Posters From This Iconic Movie Are Worth As Much As $228,000

Physical movie posters used to be everywhere, especially in the pre-digital era. Plastered on walls and windows, they were studios' way of telling people about upcoming movies. Today, movie posters exist primarily in digital format, because physical media is dead. This has made physical posters a lot more valuable than they were back then, turning them into prized collectibles. As is the case with many collectibles, the older they are, the more valuable they are. Just look at the value of old stamps and how much vintage postcards sell for these days.

Some movie posters can sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars. One striking example is from "The Kid," actor-filmmaker Charlie Chaplin's first feature-length film and directorial debut. One of the film's posters, a rare three-sheet that can be viewed on Heritage Auctions, was sold for an impressive $228,000 in 2020. The rarity of original posters from the film — and the era in general — combined with its good condition made the three-sheet poster particularly appealing. While $228,000 may sound like a staggering price for a single poster, it's not the first time someone's dropped six figures on one from that era. Famously, a poster for 1927's "Metropolis" sold at auction for a whopping $690,000.

Several factors determine the value of a movie poster, including age, size, condition, and demand. Posters for "The Kid" are especially prized because the film was released in 1921, making surviving copies more than a century old. They also carry cultural weight as artifacts from Chaplin's first feature-length film, which adds historical significance and strong collector demand.

Scarcity further drives value. Posters issued before the mid 1980s were shipped folded, leaving creases, and printed on paper that deteriorated with time. Due to their fragility, few survived into the 21st century, so "The Kid" posters in good condition are exceptionally rare. When they surface at auction, they can command impressive sums. In 2022, a "The Kid" poster sold for $114,000, while another commanded $66,000 that same year. In 2024, another poster brought in $68,750.

Not all "The Kid" posters are valuable. Collectors distinguish between originals, like those above, re-releases, and reproductions. Reproductions, sold for decorative purposes, hold little value and typically cost only tens of dollars. Re-release posters, by contrast, are authentic studio-issued prints for later theatrical releases. You might find them listed online for a few hundred dollars, but they're generally less valuable than first-edition originals.  

For those seeking an original "The Kid" poster, auction houses are the most reliable source. Occasionally, collectors might stumble across them at estate sales, in grandparents' attics, or even inside closed-down theaters. And if you happen to own one, it's worth considering a sale. It could fetch a substantial sum.