Billion Dollar Movie Franchises

Billion Dollar Movie Franchises

There’s no mistaking that the movie industry is a billion dollar business. Each year a select number of movies rake in hundreds of millions of dollars which almost guarantees a sequel will hit theaters in the near future. Some of these movies even become a household name. Here is a look at some of the top movie franchises that have brought in over a billion dollars worldwide with at least two or more films.

Star Wars

George Lucas’ 1977 movie “Star Wars” was a ground breaking triumph. The characters Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Darth Vader (David Prowse) would later appear in “The Empire Strikes Back” (1980) and “Return of the Jedi” (1983). The three prequels would later introduce movie fans to Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman) as well as a younger Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor). Starting with “Phantom Menace” (1999) through “Attack of the Clones” (2002) and ending with “Revenge of the Sith” (2005), the Star Wars franchise remained as popular as ever. To date, the six films have brought in over $4 billion, currently making it the top movie franchise in the world.

James Bond

The movie franchise running a very close second is James Bond. Ian Fleming’s 007 first hit theaters in 1962 with “Dr. No” starring Sean Connery as the British agent. George Lazenby would follow Connery in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969) and then Roger Moore would portray Bond in several films starting with 1973’s “Live and Let Die”. The sought after role would go to Timothy Dalton for two films including “Living Daylights” (1987) and then Pierce Brosnan whose last Bond film was “Die Another Day” (2002). The Bond franchise has brought in almost $4 billion worldwide with twenty-one movies. That amount should increase with the release of “Casino Royale” later this year with Daniel Craig as 007.

Harry Potter

J.K. Rowling’s books about the boy wizard with a lightning bolt scar first came to theaters in 2001’s “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”. Starring Daniel Radcliffe as Harry with Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, the first and subsequent films: “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” (2002), “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” (2004) and “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” (2005), also starred a number of renowned actors and actresses. (See Harry Potter Actors and Actresses). With four of reported seven movies already bringing in over $3.5 billion worldwide, the Harry Potter films stand to remain one of the top franchises.

Lord of the Rings

The fight for middle Earth began with Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring” (2001). Starring such actors as Elijah Wood as Frodo, Sean Astin as Sam, Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn and Ian McKellan as Gandalf, the trilogy also included “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and “Lord of the Rings: Return of the King”. To date the three movies have earned almost $3 billion worldwide.

Jurassic Park

The three Jurassic Park films have brought in an estimated $2 billion worldwide. This will increase with the release of the fourth film scheduled to hit theaters in 2008. The first two films “Jurassic Park” (1993) and “The Lost World” (1997) were directed by Steven Spielberg while Joe Johnston was at the helm of the third movie, “Jurassic Park III” (2001). Sam Neill and Jeff Goldblum co-starred in the first film, with Goldblum starring in the second movie and Neill reprising his role for the third film.

Batman

The caped crusader first came from the small screen to the big screen in 1966’s “Batman-The Movie” starring Adam West as Batman / Bruce Wayne and Burt Ward as Robin / Dick Grayson. Michael Keaton would wear the cape and cowl for 1989’s feature “Batman” and again in “Batman Returns” (1992). Val Kilmer as Batman and Chris O’Donnell as Robin would reform the Dynamic Duo in 1995’s “Batman Forever”. O’Donnell appeared as Robin a second time in “Batman and Robin” (1997), this time with George Clooney donning the Batsuit. After an eight year hiatus, the crime fighter was back on the big screen in 2005’s “Batman Begins” with Christian Bale in the lead role. With a reported seventh movie in the works, the Batman franchise will add to its $1.64 billion dollars.

The Matrix

The groundbreaking “Matrix” hit theaters in 1999 and starred Keanu Reeves as Neo, Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus and Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity. The trio would go on to battle Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) in two sequels that were both released in 2003: “The Matrix Reloaded” and “Matrix Revolutions”. The movie trilogy has made an estimated $1.61 billion worldwide.

Spider-Man

This superhero came from the pages of comic books to the silver screen. 2002’s “Spider-Man” found Peter Parker / Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire) facing his nemesis, the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe). The webbed wonder would return in “Spider-Man 2” (2004) to face Doc Ock (Alfred Molina). Although the Spider-Man franchise has currently brought in an astounding $1.60 billion worldwide, look for that number to increase with the release of “Spider-Man 3” in 2007 where the crime fighter will be facing the Sandman (Thomas Haden Church).

Shrek

Another billion dollar franchise that will be adding to its film catalog is Shrek. The third installment of the animated series, “Shrek the Third”, is slated for release in 2007. The animated tale of the loveable ogre Shrek (Mike Myers), Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) captivated audiences when it was released in 2001. “Shrek” and “Shrek 2” (2002) have earned an estimated $1.4 billion worldwide.

Indiana Jones

Although he appeared in the first three “Star Wars” films, Harrison Ford also found time to star as adventurer Indiana Jones. Directed by Steven Spielberg with writing credits to George Lucas, “Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981), “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” (1984) and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” (1989) have earned a combined total of $1.19 billion worldwide. While a fourth installment of the franchise is in the works, it’s still unclear when the film could be released.

X-Men

The mutants scored big at the big office with three blockbusters: X-men (2000), X2: X-Men United (2003) and “X-Men: The Last Stand” (2006). The franchise, starring Halle Berry, Hugh Jackman, Famke Janssen, Ian McKellan and Patrick Stewart has made around $1.10 billion worldwide.

Pirates of the Caribbean

The pirates were a force to reckon with when Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl was released in 2003. With the release of the second movie Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006), this Disney franchise has made over $1.05 billion. Look for this number to increase with the third movie set for release in 2007.

Ice Age

The animated feature “Ice Age” (2002) resulted in the 2006 sequel “Ice Age: Meltdown”. The franchise, featuring the voices of Ray Romano as Manny the wooly mammoth, John Leguizamo as Sid the sloth and Denis Leary as Diego the saber toothed tiger, has brought in almost $1.03 million at the box office.

Men In Black

Aliens were all around in 1997’s “Men In Black” and again in “Men in Black II” (2002). It was up to Agent J (Will Smith) and Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) to save the world from a rogue alien bent on destroying the world. The two sci-fi adventure films have earned an estimated $1.03 billion worldwide.

Mission: Impossible

Look for the earnings on this franchise to increase in the next few days with the release of a third film. The popular series hit the big screen in “Mission: Impossible” (1996) starring Tom Cruise as covert operative Ethan Hunt and Ving Rhames as Luther. The pair would reprise their roles in “Mission: Impossible II” (2000) and again in “Mission: Impossible III” (2006). This action franchise has to date made an impressive $1.03 billion worldwide.

Terminator

While a fourth installment of the Terminator is only in talks at the moment, the first three movies of the franchise have brought in approximately $1.02 billion at the box office. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the human cyborg, “The Terminator” (1984) has had two subsequent sequels, “Terminator 2 : Judgment Day” (1991) and “Terminator 3 : Rise of the Machine” (2003).

Star Trek

This movie franchise has included the casts of two of the most popular shows on TV: Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation. Starting with “Star Trek : The Motion Picture” in 1979, the original cast, comprised of William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk, Leonard Nimoy as Spock, DeForest Kelley as Dr. Leonard McCoy, James Doohan as Scotty and George Takei as Lieutenant Commander Sulu, appeared in several of the Star Trek films. Shatner and Doohan would return for “Star Trek: Generations” (1994) which was the first movie to feature Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Lieutenant Commander Data (Brent Spiner) as well as the remaining cast from “Star Trek: The Next Generation”. The crew went on to make three other movies including 2002’s “Star Trek: Nemesis”. While another feature is currently in the works, the Star Trek franchise has produced ten films earning approximately $1 billion worldwide.

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