Ben-Hur (1959 film) the box office), generating approximately $74.7 million in box office sales. Outside of North America, it earned $32.5 million in rentals (about $72.2 million at the box office) for a worldwide total of $66.1 million in rental earnings, roughly equivalent to $146.9 million in box office receipts. It was the fastest-grossing film as well as the highest-grossing film of 1959, in the process becoming the second-highest-grossing film of all-time (at that time) behind "Gone with the Wind". "Ben-Hur" saved MGM from financial disaster, making a profit of $20,409,000 on its initial release, and another $10.1 million in profits when re-released
Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film 1940s to the 1970s, the Best Picture Oscar went to a top 10 box office blockbuster nearly nine times out of ten. Comparatively, Best Picture has not been awarded to a top 10 box office film since 2004. Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film The Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Film (or the Academy Award for Best Popular Film) was a proposed award to be presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It was announced as a brand new category by the Academy on August 8, 2018. The following month, AMPAS