The Great Escape (1963)

The Great Escape
Theatrical Performance
Domestic Box Office $11,744,471Details
International Box Office $228,926Details
Worldwide Box Office $11,973,397
Home Market Performance
Est. Domestic Blu-ray Sales $1,941,512 Details
Total Est. Domestic Video Sales $1,941,512
OpusData ID: 34640100
Further financial details...

Metrics

Domestic Share:98.1% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Production Budget:$4,000,000 (worldwide box office is 3.0 times production budget)

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

RecordRankAmount
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 5,101-5,200) 5,177 $11,744,471
All Time International Box Office (Rank 16,701-16,800) 16,717 $228,926
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 7,301-7,400) 7,359 $11,973,397

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Movie Details

Domestic Releases: August 8th, 1963 (Wide) by MGM
International Releases: December 12th, 1963 (Limited) (Australia)
March 22nd, 2019 (Special Engagement), released as The Great Escape With Dan Snow: A Gala Screening On The 75th Anniversary (United Kingdom)
April 22nd, 2021 (Wide) (New Zealand)
June 25th, 2023 (Limited) (Australia)
September 19th, 2023 (Limited) (Germany)
... Show all releases
Video Release: May 7th, 2013 by Fox Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 172 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Ben-Hur
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: World War II, War, Escape, Inspired by a True Story, Intertitle, Prison Break, Nazis, Ensemble, War Crimes, War Drama
Source:Based on Real Life Events
Genre:Drama
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Historical Fiction
Production/Financing Companies: The Mirisch Company
Production Countries: United States
Languages: English, German, Russian, French

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 5,101-5,200) 5,177 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 4,401-4,500) 4,421 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 301-400) 313 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 4,601-4,700) 4,635 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 501-600) 543 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 1,001-1,100) 1,019 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 101-200) 141 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 176 $11,744,471

Weekend Box Office Performance

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

Box Office Summary Per Territory

Territory Release
Date		 Opening
Weekend		 Opening
Weekend
Screens		 Maximum
Screens		 Theatrical
Engagements		 Total
Box Office		 Report
Date
Australia 12/12/1963 $0000$0
Germany 9/19/2023 $0000$0
New Zealand 4/22/2021 $238 1 1 2 $836 3/11/2024
United Kingdom 3/22/2019 $228,090 353 353 353 $228,090 3/27/2019
 
International Total$228,926 3/11/2024

International Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time International Box Office (Rank 16,701-16,800) 16,717 $228,926
All Time International Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 15,301-15,400) 15,385 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,594 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 14,101-14,200) 14,136 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,533 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 4,501-4,600) 4,585 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,557 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 132 $228,926

Worldwide Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 7,301-7,400) 7,359 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 6,301-6,400) 6,345 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 401-500) 498 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 6,401-6,500) 6,475 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 701-800) 791 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 1,601-1,700) 1,695 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 501-600) 564 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 186 $11,973,397

Weekly US Blu-ray Sales

DateRankUnits
this
Week		% ChangeTotal
Units		Spending
this
Week		Total
Spending		Weeks
in
Release
May 12, 20131913,433 13,433$148,564$148,5641

Our DVD and Blu-ray sales estimates are based on weekly retail surveys, which we use to build a weekly market share estimate for each title we are tracking. The market share is converted into a weekly sales estimate based on industry reports on the overall size of the market, including reports published in Media Play News.

For example, if our weekly retail survey estimates that a particular title sold 1% of all units that week, and the industry reports sales of 1,500,000 units in total, we will estimate 15,000 units were sold of that title. The consumer spending estimate is based on the average sales price for the title in the retailers we survey.

We refine our estimates from week to week as more data becomes available. In particular, we adjust weekly sales figures for the quarter once the total market estimates are published by the Digital Entertainment Group. Figures will therefore fluctuate each week, and totals for individual titles can go up or down as we update our estimates.

Because sales figures are estimated based on sampling, they will be more accurate for higher-selling titles.

Leading Cast

Steve McQueen    Captain Virgil Hilts
James Garner    Flight Lt. Bob Anthony 'The Scrounger' Hendley
Richard Attenborough    Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett 'Big X'

Supporting Cast

James Donald    Senior Officer Ramsey
Charles Bronson    Flight Lieutenant Danny Willinski
Donald Pleasance    Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe
James Coburn    Flying Officer Louis Sedgwick
David McCallum    Ashley-Pitt 'Dispersal'
Gordon Jackson    MacDonald
John Leyton    Willie

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

John Sturges    Director
John Sturges    Producer
James Clavell    Screenwriter
William Riley Burnett    Screenwriter
Paul Brickhill    Story based on the book by
Elmer Bernstein    Composer

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for May 28th, 2013

May 28th, 2013

It's the day after Memorial Day, which means we are in the summer season, which is a terrible time for the home market. The only first-run release of the week is Dark Skies, which is hardly a major release. There are a few summer TV shows that are coming out on DVD and / or Blu-ray, some of which are interesting. The latest season of Doctor Who is coming out this week, but it is being split, and not just into two parts, so that precludes it from being a Pick of the Week contender. There are not a lot of options for Pick of the Week, but I'm going with Beetlejuice: The Complete Series, but keep in mind there could be some nostalgia at work here and Lore on DVD or Blu-ray is arguably the better release. Meanwhile, Hellbound? on DVD earns the rarely awarded Puck of the Week for best Canadian release. More...

Featured Blu-ray Review: The Great Escape

May 28th, 2013

The Great Escape is one of the greatest movies ever made. It recently made its Blu-ray debut on a 50th anniversary disc. However, early reviews were not great. The movie still stands the test of time, but many Blu-ray critics complained about the video quality. Were they being overly snobbish? Or is the video quality really that bad? More...


  1. Summary
  2. News
  3. Box Office
  4. International
  5. Video Sales
  6. Cast & Crew
  7. Trailer

Metrics

Domestic Share:98.1% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Production Budget:$4,000,000 (worldwide box office is 3.0 times production budget)

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

RecordRankAmount
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 5,101-5,200) 5,177 $11,744,471
All Time International Box Office (Rank 16,701-16,800) 16,717 $228,926
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 7,301-7,400) 7,359 $11,973,397

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Movie Details

Domestic Releases: August 8th, 1963 (Wide) by MGM
International Releases: December 12th, 1963 (Limited) (Australia)
March 22nd, 2019 (Special Engagement), released as The Great Escape With Dan Snow: A Gala Screening On The 75th Anniversary (United Kingdom)
April 22nd, 2021 (Wide) (New Zealand)
June 25th, 2023 (Limited) (Australia)
September 19th, 2023 (Limited) (Germany)
... Show all releases
Video Release: May 7th, 2013 by Fox Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 172 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Ben-Hur
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: World War II, War, Escape, Inspired by a True Story, Intertitle, Prison Break, Nazis, Ensemble, War Crimes, War Drama
Source:Based on Real Life Events
Genre:Drama
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Historical Fiction
Production/Financing Companies: The Mirisch Company
Production Countries: United States
Languages: English, German, Russian, French

Leading Cast

Steve McQueen    Captain Virgil Hilts
James Garner    Flight Lt. Bob Anthony 'The Scrounger' Hendley
Richard Attenborough    Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett 'Big X'

Supporting Cast

James Donald    Senior Officer Ramsey
Charles Bronson    Flight Lieutenant Danny Willinski
Donald Pleasance    Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe
James Coburn    Flying Officer Louis Sedgwick
David McCallum    Ashley-Pitt 'Dispersal'
Gordon Jackson    MacDonald
John Leyton    Willie

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

John Sturges    Director
John Sturges    Producer
James Clavell    Screenwriter
William Riley Burnett    Screenwriter
Paul Brickhill    Story based on the book by
Elmer Bernstein    Composer

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for May 28th, 2013

May 28th, 2013

It's the day after Memorial Day, which means we are in the summer season, which is a terrible time for the home market. The only first-run release of the week is Dark Skies, which is hardly a major release. There are a few summer TV shows that are coming out on DVD and / or Blu-ray, some of which are interesting. The latest season of Doctor Who is coming out this week, but it is being split, and not just into two parts, so that precludes it from being a Pick of the Week contender. There are not a lot of options for Pick of the Week, but I'm going with Beetlejuice: The Complete Series, but keep in mind there could be some nostalgia at work here and Lore on DVD or Blu-ray is arguably the better release. Meanwhile, Hellbound? on DVD earns the rarely awarded Puck of the Week for best Canadian release. More...

Featured Blu-ray Review: The Great Escape

May 28th, 2013

The Great Escape is one of the greatest movies ever made. It recently made its Blu-ray debut on a 50th anniversary disc. However, early reviews were not great. The movie still stands the test of time, but many Blu-ray critics complained about the video quality. Were they being overly snobbish? Or is the video quality really that bad? More...

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time Domestic Box Office (Rank 5,101-5,200) 5,177 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 4,401-4,500) 4,421 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 301-400) 313 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 4,601-4,700) 4,635 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 501-600) 543 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 1,001-1,100) 1,019 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 101-200) 141 $11,744,471
All Time Domestic Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 176 $11,744,471

Weekend Box Office Performance

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

Box Office Summary Per Territory

Territory Release
Date		 Opening
Weekend		 Opening
Weekend
Screens		 Maximum
Screens		 Theatrical
Engagements		 Total
Box Office		 Report
Date
Australia 12/12/1963 $0000$0
Germany 9/19/2023 $0000$0
New Zealand 4/22/2021 $238 1 1 2 $836 3/11/2024
United Kingdom 3/22/2019 $228,090 353 353 353 $228,090 3/27/2019
 
International Total$228,926 3/11/2024

International Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time International Box Office (Rank 16,701-16,800) 16,717 $228,926
All Time International Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 15,301-15,400) 15,385 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,594 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 14,101-14,200) 14,136 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,533 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 4,501-4,600) 4,585 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 1,501-1,600) 1,557 $228,926
All Time International Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 132 $228,926

Worldwide Cumulative Box Office Records

RecordRankRevenue
All Time Worldwide Box Office (Rank 7,301-7,400) 7,359 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Non-Sequel Box Office (Rank 6,301-6,400) 6,345 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Based on Real Life Events Movies (Rank 401-500) 498 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Live Action Movies (Rank 6,401-6,500) 6,475 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Historical Fiction Movies (Rank 701-800) 791 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Drama Movies (Rank 1,601-1,700) 1,695 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for Not Rated Movies (Rank 501-600) 564 $11,973,397
All Time Worldwide Box Office for MGM Movies (Rank 101-200) 186 $11,973,397

Weekly US Blu-ray Sales

DateRankUnits
this
Week		% ChangeTotal
Units		Spending
this
Week		Total
Spending		Weeks
in
Release
May 12, 20131913,433 13,433$148,564$148,5641

Our DVD and Blu-ray sales estimates are based on weekly retail surveys, which we use to build a weekly market share estimate for each title we are tracking. The market share is converted into a weekly sales estimate based on industry reports on the overall size of the market, including reports published in Media Play News.

For example, if our weekly retail survey estimates that a particular title sold 1% of all units that week, and the industry reports sales of 1,500,000 units in total, we will estimate 15,000 units were sold of that title. The consumer spending estimate is based on the average sales price for the title in the retailers we survey.

We refine our estimates from week to week as more data becomes available. In particular, we adjust weekly sales figures for the quarter once the total market estimates are published by the Digital Entertainment Group. Figures will therefore fluctuate each week, and totals for individual titles can go up or down as we update our estimates.

Because sales figures are estimated based on sampling, they will be more accurate for higher-selling titles.