(Authors' Note: The idea for Honor Student was given to us by the reader Unknown, while the ideas for the X-Men, Flash, Fantastic Four, Suicide Squad, and Shazam films were all by Pyro.)
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The Top 25 Highest Grossing Films Of 2006 (North American domestic gross only):
1. X-Men: The Dark Phoenix, Part 2 - $488.7 million
2. King Arthur: The Fall Of Camelot - $475 million (Note: The epic tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table continues. This film would ultimately break the record for the biggest opening weekend of all time, though X-Men: The Dark Phoenix, Part 2 would take that record back a few months later. Like the second installment of most epic trilogies, this one ends on a bit of a low note to set up the third film.)
3. Night At The Museum - $294.6 million
4. The Flash 2 - $286.0 million
5. Cars - $237.3 million
6. Fantastic Four 2 - $228.5 million
7. Ganymede - $217.5 million (Note: A sci-fi space action film about a massive disaster about to befall the four space colonies on Jupiter's largest moons, particularly Ganymede, which is about to be impacted by another of Jupiter's moons after the planet's gravity is disrupted. Packed with stars and loaded with special effects, the film gets a mixed reaction from critics but is seen as groundbreaking from a visual standpoint.)
8. The Marshal - $190.6 million (Note: A biopic about Bass Reeves, the legendary black deputy US Marshal and the partial inspiration for the Lone Ranger. Stars Will Smith, who was reluctant to take the role after 1999's Wild Wild West flopped, but a massive payday and the promise of Oscars lured Smith to the role, and this ultimately became one of the year's most popular films, and the first blockbuster Western since Dances With Wolves.)
9. Eragon - $188.4 million (Note: They get the Eragon film adaptation right ITTL, thanks to much better writing that actually improves on the original source material, and much better casting as well. The film would kick off a four film franchise that would prove to be one of the more successful of the late 2000s/early 2010s.)
10. Dreamweaver - $166.5 million (Note: An action thriller starring Adam Sandler as a cop assigned to protect a psychic played by Drew Barrymore who is the only one who can stop a dangerous spree killer. After a run of bad films from Sandler, this action title helped put him back in audiences' good graces, though Tony Scott's directing and Denzel Washington's outstanding performance as the film's villain also helped.)
11. The Underground - $165.8 million (Note: Another Dreamworks CGI animated film, this one about moles. There's not much to this one, it's sort of funny and looks quite good on the big screen, it has a few celebrities... despite the lack of Shrek, Dreamworks has settled into about the same pattern they have IOTL in terms of animated films, with Warner Bros. filling the niche that Fox did IOTL in terms of animated features.)
12. Suicide Squad - $152.6 million
13. The Departed - $150.7 million
14. Intrusion - $148.1 million (Note: Michael Bay's explosive horror/thriller film is basically the same as any other “haunting” type movie, with the twist that eventually the heroes fight back against the ghosts with guns and grenade launchers. While it makes decent money, it was expected to make a good deal more, and Lindsay Lohan's acting is trashed by critics.
15. Mission: Impossible III - $140.5 million
16. Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby - $131.9 million
17. Shazam! - $127.9 million
18. Pass The Star - $123.4 million (Note: A roller derby film starring mostly teen girl actresses, with Tessa Thompson and Peyton List in the lead roles, but other more well-known at the time actresses in major supporting roles. This film does for roller derby what Pitch Perfect did for chorus groups and elevates its leads into much bigger stars.)
19. Scuzzy - $116.0 million (Note: An animated CGI film made by a fairly small studio, Scuzzy's protagonist is a furry little monster who grosses people out but who just wants a friend. It's a very heartwarming film and a contender for the year's top animated movie, succeeding more on word of mouth than on hype.)
20. Charlotte's Web - $112.5 million (Note: Just a slightly better film ITTL, and released with less competition around it, so it does a bit better than IOTL's film did.)
21. Desperate - $109.8 million (Note: A crime thriller starring George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg, it's fairly close in subject matter to Wall Street and OTL's Michael Clayton, with corporate espionage and class differences playing a big role in the film's narrative. Scores decent reviews and has good legs after a strong opening weekend.)
22. Honor Student - $103.7 million
23. How To Flunk Chemistry - $98.0 million (Note: An offbeat comedy starring Isla Fischer as an extremely eccentric chemistry professor who has to work with a bunch of frat bros to keep her tenure, this film can best be described as Breaking Bad meets Animal House, and is surprisingly funny, though it doesn't overwhelmingly click with audiences.)
24. The Transporter 3 - $97.6 million
25. V For Vendetta - $92.9 million
