Formulating effective release strategies which maximize the commercial success and cultural impact of different types of pictures has been a practice major movie studios have sought to perfect for decades. Be it simple gimmicks like an influx of horror movies to coincide with Halloween or more meticulous phases like the awards season which typically runs from late fall into early spring, the film industry boasts plenty of chapters within any given calendar year.
Few, however, generate as much fanfare as the American summer. Coming to be in the mid-70s, production houses have used the allure of the heat and the holidays to entice millions across the country and the world to see the biggest movies of the year. These 10 summers were particularly spectacular, boasting action blockbusters, animated classics, and everything in between.
10 2019
The summer where records were broken, 2019 was a meteoric year for blockbuster cinema. While it was technically released in April, Avengers: Endgame dominated the season and even became the highest-grossing movie of all time for a period. Spider-Man: Far From Home, Toy Story 4, and The Lion King were other summer releases to surpass $1 billion at the box office.
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More than just Disney movies thrived, though, with Once Upon a Time in Hollywood a critically lauded fan favorite while Rocketman flipped the trending craze of musical biopics on its head. John Wick: Chapter 3: Parabellum, Midsommar, and Booksmart also became hits as genre films.
9 1980
After an initiation of the concept of summer blockbusters throughout the latter half of the '70s, the 1980s was when the idea really came to life, and the decade started with an almighty bang. Star Wars – The Empire Strikes Back was the hit film of the season, more than doubling the income of the next best film in Smokey and the Bandit II.
The Blues Brothers, Caddyshack, and Airplane! thrived at the box office and have all endured as comedy classics. Horror had a definitive season as well, with The Shining and Friday the 13th both performing well at the box office and becoming icons of the genre.
8 1994
1994’s summer was a seismic year for films across many genres. Animated cinema soared to new heights with The Lion King, action entertainment thrived as True Lies and Speed became huge hits, while comedy-drama classic Forrest Gump became a box office sensation before dominating the Academy Awards.
The Mask was another picture that found mainstream success in '94, but the year also proved to be a good one for cult classic cinema. The Crow became a sleeper hit in the wake of the tragic on-set passing of Brandon Lee, while Natural Born Killers made a splash as a polarizing crime drama.
7 1988
A marriage of animation and live-action cinema dominated the box office in the summer of 1988, with Who Framed Roger Rabbit still one of Hollywood’s most iconic films. The summer also saw career-best outings from Bruce Willis, Kevin Costner, and Eddie Murphy with Die Hard, Bull Durham, and Coming to America,respectively.
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Other comedy hits which thrived included Crocodile Dundee II, Cocktail, and Big,while Willow, despite not quite meeting expectations, was a cult fantasy hit of the era. Midnight Run and A Fish Called Wanda excelled as action crime comedies, while Martin Scorsese released one of his most underappreciated films, The Last Temptation of Christ.
6 1977
Despite being a fantastic season for movies because of the vast selection of great films released, the summer of 1977 will forever be remembered for the unprecedented popularity of Star Wars. Another franchise that thrived in '77 was James Bond, with The Spy Who Loved Me becoming the highlight of Roger Moore’s tenure in the role.
Horror also performed well, with Suspiria excelling as a sensory overload of slasher thrills and The Hills Have Eyes becoming a genre cult classic. Smokey and the Bandit also became a runaway comedy hit, The Kentucky Fried Movie became a hit of the time. In contrast, The Rescuers became a Disney success amid the studio’s darkest days.
5 2015
The summer of 2015 was a great time for follow-up films, with reboots and sequels completely dominating the release window. Jurassic World would be one of the highest-grossing movies of all time, while Avengers: Age of Ultron also crossed the $1 billion mark. Action hits like Mad Max: Fury Road and Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation proved to be the season’s most enduring hits.
Animated cinema also thrived with the success of Pixar’s Oscar-winning Inside Out, while Minions would become the third film of the summer (and fifth of the year) to surpass $1 billion. Straight Outta Compton, Ant-Man, and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. also hit the mark for moviegoers.
4 1989
1989 was a summer rich with options. The year was so loaded that many highly-anticipated sequels failed to claim the top spot at the box office. That financial accolade went to Batman, which completely re-invigorated the character and presented the beginning of his comeback to live-action film.
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Lethal Weapon 2 still performed well though, as did Ghostbusters II,among other comedies like When Harry Met Sally... and Weekend at Bernie's. It was also a good season for dramas, with Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing becoming an important hit while Dead Poet's Society became a timeless classic as well.
3 2008
2008 saw the launch of the superhero craze as we know it, with the MCU making its debut with Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, while The Dark Knight would be the biggest film of the year. The genre also had more secluded hits in the form of Hancock and Hellboy II: The Golden Army becoming relative cult classics of the genre.
It proved to be a big moment for comedy, with gems Tropic Thunder, Step Brothers, Sex and the City,and Pineapple Express all hitting theaters. WALL-E and Kung-Fu Panda became instant classics of animated cinema, while Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull would be the second-highest-grossing movie of the year.
2 1979
The summer of 1979 presented something for everyone to enjoy. Horror had a landmark year with Alien becoming one of the genre’s most celebrated films, Phantasm thriving, and The Amityville Horror becoming the top-grossing movie of the season in North America which is still the last time a horror movie accomplished that feat.
Ridiculous movies were in vogue, with Monty Python making waves as Life of Brian hit screens, while even more ridiculous sequels thrived, with Moonraker and Rocky II being among the highest-grossing movies for the year. Escape from Alcatraz made an impact as a compact thriller, while Apocalypse Now became a timeless classic.
1 1982
Bucking the trend of action blockbuster summer dominance, 1982 proved to be a sensational period for genre films, namely science-fiction, and horror. Steven Spielberg's sci-fi stunner E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was the highest-grossing film of the year, while Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Tron performed well and Blade Runner would go on to become a genre-defining film and one of the best pictures of the decade.
In terms of horror, John Carpenter released yet another esteemed cult classic with The Thing while Poltergeist became a runaway box office success. Action fans still had plenty to enjoy, though, with Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior a scintillating hit while Conan the Barbarian formally introduced the world to Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sean Penn also got his breakout with Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
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