It's franchises all the way down

An updated look at sequels and cinematic universes.

In 2016, John asked some questions about the all-time worldwide top-grossing films. Today we present a rebroadcast of that post, but with updated data. You can see the original here.

He’d tell MJ the chain never caught on because of “superhero fatigue,” but the only real fatigue was in Peter B. Parker’s heart.

Over lunch, I wondered: how many of the 100 top grossing movies are part of a franchise — that is, a sequel, remake or the first film that started a series?

We’re only looking at theatrical. For this exercise, home video sequels don’t count.

Around the lunch table, guesses ranged from 50 to 83 movies.

The answer is 93. Yes, 93 of the 100 all-time worldwide top-grossing movies are part of a franchise. There are only seven standalone films.

Here is the list:

(Films marked † have a sequel in production or very nearly so.)

Whenever you talk about the top-grossing movies, the first question is always, “What about adjusting for inflation?” (Also known as, “What about Gone with the Wind?”)

Fine. Let’s do that.

Here are the top 100 movies of all time, adjusted for inflation:

The ^ indicates that a film has been re-released, which can raise its rank. When in doubt, I’ve labelled films as Single (e.g. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs).

What can we learn from looking at the inflation-adjusted list? Well, of the top 100 movies, 40 are neither a sequel nor the start of a franchise. That’s a huge difference from the non-adjusted list.

Hollywood didn’t always make sequels from every hit.

Digging deeper, what percentage of the top movies are part of a franchise but not the origin?

On the non-inflation list, 78 of the top 100 are sequels or remakes. In the adjusted-for-inflation list, 33 of the top 100 are sequels or remakes.

No stand-alone, non-franchise film in the 2010s made the Top 100. (Of course, some franchises did start in the 2010s.)

A few observations we can make from this exercise:

1. Franchises are a huge part of how Hollywood makes money, not just now but historically.

2. Franchises have to start somewhere. You don’t get Minions without Despicable Me.

3. Some franchises I’ve ignored as a viewer (e.g. The Hobbit, Transformers) have made bank.

4. James Bond is a good business to be in.

5. There’s a reason studios don’t want you to kill the hero at the end of the movie.

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🗣 Have ideas for future topics (or just want to say hello)? Reach out to Chris via email at inneresting@johnaugust.com, Mastodon @ccsont@mastodon.art, or Threads @ccsont@threads.net