The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History
Posted by Neil Miller (neil@filmschoolrejects.com) on May 29, 2007
Filed Under: , Lists, Opinions
In this the Summer of Sequels, movie goers everywhere will be re-introduced to so many of their favorite movie franchises. Spider-Man has made his return to the big screen, Shrek came back for one more and now Captain Jack and his band of pillaging Pirates have entered the race, dominating the Memorial Day weekend with their journey to World’s End.
And while the world speculates whether these epic, record-breaking third installments will be the last of these particular franchises, I would like to take a look at epic franchises in general. What is an Epic Movie Franchise, you may ask? Well, it starts by having at least two movies in a series and can range anywhere from 2-3 films (a la Mission Impossible) to countless installments and re-hashings (a la James Bond). The even harder question: how do you say what is the most powerful movie franchise in history? Is it the one that has grossed the most money at the box office? Is it the franchise with the most longevity? Is it the one with the most marketing prowess or the largest fanbase? I say it is a combination of all of these things; the cult followings, the major blockbuster releases and yes, even the marketability play a part. When these franchises crank out a new film, fans storm the gates, camp out and sacrifice members of their families to be the first to behold their favorite characters on the big screen.
Today, I bring you the Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History:
10. Indiana Jones
If you seek to understand what happened to George Lucas after Star Wars and what Steven Spielberg did before Jurassic Park, look no further than the Indiana Jones franchise. Almost subtly, these two cinematic masterminds unleashed one of the most iconic and unsuspecting heroes in film with Raiders of the Lost Arc in 1981. Jones had a way about him, thanks to a young Harrison Ford, that played well across just about every demographic. And while many though that Indy was a thing of the past, a relic to be locked up in the vault of cinema history, another film is due out in 2008. In classic Indiana Jones fashion, the guy may be down but he is certainly never out.
9. Spider-Man
Everyone knew that Spider-Man would make this particular list, but I bet you didn’t see it going so low in the pecking order, did ya? Whether it is my unbridled anger toward Sam Raimi for the most recent installment’s tremendous suckage or the fact that I personally think Batman could kick Spider-Man’s ass, I just don’t see Spider-Man as the end-all-be-all of movie franchises. Sure it has grossed billions world-wide between theatrical releases, DVDs and merchandising sales, but Spider-Man’s true fanbase is born of the iconic comic book hero, not Tobey Maguire in tights.
8. Shrek
I know what you are thinking; Shrek? WTF? And as much as Shrek may not belong in the same arena as some of the franchises yet to come on this list, there is no way to look past the power it has over the kids of world. The big green Ogre and his posse have proven with their third installment that even without much of a story, a Shrek movie can still be successful. Because it is animated and encompasses a great amount of characters, this franchise could live on forever. And even though the big kids may not appreciate it, the little ones will continue to devour everything Shrek, leaving mommy and daddy’s rising credit card debt in their wake.
7. Jurassic Park
George Lucas has his big franchise, which we will get to later in the list. But what about the other guy behind Indiana Jones? Doesn’t Steven Spielberg get any power franchise love? Of course he does, as his 1993 film Jurassic Park brought both dinosaurs and the lore of ILM to life and into the American mainstream. Even with 2 lukewarm sequels, Jurassic Park still stands tall as one of the crowning achievements of computer-aided graphics and it is to this day one of the most prominent blockbusters of all-time. And it was inspiration for a Weird Al Yankovic song. ‘Nuff said.
6. Pirates of the Caribbean
Unlike many of the franchises on this list that are based on epic comic books or great novels, the Pirates of the Caribbean films were based on a ride at Disneyland. While that may not have sounded like a good idea to most people back in 2002 before the release of the first film, leave it to the folks at Disney to show that they could market just about anything. It is a franchise that solidified Johnny Depp as a big star, brought back the Pirate as a popular Halloween costume and brought some flair back to Disney in general (because let’s admit it, they haven’t had a live-action franchise like this since The Mighty Ducks. And hanging your hat on Emilio Estevez is just no good.)
5. Batman
In my personal opinion, there is no bigger badass in the history of superheroes than the Dark Knight himself. Many people wouldn’t know that if their limited experience with the character consisted only of the cheesed up films directed by Joel Shumacher back in the late-1990s. It wasn’t so bad that he put nipples on the Bat-suit as it was that he put George Clooney in the Bat-suit. But thankfully the gods of cinema sent Batman fans a savior in Christopher Nolan, whose Batman Begins set a new standard for the entire franchise, giving the Caped Crusader some balls once again. And with a new movie just around the corner, fans not only have their savior, they have plenty of hope for the future.
4. The Lord of the Rings
What would a great “Epic Movie Franchise” list be without Peter Jackson’s mammoth Oscar-winning trilogy based on the equally as popular books by J.R.R Tolkien. The final installment of the series, The Return of the King won 11 Oscars and is ranked #9 on IMDB’s top 250 films of all-time list. And that is not to mention that the first two films didn’t do too bad, either. The journey of Frodo, Sam and a gaggle of others to save Middle Earth is one of the most well-documented cinematic adventures of all-time. And with rumors of a “Hobbit” spin-off running ramped, it doesn’t look like LOTR is done bringing in the bank just yet.
3. Harry Potter
Of all the great epic movie franchises, Harry Potter is definitely one of the youngest, but by no means the weakest. The first Harry Potter book by author J.K. Rowling was released circa 1998, with a major film adaptation coming in 2001. Since then the franchise has gathered one of the largest followings since Christianity with 4 films, 6 (soon to be 7) books and a web presence that is unprecedented. From fansites to podcasts to merchandising deals that would rival any major sports star, people go absolutely nuts for that awkward, pubescent little magician and his memorable friends. How long will the Potter lore last? J.K. Rowling could probably write books forever and people would buy them up, but the films have a shorter lease on life, as they won’t be too much fun when Daniel Radcliffe is 25 trying to play the part of a 17 year old…
2. James Bond
The star of one of the most abundant movie franchises, James Bond is also one of the most recognizable characters in all of film. The world loves his swagger, his sex appeal and his underlying badass nature. They even love to compare him to himself, with a rotation of actors constantly fueling the debate of who is the best bond? Some would say that Roger Moore had it down, others live and die by the Connery Bond and others still have been greatly impressed with Daniel Craig as the spy who shags often. But no matter who tops the list as your favorite Bond, we all know that there is no spy, no man of action who commands more attention than 007 himself.
1. Star Wars
With 6 films that have grossed almost $2 billion dollars at the box office and one of the most dedicated fan bases in all of pop culture, there is no question that Star Wars is the most powerful film franchise in history. Even despite a lackluster showing with the most recent 3 films, George Lucas is bombarded daily with questions about the future of the franchise. It is a franchise that has spawned countless spin-off projects, is the butt end of so many pop culture references and is constantly looked upon as the pinnacle of geekdom. Since the first film hit theaters on May 25, 1977 there has been no turning back; Star Wars is the king of all movie franchises, there is just no way around it.
Honorable Mentions:
The Matrix - In 1999 Larry and Andy Wachowski unleashed The Matrix, a film that would revolutionize the way Hollywood made action movies. It was the first film to show off bullet-time and one of the most awe-inspiring spectacles of the digital age. But while it did so much for action/fantasy film, it ran its course with 2 sequels, both received well by fans. Could they make another Matrix film? Sure. Would it be as good as the first time we experienced bullet-time on the big screen? Probably not.
Star Trek - Just so that I am not crucified by the geek nation for forgetting Star Trek, here it is. How could I forget it, you may ask? Simple: I don’t like Star Trek. To me, it pales in comparison to Star Wars (on the movie front) and has found more of an audience through various TV series. While it is a strong brand, none of the franchise’s films were able to break through to the mainstream as with Star Wars or LOTR. Plus this is my list. If you don’t like it, you can wait for the poll and make your voice heard.
Think you have a better list? Maybe you say that Rocky, Mission Impossible or Superman should have made this list? You are entitled to your opinion of course, but you need to take yours and stick it in the comment area below.
Don’t like my list? Tell me what you would pick in this week’s poll: You Decide: The Most Powerful Movie Franchise in History?
Enjoy!
Read more articles by Neil Miller
127 Comments
May 29th, 2007 at 12:41 pm
You forgot the Star Trek Franchise!!
May 29th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
@Barry
Not my favorite, but I will make sure to include it in the poll later today…
May 29th, 2007 at 3:42 pm
What about all the Land Before Time movies?
May 29th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
Star Trek is important too, mostly because of its TV franchise, but the fact that they had 11 movies, also speaks for itself. Also, I think the Matrix is more important than Batman.
May 29th, 2007 at 3:57 pm
Now that I think about it, the X-Men movies were extremely popular too. Maybe you need to update the article to make it a top-15. :-D
May 29th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
[…] FilmSchoolRejects posted a top-10 of the biggest movie franchises ever. I would have put The Matrix & The X-Men in their list, and maybe, just maybe Star Trek, but overall, it’s a good list. […]
May 29th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
[…] Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History What is an Epic Movie Franchise, you may ask? Well, it starts by having at least two movies in a […]
May 30th, 2007 at 12:13 am
Why bother with an honorable mention for “The Matrix?” The second and third installments were pure garbage.
May 30th, 2007 at 12:19 am
What about Superman.
May 30th, 2007 at 12:24 am
what the hell??? what about DIE HARD???????????
May 30th, 2007 at 12:32 am
pirates was horrible. matrix/star trek are much better.
the second and third pirates were an embarrasment to the first.
and, if looking at the top ten franchises, what about rocky?
May 30th, 2007 at 12:32 am
What about the Terminator, Predator, and other things of this nature?
May 30th, 2007 at 12:34 am
[…] Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History Filed under: Uncategorized — recar @ 4:34 am The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History What is an Epic Movie Franchise, you may ask? Well, it starts by having at least two movies in a […]
May 30th, 2007 at 12:35 am
What about the Karate Kid series!!
May 30th, 2007 at 12:35 am
thats right eymang, die hard rips all… die hard with a vengance rips all
May 30th, 2007 at 12:48 am
Great list! I might’ve excluded Shrek, but it’s good nonetheless. I might have also included the Phantasm franchise, but that’s probably just because there’ll always be a place in my heart for Reggie Bannister.
May 30th, 2007 at 12:49 am
May 30th, 2007 at 12:58 am
I’d humbly add: Godfather, Aliens, Jaws, Superman, Saw, Exorcist, Lethal Weapon, Toy Story, Space Odyssey, Planet of the Apes, and um… oh yeah: The Mighty Ducks!
May 30th, 2007 at 1:10 am
At least that’s wear I think I’m in. I don’t really know. And I don’t how to use Digg
Please expliane to me how to use diggs. I’m loking for Music & Movies from the Sixties & Seventies. Is it posible to get Movies ( ERA )
Sincereley Robert Work………..
May 30th, 2007 at 1:24 am
WHOA!
Where are the three stooges?
May 30th, 2007 at 1:31 am
admirable list, but i think you were a bit too into comics. it’s true that comicbooks draw a lot of viewers, but there are other which are “powerful” (not “profitable”).
here’s mine:
1. Star Wars, 2. Harry Potter, 3. James Bond, 4. Pirates, 5. Godfather, 6. Lord of the Rings, 7. Superman, 8. Jurassic Park, 9. Matrix, 10. Terminator.
i know some are one hit wonders. movies like T2 or The Matrix are still too powerful to ignore. Batman never got a good push. a good sequel might change the story. the Dark Knight is still the best, though!
May 30th, 2007 at 1:32 am
I like to to note that the matrix was not the first to do bullet time, far from it. The Blade movies stopped using it because of the matrix, they didn’t want to seem like they were copying.
reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullet_time#History
May 30th, 2007 at 2:02 am
what are movies?
May 30th, 2007 at 2:11 am
the fact the godfather isnt on this list is a joke and shows you know as much about big franchises as my cat..
May 30th, 2007 at 2:12 am
fantastic, when i clicked on the article i knew Star Wars #1… or there will be sweet vengance… =)
May 30th, 2007 at 2:13 am
10 most powerful movies of the past 30 years maby, but good list. These are all movies you watched because they were promoted first time around when you were alive. There are movies made before you or I were born that changed the world remember them also.
May 30th, 2007 at 2:16 am
I dont agree with batman or jurassic park being in the running at all let alone where they rank.
here’s mine:
1. Star Wars
2. Harry Potter
3. James Bond
4. Lord of the rings
5. Rocky
6. Shrek
7. Godfather
8. Matrix
9. Indiana Jones
10. Terminator.
May 30th, 2007 at 2:25 am
Is it just me or are these franchises all getting new installments? what about back to the future? aliens?
May 30th, 2007 at 2:41 am
No way Star Wars is a bigger more successful franchise than James Bond. Bond has bigger impact in every sense, more movies over more years with more total box office receipts. If you are going to cite 6 films worth $2 billion as reason for being number one, you should own up to the fact that the Bond franchise has 22 movies worth over $3 billion. I think it’s unarguable that The James Bond character is more recognizable and ingrained in modern cultures worldwide than any character from Star Wars.
May 30th, 2007 at 3:11 am
BACK TO THE FUTURE!?!?! WHERE IS IT!!…
come on.. back to the future was great. it should be up there.
May 30th, 2007 at 3:28 am
Batman and Jurassic Park should be nowhere near that list. until i saw Begins, i wouldnt go near a batman sequel, and JP sequels aren’t luke warm, they are steaming piles.
The Godfather should be there, so should terminator.
I also think back to the future should be there, but that might be just me.
May 30th, 2007 at 3:32 am
Any list of the most powerful movie franchises in history that doesn’t include Police Academy
does not speak for me.
May 30th, 2007 at 3:36 am
Yet another example of a “my favorites” list passed off as the “best of all time,” this time with the meaningless and undefined phrase “most powerful.” This “reviewer” basically just picked the first ten movie franchises he could think of, and called them the “most powerful” of all time, like that means anything at all. Nowhere in sight are some of the series that redefined their genres of cinema (Godfather, Rocky, Back to the Future, Terminator, Jaws, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Pink Panther, The Matrix, and about half a million others) but he remembers Shrek, a movie series about nothing, which influenced nothing (unless you count Eddie Murphy’s career, which could still count for nothing). And knocking Spidey to the back of the list, despite Spiderman 3’s record-shattering opening, all because he likes the Batman character better, even while noting how much he dislikes most of the Batman movies? What a maroon. I’m surprised he remembered Star Wars.
May 30th, 2007 at 3:39 am
If you are going to publish a list called “The Most Powerful Movie Franchises”, then you are making a claim to be objective. You cannot legitimately claim ” I don’t like it” as a reason why it’s not the most powerful; only that it’s a reason it not on your favorite movie franchise list.
May 30th, 2007 at 4:05 am
[…] FilmSchoolReject.com’s The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History. […]
May 30th, 2007 at 4:45 am
apparently, your top ten list is made up of movies whose sole criteria is that you like them. i’d like to challenge you to create a set of firm criteria (box office receipts, number of sequels, whatever) and build a credible list using that criteria. otherwise, kindly rename this article to “The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises From the Last Decade That I - Some Random Guy With a Website - Like”.
May 30th, 2007 at 6:11 am
I’m putting a Top-20 (+2):
22 Nightmare on Elm Street
21 Toy Story
20 Star Trek
19 Exorcist
18 Aliens
17 Superman
16 Terminator
15 Rocky
14 Spider-man
13 Godfather
12 Batman
11 Shrek
10 Jurassic Park
09 Pirates
08 Matrix
07 Indiana Jones
06 Lethal Weapon
05 Back to the Future
04 James Bond
03 Harry Potter
02 Lord of the Rings
01 Star Wars
For me, one factor to consider is what people will think 10 years from now… that’s why Godfather is ranked higher than Spider-man, Matrix higher than Pirates, and why a few older ones are ranked higher than some might think (like Indiana Jones, Lethal Weapon, and Back to the Future).
May 30th, 2007 at 6:47 am
What about Godzilla??
May 30th, 2007 at 7:26 am
Revenge of The Nerds
May 30th, 2007 at 7:42 am
“A Fist Full of Dollars”, “For a Few Dollars More”, “The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly”, and maybe “Hang ‘Em High” and “High Plains Drifter”.
Also, the Dirty Harry series, “Dirty Harry”, “Magnum Force”, “The Enforcer”, “Sudden Impact”, and “The Dead Pool”
May 30th, 2007 at 7:43 am
I wonder, if you take inflation into the calculation, whether old movie franchises might be higher on the list… movies that I used to watch on Sunday mornings when there were only three channels: Ma and Pa Kettle, Charlie Chan, The Thin Man, Tarzan, Flash Gordon, Sherlock Holmes.
Not to mention the “Debbie Does…” series, which I didn’t watch on Sunday mornings.
May 30th, 2007 at 7:57 am
What about Rocky? Spiderman did make a ton of money, but in terms of impact and recognizability (forget the suit for a moment), Rocky just can’t be beat.
May 30th, 2007 at 8:31 am
[…] I gave you my personal list of The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History, so today it is time for you to give me yours. Supposedly, there were tons of great movie […]
May 30th, 2007 at 8:35 am
You did leave off quite a number of franchises but again, Star Trek needs to be in the top five bumping out the Back to the Future out of the top five. After all, besides James Bond and Godzilla, who has more movies and TV series than the Star Trek Franchise.
May 30th, 2007 at 8:51 am
The Matrix films were awesome…. all of them.
And Brian… “The Land Before Time”?????? WTF?????
May 30th, 2007 at 9:06 am
You did not mention:-
- Back to the Future
- Godfather
- Matrix
- Rambo
- Terminator
But I have to agree on Star Wars being #1, Lord of the Rings, I find it boring, but lots of people enjoyed it.
May 30th, 2007 at 9:07 am
And not to forget, NINJA TURTLE :)
May 30th, 2007 at 9:09 am
Raiders of the lost *Arc*
Throw me a curve ball but I don’t remember that one.
Ok, lets consider if we translate some of the old money to today’s money, Tarzan would be hard to beat, And there’s all those dog movies like Lassie, and Rin Tin Tin. Can you call Fred and Ginger a franchise? What about Alfred Hitchcock?
And I heard recently that Sherlock Holmes scores really big when it comes to featuring most often in the movies, and I guess Agatha Christie would be up there too.
And there’s the original King Kong and those planet of the apes movies and I too, cannot believe you left out the GodFather series. And I’ve got a soft spot for Elvis movies too, though they were pretty much crap as far as art goes. And wasn’t there more than one Jaws movie? Though I only remember the first one and wish I didn’t. Ohh and don’t forget the horror movie franchises. Things like Evil Dead, the zombie movies, Scream, Friday 13th, etc etc. Revenge of the killler tomatos. And they never should have been allowed to make more than one Porkies but they did.
May 30th, 2007 at 9:41 am
[…] The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History […]
May 30th, 2007 at 9:48 am
What about, Revege of the Nerds? They made 3 of them. :) NERDZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 30th, 2007 at 10:11 am
They made 4 Nerds movies, the last three of them sucked.
The Rocky series is always mentioned whenever people talk about sequels. It doesn’t make it powerful, but I’d have to say it should be in this list.
Star Wars…okay, the first one (no, not episode 4) sucked. Other than Pod Racing, what did that film have to offer? The second film wasn’t much better. Step back and look at it as a normal film, not a Star Wars film and you’ll see what I mean.
Star Trek….boring in ways no man has bored before.
Back to the Future? Umm…did you see the third movie…
Shrek….buh. The second film was like a long Simpsons episode with an ogre instead of Homer. Dull, dull, dull.
May 30th, 2007 at 10:32 am
If you really are going for most powerful franchises, Star Trek really should have made your top 10. Of course it is your list, so there’s nothing saying it should be close to objective. That said, you are really uneven in your criteria for judgement…i.e. it really is a list of what you like/don’t like. It’s not money based, since overall, the Star Trek franchise probably places higher then any of those except Indy and Star Wars. To say that no individual Star Trek film has the same pentration as Star Wars is the same, but to say that pop-culture wise it hasn’t had the same impact is just wrong. Also, comparisons between Star Trek and Star Wars are somewhat bad in that to me, Star Wars is closer to Lord of the Rings, it’s just that it’s set in space. It’s fantasy in space, not really sci-fi the way Star Trek is.
And in conclusion, a better title for this list is “The Ten Movie Franchises I Most Liked in History”
May 30th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Jones should be top 5 you loser.
May 30th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
Star Trek is way better than Star Wars, and I’m just taking the last 4 Star Trek movies into account. Star Wars IV to VI are great movies, no doubt. Star Wars Ep I to III are ridiculous and cheesy. To me they seemed to be made just to make money. And that is the reason why Star Wars wouldn’t have made it into my list. Lethal Weapon would have though.
May 30th, 2007 at 1:27 pm
This guy has no idea what films are great franchises. This list reads like one of those teenage girl magazine movie reviews.
May 30th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
Hello….. You guys forgot the Friday the 13th series. Anyone remember Jason? The hockey mask? Boobies!!!
It may not be the best movie franchise out there, but it does belong in the top 10.
And while I’m stuck in the horror genre, how about the “Living Dead” (George Romero) movies and Halloween.
May 30th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
You can’t expect the list to be perfect, especially if it’s written by one guy. Even if he factors in everything that could be important to this list, probably not even 10% of the people reading this would be pleased. You guys all together listed a ton of movies; there’s no way you can fit them all in a top 10 list. There will definitely be some movies left out, and way you write the list.
Anyway, as far as impact goes, I think I agree that star wars is the “most powerful” movie franchise. Besides the box office income, there are tons of books out, written by people who had nothing to do with the movies…But it’s nowhere near my favorite movie, anyway. I’m a huge pirate fan, the PotC movies have been my favorite so far, and in my opinion each movie is at least twice as good as the once before it.
May 30th, 2007 at 2:52 pm
One I haven’t seen mentioned that deserves mention: Max Max.
Two I haven’t seen that I am not sure deserves mention: Beverly Hills Cop, Bridget Jones Diary.
My list (seems very heavy on action):
10 - Mad Max
9 - Alien
8 - Die Hard
7 - Dirty Harry
6 - Indiana Jones
5 - Godfather
4 - Star Wars (sorry but the second series made drops it from 1 to 4 for me).
3 - Harry Potter
2 - James Bond
1 - Lord of the Rings
May 30th, 2007 at 4:26 pm
[…] The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History os filmes que mais deram dinheiro (tags: movie popular franchise) […]
May 30th, 2007 at 5:59 pm
[…] Movie Franchises 30 05 2007 In response to the two posts by Neil Miller’s two posts here and here about the most powerful film franchises of all times, I thought I’d have a go at […]
May 30th, 2007 at 6:00 pm
[…] the full list at Film School Rejects If you’re enjoying AWESOMEology, make sure to get free updates by email or […]
May 30th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
He’s not just talking about franchises… he’s talking about EPIC franchises. Not all movies with sequels are epic franchises…
May 30th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
[…] The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History os filmes que mais deram dinheiro (tags: movie popular franchise) […]
May 31st, 2007 at 12:16 am
Beverly Hills COP……. C’mon kids Shrek is ridiculous i’d rather put on Austin Powers.
May 31st, 2007 at 12:17 am
There were a crapload of Charlie Chan movies. What about the bowery boys and all of the franchises from pre 1970.
This list sucks
May 31st, 2007 at 4:18 am
The ONLY franchise you got correct was Star Wars. For all you other posters on here, you can’t only look at box office. There’s no way you can say that Bond would be more powerful than Star Wars simply because 22 films have raked in more than 6 films. After all, what’s the AVERAGE of the films in each series? Bond doesn’t even touch Star Wars (or any other shorter series for that matter).
So, what is really important when thinking of “most powerful” franchises…?
First of all, you have to think of box office, sure, but you should look at ADMISSIONS, not DOLLARS. You also don’t have to look at only movies that are part of a trilogy. There have been single, stand-alone movies that have stood the test of time with popular culture.
You also have to think that we live in the Home Theater Age. People know that movies are going to be on DVD in 4-6 months, so why spend a small fortune taking the family to the theater now; save that money and buy the DVD for 1/3 of the cost (or less).
Soundtracks. Enough said.
Merchandising. Don’t just think about Halloween costumes. Think: lunch boxes, action figures, Happy Meals, Lego sets, special edition cereals, promotions on soda bottles, etc.
And really, to top it all off, think about how often you hear quotes from the movies in everyday life. What characters said things to each other that people are ALWAYS talking about?
What is the top 10 then…?
1. Star Wars
2. Lord of the Rings
3. James Bond
4. Jurassic Park
5. Godfather
6. Back to the Future
7. Spider-Man
8. Harry Potter
9. Superman (parts 1 & 2 at the very least)
10. …
I’m leaving #10 open because there are any number of movie series that are either still going strong (which means they can still flop and be forgotten) or because there are so many not in the Top 9 that you have to leave room for us each to think about which one might be missing from the list.
For the record, so you don’t think this is just a list of my favorites: I can’t stand the Harry Potter movies and I like Batman WAY better than Spider-Man. I also think that the Man with No Name series is important, but most people can’t remember which movie was which, so there’s less impact individually. Same goes for Dirty Harry, Beverly Hills Cop, Die Hard, or Lethan Weapon. There are many other 2-, 3-, or more part movie series that have had impacts, but none as great throughout all of culture as the 9 listed above.
May 31st, 2007 at 4:34 am
the Gojira (Godzilla) franchise really should be on this list somewhere if you are talking about powerful. the compiler probably meant $$, but if a list is made about powerful meaning changed the world, then Gojira has to be on it somewhere. He changed special effects, brought asian cinema to the americas, and showed the angst of a country effected by nuclear war in the form of a giant lizard. Plus, he has been around much longer than ANY of these others on the list. Its a shame he is not even mentioned.
May 31st, 2007 at 6:13 am
Just one question, why the f***, do you all have harry potter on your list. I mean if I was 5 years old so maybe it could be watchable, but it must be the most commercial piece of crap ever made. If you compare with studio ghiblis production, theyre not even in the same league.
May 31st, 2007 at 6:46 am
Decent list, but no way Harry Potter is better than the Lord of the Rings. It’s mentioned in the article that Tolkien’s books are major classics, the films won a million awards, and they grossed mega amounts of money. Then it’s put behind Harry Potter, which has not had one film as good as any of the Rings. We are talking film franchises here, not overall pop culture popularity (in which it would still be insanely close between the two franchises). I like Harry like everyone else, and some of the films are good (the last two in particular). But to be rational, judging by movie franchise standards alone, Potter simply does not hold up the Rings. I don’t think any of the Harry Potter films have won a single major award. There’s a reason for that. It belongs on the list to be sure, but not before the Rings.
May 31st, 2007 at 8:50 am
Indianna Jones dshould definately have made the top 5. Putting it at 10 is an absolute joke. Considering it’s box office, acclaim, longetivity and massive fan base it deserves for more than Shrek, PotC, Spiderman, Batman and Jurassic Park
May 31st, 2007 at 9:03 am
This list is wrong.
Why? No mention of Ghostbusters!
The two movies grossed hundreds of millions, sold millions in merchandise were responsible for three spinoff cartoon series and and a whold line of toys.
It’s place in popular culture is just as engrained as Star Wars and far more so than the Pirates of the Carabbean or Jurassic Park movies.
Ghostbusters would be an even bigger francise had a third movie been made but sadly, it’s never happened.
May 31st, 2007 at 9:18 am
Awful list, full of flaws, from the rank for the certain film, or the actual film itself. First of all, it seems to have been written by someone unaware of any film history pre-2000s era (Shrek?, Spider Man? Pirates?…all from 2000s), what about Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Superman, Night of the Living Dead, Jaws, Ghostbusters, Alien, Die Hard, Mad Max, Star Trek, boy, the list goes on. And please, you state that this list is powerful? Change powerful to “The Ten Most popular Movie Franchises”, “The Ten Movie Franchises I enjoyed” or “The Ten Most Enjoyable Movie Franchises” and you’ve got a better title. Sure, most of the film’s grossed inevitable amounts of money, gained attention from the public (a good example is Lord of the Rings, Jurassic Park)…but they’re rankings on the list are atrocious.
May 31st, 2007 at 10:00 am
Wow, that list is weak. Way too many modern day summer blockbusters. The list needs to contain movies that had sequals near equal to the original. Here’s the real top 15 (I couldn’t just do 10)…
1. Star Wars–First three are all brillant. Latest three good enough to not tarnish its #1 standing.
2. James Bond–90s versions of Bond hurt its standing but Connery/Moore are legends and Casino Royale was a strong comeback.
3. The Godfather–All three brilliant, Oscar caliber.
4. Lord of the Rings–Not a favorite of mine, but the Oscar nods keep coming.
5. Star Trek–Geeks rejoice, half the population may not admit it but everyone has a little Trekkie in them.
6. Rocky–We’ll give Sly a muligan for Rocky 5, but the first four were all entertaining including an Oscar for Rocky 1.
7. Back To The Future–All three brillant, plus it’s amusement park ride is just as good.
8. Indiana Jones–All three brilliant (gave Future the nod over Indy cuz it’s ride is better)
9. Harry Potter–Another one not a favorite of mine, but its emense popularity can’t be denied.
10. Batman–the first one was amazing (thanks to Tim Burton and Jack Nicholson), too bad they went down hill from there, which is why it’s so low on the list.
11. Terminator–this movie was ahead of its time and the second one was better than the first!
12. Austin Powers–What comedy franchise has spawned more quotable characters?
13. Dirty Harry–What action character had more of an impact on pop culture in the 70s than Harry Callahan?
14. Die Hard–John Maclane was Dirty Harry for the 80s.
15. Nightmare On Elm Street–The horror genre’s only entry, but by far its best because of its staying power. (see Poltergeist below). Although Jason Takes Manhatten almost singlehandly gave Friday the 13th the edge.
The following movies, which had brilliant originals, didn’t make the cut because their sequals were SO bad (in my opinion):
Jaws
Poltergeist
Ghostbusters
Jurassic Park
Superman
May 31st, 2007 at 10:16 am
Ghostbusters II wasn’t any worse than Batman Returns, and Batman made the list. This is confusing though because I don’t know whether or not they’re taking the whole francise into consideration when looking at these top 10 films or are they just looking at the films alone? And are they taking Batman Begins into consideration along with the previous Batman films?
May 31st, 2007 at 10:17 am
What about Planet of the Apes???
May 31st, 2007 at 10:28 am
[…] Deborah Lipp on May 31st, 2007 Neil Miller of Film School Rejects has written an article on “The Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises in History.” how do you say what is the most powerful movie franchise in history? Is it the one that […]
May 31st, 2007 at 10:35 am
Although I understand your feelings in regard to Star Trek not being on the franchise list, saying that Star Wars was superior, you seem to forget that WITHOUT Star Trek, there wouldn’t have been a Star Wars. Where do you think they got the Canteen scene from?
May 31st, 2007 at 10:54 am
I can understand why everyone thinks these movies are considered ‘the most powerful in franchise history’- they’re all big money makers and are good stories. But, when I think of powerful movies, I always think of movies which leave an impact on how people feel emotionally, for lack of a better word. For instance, Schindler’s List.
May 31st, 2007 at 10:56 am
What about Frankenstein? Or Dracula even. Those franchises have lasted longer than most of us have lived.
May 31st, 2007 at 10:57 am
hey you forgot the police academy movies as well as Aliens
May 31st, 2007 at 11:00 am
I can understand why James Bond and Star Wars can be ahead of Lord of the Rings, seeing as how they’re so well established in the culutural lexicon, but how can you have Harry Potter ahead of LOTR? Harry Potter has made less money average per film, LOTR is so much more famous, and it’s won 18 oscars, and been nominated for 12 more! How can you not see that. The only series that can go ahead of the Rings is Star Wars, and that’s only because it’s so much older! It hasn’t even been as box-office successfull or won the awards as the Rings. Oh, and how can you forget The Matrix, The Terminator series, and Die Hard? And why is Indianna Jones number ten, below Shrek? and how can you not have The Godfather?
Here’s my Top 10:
1. Star Wars
2. The Lord of the Rings
3. James Bond
4. Indianna Jones
5. The Matrix
6. The Terminator
7. The Godfather
8. Pirates of the Carribean
9. Star Trek
10. Die Hard
May 31st, 2007 at 11:22 am
Just redo the list and this time make it The Top 20…… or 30 Franchises in History! Face it, there are alot of movies that were left off this list. I like the list, i just want to see and read more.
May 31st, 2007 at 11:37 am
What about Police Academy. Didn’t they make 13 or 14 of them, each one coming in at a respectable 96mins
May 31st, 2007 at 11:41 am
I just wanted to point out “The Matrix” was NOT the 1st film to use “bullet time” it was actually Vincent Gallo’s “Bufallo 66″ and after that it was “Lost in Space” both of which came out in 98, a year before The Matrix.
May 31st, 2007 at 11:46 am
OK, let’s first eliminate what must be eliminated and use some real criteria. Sequels that were so horrible they forver taint the MEMORY of the first must eliminate the series. Lack of pop culture references should at least carry some detriment. And, what was the impact on society at the time of the release of the movies and/or their staying power.
Eliminate these first:
Jaws - my favorite movie but the sequels were absolutely atrocious and why most people don’t even consider the first movie as being any good, because all they remember are how ridiculous the sequels were. Sames goes for Ghostbusters (some people are not even aware of a sequel it was that bad), and just about every horror series. Jurrasic Park makes this list, too. The sequels were popcorn movies at best and they detract heavily from the huge impact of the first.
Now, take into account staying power, ability to stay memorable despite bad sequels, and at least one sequel or remake must be almost as good as the first.
10. Rocky - One an Oscar, still quotable, and Rocky IV ended the Cold War which should count for something.
9. Indiana Jones - Raiders of the Lost Ark led to the creation of PG-13, and the series just rolled on from there solidifying the legends of the biggest box office producer, director, and actor of all time. Lacking somewhat in quotes unless we’re talking about snakes, but everyone recognizes the man in the hat.
8. Terminator - T2 was a movie making marvel at the time and all 3 have been fantastic in story and execution, not to mention making Arrnold the Governator and helped James Cameron become known for writing tough female characters for the rest of his career.
7. Star Trek - the only reasons it isn’t higher was because it hasn’t had the crossover to worldwide mainstream as Star Wars, but plenty of pop culture references and a lasting legacy in geekdom. Live long and prosper.
6. Die Hard - Not only did it make Bruce Willis an action star (his career started on Moonlighting lest we forget), but it single handedly changed the summer action movie. It has never looked back and trhe sequels hold up as well.
5. Batman - People were insane when the first Batman came out and merchandise sales were through the roof. Jack Nicholson was an all-time great villain in the first installment. Led to numerous other super hero movies including the making of Spiderman. The new versions maintain the Dark Knight as the greatest super hero legend even over Supe and Spidey. The fourth movie never happened, so let’s all agree to forget it.
4. The Godfather Saga - Not only are there a million quotes, still plays as the greatest movie drama series of all time. Every mob movie and TV show are inevtibly compared to it, if not created because of it. Created Al Pacino’s and Roberty DeNiro’s careers. Not to mention Oscra glory.
3. Harry Potter - The books are the real draw but the movies have created even more demand for the books. The merchandise and world wide fan base push this up the list although cinematically, not great. Fun and entertaining and the fact that the whole series will command tremendous receips all tolled, it comes close.
2. Lord of the Rings - Oscar sweep, epic movie making, great acting, great books, toys a plenty, and world wide crossover appeal. Easy #2.
1. Star Wars - makes number 1 easily despite three mediocre at best prequels. Let’s face it, they sucked compared to the first three productions. But, that’s just how good Episodes 4, 5, and 6 were. Includes the all-time greatest collection of characters - Darth Vadar, Han Solo, Chewbaca, Yoda, Boba Fett, Jabba the Hutt, Luke, Leia, ewoks and jawas… No movie series has had as much of an impact on movie making special effects, pop culture, box office draw, action figures and toys, Halloween costumes, world wide appeal, you name it. And it is still watchable. People camped out for months to buy tickets to crappy prequels just because the originals were that spectacular in scope. And I bet we can all recite just about every line from the original series. That damn good.
May 31st, 2007 at 11:51 am
1. Star Wars > pretty much invented the concept of the movie franchise
2. James Bond > I’ve honestly never watched one, but gotta give it props for going the distance
3. the Evil Dead trilogy > utterly entertaining, the trilogy follows the misadventures of zombie-fodder Ash (the ever-charismatic Bruce Campbell) and director Raimi’s progression from shoestring-budget gorefest to low-budget parody to moderate-budget farce - superb.
4. Back to the Future > great fun, and a clever concept executed with an even more clever simplicity; it’s been suprisingly little-imitated or aped for modern-day franchise purposes
5. the Alien *ahem* quadrilogy > this franchise is just a lil’ different; four gifted and completely different directors take turns at playing with the monsters-in-space scenario - Sigourney Weaver’s enduring Lt. Ellen Ripley is a rare female franchise lead and she does a magnificent job of stringing together the four installments
6. Spider-Man > yeah so the backlash has started with a sometimes-convoluted and sketchy 3rd installment - nonetheless, Sam Raimi lifted the franchise bar back to heights worth scaling with his first two popcorn-munchin’ installments, and just you wait n’ see how Spidey3 does on DVD sales; it’ll be enormous … Raimi managed to combine the requisite thrills and established plot points with occasional quirky moments that most big franchises won’t go near; e.g. Peter Parker’s funky-walkin’ turn to the ‘dark side’ in SM3, or Willem Dafoe’s wicked thanksgiving appearance, or the return-to-horror feel imparted when Doctor Octopus’ mechanical arms become autonomous and murder a team of surgeons - great supporting turns by J.K. Simmons, Alfred Molina and James Franco
7. Indiana Jones - the first film will forever be a classic; the follow-ups very entertaining but never quite replicated the magic of Raiders imo
8. Karate Kid > 3 quality films imo; popcorn-y martial arts philosophy mixed with classic teenage angst-y moments; the formula is pretty strictly adhered to in all three films as our underdog/hero Daniel(-san) overcomes harsh bullying through the teachings of his wise mentor … good stuff with decent values; all three movies resist the temptation to engage in chop-sokey fests in favour of imparting Myagi’s simple moral code. Daniel-san went off the rails way before Peter Parker and Anakin Skywalker btw!!
9. Lord of the Rings - incredibly impressive adaptation of the classic fantasy book, but ultimately overwrought and a little stiff imo - this isn’t Peter Jackson’s fault, whatever this epic trilogy lacks comes from the vaguely quaint source material
10. Friday 13th/Halloween > formulaic crap, but like their protagonists, they never seem to die, again, props for goin’ the distance
May 31st, 2007 at 11:53 am
I left off Bond because I don’t think it really carries the pop culture appeal. He’s famous but having so many different Bonds and the movies not being that good to begin with just weigh it down. Long lasting only because they keep making them for what reason no one knows.
Spiderman and Shrek wouldn’t make any list written 10 years from now for the same reason Back to the Future didn’t make mine. It has to remain relevant.
May 31st, 2007 at 12:00 pm
*adjusts plastic pointy ears*
Star Trek gets an honorable mention?
*puts phaser on heavy stun*
May 31st, 2007 at 12:27 pm
I’m very surprised at the omission of the Alien. Terminator, and Back to the Future films. I would have scrapped Shrek or Jurassic Park in favor of any two of those three. It is not quite true to say that none of the Star Trek films broke into the mainstream. The 2nd, 4th, and 8th films drew much larger audiences than the other 7.
May 31st, 2007 at 12:40 pm
What about the Up & Cummers or Where The Boys Aren’t series?
May 31st, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Interesting list, but it remains to be seen if some of those franchises like Shrek, Pirates and Harry Potter will withstand the test of time.
There was in my opinion one very notable omission: Sergio Leone’s Spaghetti Westerns (A Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More, The Good The Bad And The Ugly, Once Upon A Time In The West, and arguably even A Fistful of Dynamite/Duck You Sucker) were a film franchise before there really were many film franchises. Besides being commercially successful, reviving a dead genre, and spawning countless imitations, those movies were and continue to be a major influence on many, many notable filmmakers and definitely deserve to be somewhere in the top 10.
May 31st, 2007 at 1:08 pm
Beginning in 1917 and lasting for about 60 years, there was at least one Tarzan movie released each year, and several during some years. Although Tarzan hasn’t figured much in theaters for a few decades, he was certainly one of the biggest franchises of all time, and has stimulated as much debate over which actor was the best to portray him as the Bond series has. Like most “best” lists, however, this one seems to be oblivious to anything that happened before the compiler’s lifetime.
May 31st, 2007 at 1:32 pm
You have all forgotten the greatest movie franchise of all time…. and they all star Ernest P. Worrell.
May 31st, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Jurassic Park???? the original was good, but the others fuckin’ sucked nuts…. why wasn’t Back to the Future or even Austin Powers up there, they are far far far far far better movies than Jurassic Park ever was!!!!
May 31st, 2007 at 2:28 pm
Neil,
This is an awesome list and I am sure it took great amounts of research to choose what franchises and order they go in on the list. Star Wars of course is the best of all time and Batman might be next. We may have lost Spiderman due to Sam Raimi selling out for some extra cash. But all in all, great read!
May 31st, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Yes Star Wars is the most powerful or whatever this is simply because its been around the longest. But if you want to go by popularity…TODAY…You have to go Lord of the Rings. They are flat out the better films. I was raised on Star Wars and love it with all my heart but once i saw LOTR star wars was as deep as Tootsie to me. LOTR wins just about every poll its in online for favorite film franchise….sometimes it looks to star wars or godfather but most of the time it wins. Remember this is about power not popularity…because thats a completely different story….
OH AND WHERE IE DIE HARD!!!!!!!
May 31st, 2007 at 2:39 pm
STAR WARS IS ONLY AHEAD OF LORD OF THE RINGS BECAUSE OF THE TIME ITS BEEN OUT. I agree Star Wars is one but if we did a greatest film trilogy of all time….this would not even be close..LOTR wins this.
May 31st, 2007 at 2:41 pm
George Clooney wasn’t a bad Batman. He would have been perfect for a “The Dark Knight Returns” movie. It’s not his fault that Akiva Goldsman can’t write Batman, and Joel Schumacher can’t direct Batman(let alone any other movie).
May 31st, 2007 at 2:44 pm
Obviously, the author wasn’t around when the hoopla surrounding Back to the Future was in high gear in the mid-to-late ’80s. Not relevant? Try telling that to the millions of fans around the globe.
Stephen
BTTF.com
May 31st, 2007 at 2:48 pm
What about Halloween, Friday the 13th, and all othe Freddy movies? If nothing else, Halloween should definitely be on there. Grant it, not all of them were great (i.e. 3, 6, maybe H20), but 1, 2, 4, 5, and Resurrection were awesome.
May 31st, 2007 at 3:07 pm
What you have hear is a lot of people simply putting up their personal favorites, not really assessing what qualifies their picks to put them on the list. Karate Kid? Ghostbusters? Come on, I like most of the Blade films, but they aren’t going on the list. It’s hard to assess it even handedly, people are tempted to put movies that are dear to them on the list when they really don’t belong. Like the Aliens franchise. I loved the first two, but no way would it go on the list either.
May 31st, 2007 at 3:16 pm
I just don’t understand how you could leave out the “Sleepaway Camp” series…… And you call yourself an expert……………..
May 31st, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Well, if creating a theme park around a franchise is any sign of power, I would agree that Harry Potter DOES deserve to be high on this list. Oscars don’t mean squat when it comes to popularity and a growning fanbases.
May 31st, 2007 at 3:34 pm
Rocky is a great omission.
May 31st, 2007 at 3:56 pm
This is a terrible list. If you wanted it to be the top 10 franchises of the past 10 years or so then maybe it owuld be ok. But all time? No way. If you wanna go way back there were the Thin Man movies of the 1930’s which were hugely successful. There were the Universal horror franchises of Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, Wolfman, and even the Creature of the Black Lagoon which had great success in the ’30s, ’40s, and ’50s. The ’70s had the blockbuster Jaws and Dirty Harry series. In the ’80s we had Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Beverly Hills Cop, Friday the 13th, Halloween, and Nightmare on Elm Street.
And then as far as animation franchises Toy Story is at least on par with Shrek.
Almost all of those series sold more tickets and made more money for the studios than Shrek. Harry Potter has no place on this list as each and every movie in the series has failed to live up to expectations. The Matrix as well, which is given honorable mention, wouldn’t belong anywhere near this list as only the 2nd one had any real theatrical success and that was based more on the good feelings people had about the first, as evidenced by the failure that was the third entry. Jurassic Park is another franchise that should not be included because it really has no sustainability and has just continued to re-hash the orginal. Not to mention how much more successful Indiana Jones was anyway.
Terrible List!
May 31st, 2007 at 5:17 pm
GHOSTBUSTERS!
It was more than a blockbuster. It was a phenomenon. When a film can capture the publics imagination like that, that’s power!
Not bad considering it’s not even a trilogy.
May 31st, 2007 at 6:04 pm
“Sequels that were so horrible they forver taint the MEMORY of the first must eliminate the series.”
Then how can you list Star Wars?! It helps if you don’t contradict yourself.
“Star Wars pretty much invented the concept of the movie franchise”
you have to love ignorant 20-year-olds who don’t know history. What were all those Universal Monster movies from the ’30s and ’40s?
Jessica, stop kissing the editor’s ass. This list shows he didn’t do much research besides looking at what’s on his DVD shelf.
May 31st, 2007 at 6:14 pm
Godzilla dummy, where is Godzilla?
May 31st, 2007 at 7:47 pm
Hitchcock. . .gotta have Hitchcock. . .
May 31st, 2007 at 8:51 pm
I’m sorry, Batman would beat Spider-man? Maybe if he had the rest of the Justice League with him. I’m sure Superman, Wonder Woman and the Green Lantern could beat Spidey (as much as I’m not a fan of the first two). But Spider-man would mop the floor with the Caped Crusader, Aquaman and Hawkman (the two lamest heroes of all), and probably Martian Manhunter (he’s fought the Fantastic Four to a standstill, and since MM’s powers are basically an amalgamation of them, I see no reason Spidey wouldn’t thwomp him good).
I also like how you apparently like Weird Al–something I can’t help but respect you for–but then you use him to defend Jurassic Park. You know what OTHER movie inspired a Weird Al song? The first Spider-man. Come to think of it, there’s also two of his songs inspired by Star Wars. No mention there. And you know what? The Flintstones movie ALSO inspired one of his songs (even though the content of the song was based on the show). If you’re gonna use the fact that a Weird Al song was based on a movie, at least take into consideration the others that have shared the “honor” in the past.
May 31st, 2007 at 10:35 pm
I’m surprised there’s no mention of the Terminator trilogy, as these are one of the biggest movie franchises.
I thought the Rocky or the Rambo movies would get a mention.
The Matrix series had only one good movie. And that was the first one. The rest were very ordinary.
June 1st, 2007 at 12:00 am
Again, many of you are just putting your personal favorites, not really assessing all the factors that would put a franchise on the list. Sorry, Die Hard, Back to the Future, Dirty Harry, and so on just aren’t going to make it.
June 1st, 2007 at 12:30 am
Yes, Star Wars (along with Harry Potter and LOTR) are the most popular franschise today. But Star Wars is a mix of Flash Gordon, Memphis Belle (the 40´s documentary) and Kurosawa´s Hiden Fortress, these movies have an incredible lack of originality, even the special effects apear before in Kubrick´s Odissey 2001. James Bond, Mickey Rooney´s Andy Hardy and Richard Dooner´s Superman set the standard of what today we can call “Movie Franchise†(Note: Star Trek is a TV phenomenon without competition in that arena, the films are just extensions)
June 1st, 2007 at 2:28 am
I’m not the biggest fan of the Dark Knight, nor any DC character for that matter, but I did absolutely love Batman Begins. Having said that, there’s no way Batman could ever hold a candle against Spider-Man. Yes, Batman is tough and very adept in martial arts, but he’s just a man. And no man, no matter how many gizmos, could ever have a hope against a super-powered, lightning fast, super-strong superhero who also happens to be smarter than Batman on top of all the other edges he has.
Again, loved Nolan’s reimaging of Batman, and CANNOT wait until the sequel. He’s got nothing on Spider-Man, but then again… no one should ever compare them. Batman’s only counterpart in the Marvel universe is The Punisher. And there, I gotta admit, the Bat would triumph.
June 1st, 2007 at 8:31 am
Batman/Bruce Wayne is very intelligent. In many of his incarnations (one thing lacking in Batman Begins, an otherwise perfect film) he builds a lot of his own equipment. More importantly, he’s street smart and can improvise, but often plans so far ahead he doesn’t have to. In the comics there was one issue where he came up against two guys he had already whooped up on and, recalling previous ass beatings, inflicted the same injuries on them again. Re-breaking an arm that has already been broken is not only severely damaging, but also very painful.
Now, I love Spider-Man, but if Batman set out to fight and defeat Spider-Man, he would probably win. If they just bumped into each other on the street, Spidey has a super advantage, no doubt. But if it were Batman’s goal to take him down, he would plan it out and execute it and get the win. He wouldn’t play fair. Knock-out gases, booby traps, whatever it took.
Same with The Punisher. Read the MAX series of comics to get a real taste for what Frank Castle is capable of. He is a very good mirror of Batman in his cunning and planning, though he is more than willing to go to extremes. The Punisher is very adept at predicting reactions of various people and setting traps. Perfect example is in the Man of Stone series in which he sets up a whole bunch of claymores in a rocky area, all spread out. He then engages a bunch of troops with heavy machine gun fire in the open. Now, well trained troops will seek cover. The best cover in the environment that Frank Castle -chose to have the battle in- is those rocks. They retreat to the rocks, boom. That’s how one guy takes down 15.
Man I’m a dork. Love comics. And just like any Head Honcho I can think of the same fight ending 12 different ways - 6 with Batman winning and 6 with Spidey winning. Though in another defense of Batman, let’s not forget that Superman gave him, and only him, some kryptonite to be used to take Superman down if it ever comes to that. He trusts/thinks Bruce to be the only one capable of doing it.
June 1st, 2007 at 11:38 am
No Godfather? WHAT A JOKE!
June 1st, 2007 at 1:22 pm
Godzilla was an excellent point.
Another wildly successful franchise in asia was Jackie Chan’s Police Story films. They actually made Jackie Chan the largest draw in the world, a fact forgotten or ignored in the US.
June 1st, 2007 at 1:26 pm
@ vagoojockey:
Anyone who claims Star Trek II: the Wrath of Khan was “ridiculous” and “cheesy” is simply flat-out intoxicated and can expect to be laughed off the web.
June 2nd, 2007 at 8:40 am
What about the big horror franchises? Halloween, Friday the 13th, etc. Many of them are still being raped today despite being 20+ years old.
June 2nd, 2007 at 10:43 am
[…] andwere not on the list at all from what I could see, and was in their number 6 spot. With a larger list, they were able to incorporate more horror films as well, such as and . None of the Friday the , series, nor any other slasher movie was brought up. Fantasy and Sci-Fi films do the best on these lists as do comic book movies, though they limit the number of superheroes to only a select few. Movies based on books are not as worthy of the top spots, with the exception of the , and films which are often high up on the lists. I cannot agree with the top spot for either of the lists, though I can understand why it’s there. According to the rules, there is a difference between fact and preference.For the complete movie lists, visit http://movies.ign.com/articles/752/752159p1.html and http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/opinions/the-ten-most-powerful-movie-franchises-in-history.php. […]
June 20th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
In my book is 1- Lord of the Rings, 2-Starwars and 3-Harry Potter.
August 9th, 2007 at 12:30 pm
I’m a fan of many science fiction and fantasy shows and books and Star Trek is up there on my list. However, I do tend to agree with you that, while there ARE Star Trek movies, the impact of Star Trek was attained through the TV series, rather than the big screen. And, you did say, this list IS about the 10 Most Powerful MOVIE franchises.
September 5th, 2007 at 10:25 am
First of all you shouldn’t limit such a subject to just ten options. Although your choices are great I think you should mention the Dirty Harry movies and the Jaws movies. And what about the Die Hard movies or the Halloween movies. I mean its not just about the box office performance is it.
September 11th, 2007 at 4:55 pm
[…] to the honor that the studio, filmmakers and cast felt when we named Harry Potter as #3 on our Top Ten Most Powerful Movie Franchises of All Time list back in May, right behind Star Wars and Mr. Bond. I would stand firm on that assessment, even […]
October 3rd, 2007 at 5:54 am
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January 15th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
You forgot the American Pie franchise!!
lol. I think Neil Miller’s list is pretty much dead on, but i wouldn’t could Jurrassic Park in there. 2 and 3 were just awful. So JP1 would fare well in a list in ‘greatest movies of all time’ but I don’t think the Franchise is that fantastic.
I don’t like Star Trek either. but perhaps it was up there. and certainly more nerdy than Star Wars!
JKH