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When it comes to one of the goofiest comedians to ever grace the television screen, without a doubt Tracy Morgan would find himself up there among the top five. Born as Tracy Jamal Morgan in one of the toughest parts of the Brooklyn borough, Bedford Stuyvesant, in 1968, he endured a season of tribulation before making his television debut in 1994 on the Fox comedy sitcom, Martin, starring fellow comedian superstar Martin Lawrence.
He also became a regular on the sketch-comedy show, Uptown Comedy Club, as well as on Def Comedy Jam and Saturday Night Live before his film career took off. Since then, he has starred alongside heavyweight actors such as Chris Rock, Katt Williams, rapper/actor Ice Cube, Shawn and Marlon Wayans, Dave Chapelle, Regina King, and Bruce Willis. Here are the 10 highest-grossing movies for Tracy Morgan, ranked.
Rio 2 - $492.846 Million
Like a plethora of other celebrities and comedians, Morgan has also lent his voice to a few hilarious computer-animated films that have yielded a healthy return at the box office. Honestly, it's rare that an actor can ever lose when doing a movie for children. This proved to be true a second time for Morgan with his reprised role in 2014 3D computer-animated musical comedy, Rio 2. The second installment continues to follow the Spix's macaw named Blu, played by actor Jesse Eisenberg, and his mate, Jewel, played by Anne Hathaway, who live in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The couple now has three children - Carla, Bia, and Tiago. Other main actors include Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro, and George Lopez, R&B/pop singer Bruno Mars, and Tracy Morgan. The film grossed $492.846 million at the box office.
Rio - $487.519 Million
Rio is the first installment of the 3D computer-animated comedy film franchise and was released in 2011. The title of the movie is taken from the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, which is also the setting for the film. The film features many of the actors that were mentioned in Rio 2 such as Jesse Einstein, who plays the main character Blu, and Leslie Mann, who is seen to be the child who found Blu while he was being smuggled from Brazil to the United States. Blu is a male Spix's macaw and is a rare, exotic bird. Fifteen years after being found by Linda, they are invited by Brazilian ornithologist, Tulio (Rodrigo Santoro), to come to Rio de Janeiro to mate with the last known female Spix's macaw, Jewel (Anne Hathaway). The only thing is, Blu can't fly. The film grossed $487.519 million globally and also featured the voices of rapper will.i.am, Jamie Foxx, and Tracy Morgan.
G-Force - $292.817 Million
Produced by Walt Disney Pictures, G-Force is a spy adventure-comedy film that was released in 2009 and follows a highly specialized team of trained animals. The main team is made up of three FBI special agent-trained guinea pigs named Darwin, voiced by Sam Rockwell; Blaster, voiced by Tracy Morgan, and Juarez, a female guinea pig with a Spanish accent played by Penélope Cruz. They are also accompanied by a mole named Speckles, voiced by Nicolas Cage and a fly named Mooch (Dee Bradley Baker). Their team leader, Ben (Zach Galifianakis) orders the unauthorized infiltration of the home of Leonard Saber, an appliance and electronics guru. However, Ben's superior, Kip Killian (Will Arnett) overrides the order and demands that the animals be captured and sent to a pet shop. They must work together to break out before the electronic chips manufactured by Saber destroy the entire world. The film grossed $292.817 million worldwide.
The Longest Yard - $191.558 Million
Tracy Morgan is known for playing some of the most unmatched, goofiest roles in comedy film. But there are times when a role requires an actor to go to the extreme when it comes to getting into character, like Jim Carrey in The Cable Guy. Released in 2005, The Longest Yard is a sports comedy film that was a remake of the 1974 version starring the late legendary actor Burt Reynolds.
It follows a washed-up professional NFL quarterback named Paul Crewe (Adam Sandler) who is sentenced to three years in prison after getting drunk and joy riding his girlfriend's Bentley through San Diego. In exchange for a reduced sentence, he is instructed by the prison's Warden Rudolph Hazen (James Cromwell) to assemble a football team of convicts to play against the prison guards, intended to give the guards an effortless win. However, with the help of Caretaker, played by comedian Chris Rock, Scarborough (Burt Reynolds), and the convicts, they are led to victory. Tracy Morgan, however, plays the role of Miss Tucker, a flamboyant male cheerleader.
The Boxtrolls - $111.89 Million
Morgan wasn't done with the animation film after Rio 2. In 2014, he also lent his voice to the stop-motion animated fantasy comedy, The Boxtrolls. The film was loosely based on the 2005 novel Here Be Monsters! by Alan Snow and went on to gross $111.89 million at the worldwide box office against a $60 million budget. The movie was actually the animated film debut of The Game of Thrones actor, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, who voices the main protagonist named Eggs. Eggs lives underground with the Boxtrolls who he sees as peaceful creatures. He was even raised by one named Fish (Dee Bradley Baker). However, an antagonistic pest-exterminator named Archibald Snatcher (Ben Kingsley) and his second-in-command Mr. Gristle (Tracy Morgan), strike a deal with the leader of the city to exterminate all Boxtrolls after a baby is kidnapped. The film grossed $111.89 million at the box office.
Little Man - $101.636 Million
You can always expect sparks to fly whenever the greatest comedy kings collaborate together in a film. We've seem it in movies like Meet The Fockers and Zoolander with Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller and Death at a Funeral with a cast of actors such as Danny Glover, Kevin Hart, Martin Lawrence, Chris Rock, and Luke Wilson. The 2006 comedy, Little Man, is also one such film. The film features Marlon and Shawn Wayans as the main actors who co-star with Kerry Washington, the late comedy powerhouse John Witherspoon, and Molly Shannon. Tracy Morgan played the role of a dimwitted robbery accomplice named Percy. But despite its commercial success of grossing $101.636 million at the box office, the film received largely negative reviews from critics.
Are We There Yet? - $98.114 Million
Are We There Yet wouldn't be the first only movie Tracy Morgan and Ice Cube co-starred in together that was a commercial success. The duo also co-starred in the crime comedy film First Sunday alongside the outspoken Katt Williams, Loretta Devine, and Chi McBride. Are We There Yet is a family road comedy film that was released in 2005 and surrounds the lives of Suzanne Kingston, performed by Hollywood actress Nia Long, her children Kevin and Lindsay, and a sports shop owner named Nick Persons (Ice Cube).
Tracy Morgan lends his voice to a bobble head doll of baseball pitcher Satchel Paige, who Nick often speaks to. After Nick sees the woman of his dreams in Suzanne, he is repelled at the fact that she has children. When her ex-husband is unable to bring their children to the airport, Suzanne entrusts them in Nick's care and they almost drive him crazy! The film grossed $98.114 million worldwide.
Superhero Movie - $73.026 Million
In 2008, Craig Mazin released the superhero parody film, Superhero Movie. The film is a spoof of the superhero film genre and lends its storyline primarily from Spiderman, Batman Begins, and X-Men while also following the makeup of the Scary Movie series. As the king of spoofs, it wouldn't be right if the Naked Gun and Airplane comedic actor, Leslie Nielson. Other star actors included in the film include actor, singer, and musician Drake Bell, Christopher McDonald, the world renowned comedian Kevin Hart, Jeffrey Tambor, actress and model Pamela Anderson, and of course, Tracy Morgan as Professor X. The film received negative reviews, but still grossed $71.2 million against a $35 million budget.
What Men Want - $69.911 Million
If only women had direct access into the raw thoughts of men - what a scary reality that would be! In 2019, film director Adam Shankman released his project, What Men Want. The film was inspired directly from the 2000 romantic fantasy comedy What Women Want, starring actor/director Mel Gibson. This time the film's focus was on the lead actress, Taraji P. Henson, who plays the role of a successful sports agent named Ali Davis.
After being passed up for a promotion by her boss Nick (Brian Bosworth), she feels outnumbered in the male dominated work environment and ambitiously plans to sign up-and-coming basketball Jamal Barry, but has to contend with the boy's father, Joe "Dolla" Barry (Tracy Morgan). She is then introduced to a psychic named Sister performed by musician Erykah Badu, she is given Kalanchoe pinnata tea to drink and knocked unconscious at her friend's bachelorette party. Upon waking, she learns that she can read every man's thoughts and begins to take full advantage. The film received mixed reviews and grossed $69.911 million.
Sources: NY Times, Plugged In, Empire Online, The Guardian, RogerEbert.com