Scarlett Johansson Becomes Highest-Grossing Lead Actor Ever Thanks to Jurassic World: Rebirth

Scarlett Johansson did it again. Four years after she bid adieu to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Black Widow, the actress returns to topping the box office with a roar. Her new dino-filled blockbuster Jurassic World: Rebirth not only took over theatres around the world, but it’s also made history books by being the highest-grossing lead actor of all time, pre-inflation.

Johansson has now surpassed Robert Downey Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson, her Marvel co-stars and cinematic titans in their own right, with a $318 million overseas opening in six days for Rebirth. That puts her career box office at a staggering $14.8 billion in lead or lead ensemble roles, according to The Numbers.

And yes, that’s before any inflation adjustment. It’s a landmark that arrives all the more thrilling because it wasn’t handed to her through another Marvel rehash, but by something entirely different. Her darker transformation into Zora Bennett, an ex-military asset entering the last uncharted isle full of dinosaurs after Jurassic World: Dominion, is a bold gamble-performance. Johansson brings it all, with grit, sorrow, and a touch of that wry humor we all adored in Natasha Romanoff.

Let’s not forget that over half of her entire box office total is an enormous $8.7 billion, which was earned through her MCU appearances as Black Widow in movies such as Avengers: Endgame, Infinity War, and Captain America: Civil War. But Johansson’s CV goes way past red locks and spycraft. She has repeatedly proven she can do an action movie, voice an edgy porcupine in Sing, break our hearts in Marriage Story, and even lead us to believe in love between a man and a computer operating system in Her.

So to watch her step back into the spotlight once more and still reign feels like justice for all the cinephiles who have seen her transform across genres for almost two decades. And it’s especially gratifying because of the irony. Johansson was the sole remaining Avengers original member without a standalone film. Now, she wears the crown.

One of the five highest-grossing lead actors of all time globally, Jackson, Downey Jr., Chris Pratt, and Tom Hanks. The only female. The only non-Marvel man among them? America’s dad, Tom Hanks. And while Downey Jr. might be able to reclaim his position in December 2026 when Avengers: Doomsday debuts, Scarlett’s record is a strong memory. Box office gold isn’t just about spandex and superpowers. It is about presence. Command. Versatility.

Of course, already, the whispers are emanating from fans. Will she return as Natasha Romanoff in a multiverse cameo in Secret Wars? Johansson has suggested that her MCU days are behind her, but come on. If there’s one thing that the Marvel universe can’t help but resist more than a dramatic return, it’s a loophole. And if there’s one thing we can’t help but resist more than a box office queen, it’s a box office queen who won’t be guessed.

For now, at least, one thing is certain. Jurassic World: Rebirth is not a comeback, it’s a coronation. And Scarlett Johansson, our chameleon of celluloid, is where she belongs, at the top of the cinematic ranks.