https://medium.com/@boedeckerboulder/the-boedecker-theater-cinema-blog-8bd6e1a33381 Source : Medium

3. Hamlet (1948)

Original Gross:$3,075,000

correct Gross:$31,841,433

Laurence Olivier ’s adaption of William Shakespeare ’s classic tragedy is   the most decoratedHamletmovie ever made when it comes to awards , with Olivier gain the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor . now , the movie is still well - regarded ( in particular Olivier ’s lead performance ) but as aHamletadaptation , it go away much to be desired give that it compresses a four minute long play into a two hour runtime . Unsurprisingly given that Shakespeare adaptations are n’t together with acknowledge for putting up huge boxful place numbers , Hamletwas a smasher by 1948 banner but not so much when measure up to most Best Picture winner that have been released since .

https://letterboxd.com/film/hamlet/ beginning : Letterboxd

2. Moonlight (2016)

Original Gross:$27,854,932

Adjusted Gross:$28,962,945

The most late example of the division between the Academy and the world ’s sense of taste in motion picture , Moonlightwas reverence by critic but its choice as Best Picture was both an artsy and political pick – and an alienating one at that . With $ 27.8 M earned domestically , Moonlight’sbox bureau failure can be read as being diagnostic of a larger trend of small-scale , independent picture made for adult audiences not experience lets at the multiplex . That is n’t to say that these form of movies do n’t have a sizable consultation , but with video continuing to become a more viable , popular option for creators to tell these kind of stories , it ’s plainly becoming less probable that theMoonlightsof the world are go to become $ 100 million box office phenomenon .

https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Moonlight-(2015 ) Source : The Numbers

1. The Hurt Locker (2009)

Original Gross:$14,700,000

Adjusted Gross:$17,099,352

Yes , we were surprised to see this one landed estate at the number one spot too . Then again , maybe it should n’t be , as at the time ofThe Hurt Locker’srelease , moving picture about the Iraq War were still an unpopular topic among American audiences and even though Kathryn Bigelow ’s film had the benefit of a Best Picture profits under its smash , it barely turned a profit . The picture show did so poorly at the box office , in fact , that it is one of only five Best Picture succeeder to never enter the weekend box office top 5 , as well as one of only two to never enter the top 10 . On the bright side , The Hurt Lockeralso made story for much more positive reasons , chief of which is that it pull in Bigelow a Best Director Oscar , marking the first time in history that the prize was awarded to a female director .

Summit Entertainment