The first Justice League trailer already has nearly 15 million views in just two days and promises to be a strong contender in this year’s battle of the box office. But given that seven of the top ten highest-grossing franchises are releasing films in 2017, it looks like it could be the biggest blockbuster battle ever. If only J. K. Rowling was stepping into the ring too (although Beauty & The Beast's Belle certainly has a number of similarities with Hermione Granger).

Wonder Woman & Justice League

Gal Gadot has certainly been busy, as Wonder Woman will feature in two of the year’s hottest releases. The first will be June’s eponymous tale that any feminist will surely praise, and the second will be November’s Justice League, where she will star alongside Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck and Jason Momoa as part of the superhero team. The latter will no doubt replicate the previous success of DC and Batman films. However, given the performance of Marvel’s Avengers at the box office, the same formula could result in DC’s biggest hit yet.

Spider-Man: Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 & Thor: Ragnarok

While DC may be late to the party when it comes to connected superhero storylines, Marvel is definitely not slowing their pace. In addition to Logan, Marvel is adding three more titles to its Cinematic Universe, including a reboot of the successful Spider-Man franchise. And given the hype that surrounded Tom Holland’s character when he briefly featured in Captain America: Civil War, you don’t need a ‘spidey-sense’ to predict box office success when Homecoming is released in July. October’s Thor may not be the favourite to win the race, but will still strike gold nonetheless, while April’s Guardians of the Galaxy should certainly outperform it’s prequel given the increased fanbase for the characters (especially Chris Pratt, who is no stranger to mammoth box office figures after Jurassic World).

Star Wars Episode VIII - The Last Jedi

This year’s blockbuster battle is not just being fought by superheroes though as Jedis will also be included in the mix. According to Box Office Mojo, The Force Awakens is the third highest-grossing film of all time - making over $2billion worldwide. And so, without a doubt, The Last Jedi is going to hit similar figures when it is released in December. Either way, it will be a good year for Disney with the riches of Beauty & The Beast, Star Wars and the Marvel films combined. And this reign may not end for a long time as the company has said it plans to make Star Wars films for another 15 years.

The Fate of the Furious

There is a reason that The Fast & The Furious saga is on their eighth installment, and that reason is money.

Furious 7 is the sixth highest-grossing film of all time, falling just behind The Avengers. What’s more, the last seven films combined have made $3.9billion worldwide, making it one of the top ten highest-grossing franchises. But can the fast cars keep up with the pace, or will the numbers start to decelerate? The answer will no doubt be clear when the film is released in April.

And more…

These aren’t the only films being released as part of epic franchises that could top the box office charts this year. In May there will be Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, in June Michael Bay returns with Transformers: The Last Knight and in July the trilogy concludes with War for The Planet of The Apes.