Blockbuster (entertainment)

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A blockbuster is a work of entertainment—typically used to describe a feature film produced by a major film studio, but also other media—that is highly popular and financially successful. The term has also come to refer to any large-budget production intended for "blockbuster" status, aimed at mass markets with associated merchandising, sometimes on a scale that meant the financial fortunes of a film studio or a distributor could depend on it.

Etymology

The term began to appear in the American press in the early 1940s,{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?year_start=1800&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=7&case_insensitive=on&content=blockbuster&direct_url=t4;,blockbuster;,c0;,s0;;blockbuster;,c0;;Blockbuster;,c0;;BLOCKBUSTER;,c0|title=Google Ngram Viewer|website=books.google.com|access-date=2018-01-09}} referring to the blockbuster bombs, aerial munitions capable of destroying a whole block of buildings.{{Cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/blockbuster|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120730022426/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/blockbuster|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 30, 2012|title=blockbuster {{!}} Definition of blockbuster in English by Oxford Dictionaries|website=Oxford Dictionaries {{!}} English|access-date=2018-01-09}} Its first known use in reference to films was in May 1943, when advertisements in Variety{{Cite news |date=May 12, 1943 |title=Advertisement for the film "Bombardier" |pages=14–15 |work=Variety}} and Motion Picture Herald described the RKO film, Bombardier, as "The block-buster of all action-thrill-service shows!" Another trade advertisement in 1944 boasted that the war documentary, With the Marines at Tarawa, "hits the heart like a two ton blockbuster."

Several theories have been put forward for the origin of the term in a film context. One explanation pertains to the practice of "block booking" whereby a studio would sell a package of films to theaters, rather than permitting them to select which films they wanted to exhibit. However, this practice was outlawed in 1948 before the term became common parlance; while pre-1948 high-grossing big-budget spectacles may be retroactively labelled "blockbusters," this is not how they were known at the time. Another explanation is that trade publications would often advertise the popularity of a film by including illustrations showing long queues often extending around the block, but in reality the term was never used in this way. The term was actually first coined by publicists who drew on readers' familiarity with the blockbuster bombs, drawing an analogy with the bomb's huge impact. The trade press subsequently appropriated the term as short-hand for a film's commercial potential. Throughout 1943 and 1944 the term was applied to films such as Bataan, No Time for Love and Brazil.{{cite web |first=Sheldon |last=Hall |title=Pass the ammunition : a short etymology of "Blockbuster" |year=2014 |publisher=Sheffield Hallam University Research Archive |url=http://shura.shu.ac.uk/6809/3/Hall_Etymology_of_Blockbuster_(rev).pdf |access-date=25 April 2018}}

History

=Golden Age era=

The term fell out of usage in the aftermath of World War II but was revived in 1948 by Variety in an article about big budget films. By the early 1950s the term had become standardised within the film industry and the trade press to denote a film that was large in spectacle, scale and cost, that would go on to achieve a high gross. In December 1950 the Daily Mirror predicted that Samson and Delilah would be "a box office block buster", and in November 1951 Variety described Quo Vadis as "a b.o. blockbuster [...] right up there with Birth of a Nation and Gone With the Wind for boxoffice performance [...] a super-spectacle in all its meaning".

According to Stephen Prince, Akira Kurosawa's 1954 film Seven Samurai had a "racing, powerful narrative engine, breathtaking pacing, and sense-assaulting visual style" (what he calls a "kinesthetic cinema" approach to "action filmmaking and exciting visual design") that was "the clearest precursor" and became "the model for" the "visceral" Hollywood blockbuster "brand of moviemaking" that emerged in the 1970s. According to Prince, Kurosawa became "a mentor figure" to a generation of emerging American filmmakers who went on to develop the Hollywood blockbuster format in the 1970s, such as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola.{{cite book |last1=Prince |first1=Stephen |title=Rashomon Effects: Kurosawa, Rashomon and their legacies |date=6 November 2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-57464-4 |editor-last1=Davis |editor-first1=Blair |page=132 |chapter=Kurosawa's international legacy |access-date=21 April 2022 |editor-last2=Anderson |editor-first2=Robert |editor-last3=Walls |editor-first3=Jan |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ebXhCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA132}}

=Blockbuster era=

==1970s==

In 1975, the usage of "blockbuster" for films coalesced around Steven Spielberg's Jaws. It was perceived as a new cultural phenomenon: fast-paced, exciting entertainment, inspiring interest and conversation beyond the theatre (which would later be called "buzz"), and repeated viewings.Tom Shone: Blockbuster (2004). London, Simon & Schuster UK. {{ISBN|0-7432-6838-5}}. See pp. 27–40. The film is regarded as the first film of the "blockbuster era", and founded the blockbuster film genre.Neale, Steve. "Hollywood Blockbusters: Historical Dimensions." Ed. Julien Stinger. Hollywood Blockbusters. London: Routeledge, 2003. pp. 48–50. Print. Two years later, Star Wars expanded on the success of Jaws, setting box office records and enjoying a theatrical run that lasted more than a year.{{Cite web|url=http://cinematreasures.org/blog/2012/5/25/celebrating-the-original-star-wars-on-its-35th-anniversary|title=Celebrating the Original STAR WARS on its 35th Anniversary|website=cinematreasures.org|access-date=2018-01-09}} After the success of Jaws and Star Wars, many Hollywood producers attempted to create similar "event" films with wide commercial appeal, and film companies began green-lighting increasingly large-budget films, and relying extensively on massive advertising blitzes leading up to their theatrical release. These two films were the prototypes for the "summer blockbuster" trend,{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2015/film/news/jaws-40th-anniversary-at-40-box-office-summer-blockbuster-1201521198/|title='Jaws' 40th Anniversary: How Steven Spielberg's Movie Created the Summer Blockbuster|last=Gray|first=Tim|date=2015-06-18|work=Variety|access-date=2018-01-09|language=en-US}} in which major film studios and distributors planned their annual marketing strategy around a big release by July 4.Shone (2004), Chapter 1. Alongside other films from the New Hollywood era, George Lucas's 1973 hit American Graffiti is often cited for helping give birth to the summer blockbuster.{{cite magazine | author = Staff | url = https://ew.com/article/1991/05/24/evolution-summer-blockbuster/ | title = The Evolution of the Summer Blockbuster | magazine = Entertainment Weekly | date = May 24, 1991 | access-date = February 26, 2008 | archive-date = April 21, 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090421182715/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,314422,00.html | url-status = live }}

==1980s–1990s==

The next fifteen years saw a number of high-quality blockbusters released including the likes of Alien (1979) and its sequel, Aliens (1986), the first three Indiana Jones films (1981, 1984 and 1989), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Ghostbusters (1984), Beverly Hills Cop (1984), the Back to the Future trilogy (1985, 1989 and 1990), Top Gun (1986), Die Hard (1988), Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), Batman (1989) and its sequel Batman Returns (1992), The Little Mermaid (1989), Ghost (1990), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), Jurassic Park (1993), The Lion King (1994), Toy Story (1995), Independence Day (1996), Men in Black (1997), Titanic (1997), and The Matrix (1999).{{Cite news|url=https://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/22/did-jaws-and-star-wars-ruin-hollywood/|title=Did 'Jaws' and 'Star Wars' Ruin Hollywood?|work=Ross Douthat|date=22 June 2010 |access-date=2018-01-09|language=en}}[https://screenrant.com/the-lion-king-behind-the-scenes-facts-animation/ The Circle Of Life: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About The Lion King (1994)|Screen Rant][https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-11-27-ca-7592-story.html Toys Are the Story on Holiday Weekend: Disney’s ‘Toy Story’ is Thanksgiving’s big moneymaker. The animated film could propel the five days to a record $152 million in ticket sales. - Los Angeles Times][https://movingimage.org/event/who-framed-roger-rabbit/2023-07-01/ Who Framed Roger Rabbit - Museum of the Moving Image][https://newsletter.oscars.org/news/post/summer-blockbuster-movies-from-the-1980s Summer Blockbuster Movies from the 80s:'Coming to America,' 'Aliens,' 'Top Gun' and More|Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences][https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/07/22/the-future-was-now-chris-nashawaty-book-review 1982 and the Fate of Filmgoing|The New Yorker][https://www.google.com/books/edition/Michel_Ocelot/r1nXEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 Michael Ocelot: A World of Animated Images - Google Books (pgs.3-10)][https://newsletter.oscars.org/news/post/summer-blockbuster-movies-from-1990s Summer Blockbuster Movies from the 90s:'Ghost,' 'Speed,' 'The Mummy' and More|Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]

==21st century==

Some examples of blockbusters from the 2000s include Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), The Da Vinci Code (2006), Transformers (2007) and Iron Man (2008)[https://ipwatchdog.com/2023/07/25/dont-blame-barbie-ken-killing-movies-dont-blame-ip/id=164020/# Don't Blame Barbie and Ken for Killing the Movies - And Don't Blame IP - IPWatchdog.com]—all of which founded successful franchises—and originals like Gladiator (2000), Shrek (2001),[https://www.vice.com/en/article/a-cultural-evolution-of-shrek-from-blockbuster-hit-to-historic-meme/ A Cultural Evolution of 'Shrek', from Blockbuster Hit to Historic Meme - VICE] Ice Age (2002),[https://www.google.com/books/edition/American_Film_History/5rQHCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 American Film History: Selected Readings, 1960 to the Present · Volume 2 - Google Books (pg.186)] The Day After Tomorrow (2004), Avatar (2009) and Pixar's Finding Nemo (2003), WALL-E (2008) and Up (2009).[https://aframe.oscars.org/news/post/summer-blockbusters-from-the-2000s Summer Blockbusters from the 2000s: 'Gladiator', 'Pirates of the Caribbean', 'Spider-Man' and More|A.Frame] The superhero genre saw renewed interest with X-Men (2000), Spider-Man (2002), Batman Begins (2005) and its sequel The Dark Knight (2008) all proving to be very popular.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/summer-blockbusters-that-defined-the-2000s/|title=Summer Blockbusters That Defined the 2000s|date=July 22, 2020|website=CBR}}

Blockbusters in the 2010s include Inception (2010), Despicable Me (2010), the first four Hunger Games films (2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015), Ted (2012), The Conjuring (2013), Gravity (2013), Frozen (2013), The Revenant (2015), Wonder Woman (2017), and It (2017).{{cite web |url= https://boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?view=Actor&id=leonardodicaprio.htm |title=Leonardo DiCaprio |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date= November 15, 2010 |archive-date=November 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119171843/http://boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?view=Actor&id=leonardodicaprio.htm |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2014/03/frozen-thor-dark-world-monsters-university-profit-most-profitable-movies-2013-701699/ |title=2013 Most Valuable Blockbuster – #7 'Monsters University' Vs. #10 'Thor: The Dark World'; #2 'Frozen' Vs. #15 'The Great Gatsby' |author=Mike Fleming Jr |website=Deadline Hollywood |date=March 21, 2014 |access-date=March 22, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150406085417/http://deadline.com/2014/03/frozen-thor-dark-world-monsters-university-profit-most-profitable-movies-2013-701699/ |archive-date=April 6, 2015 }}{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2018/03/wonder-woman-box-office-profit-2017-1202351443/ |title=No. 6 'Wonder Woman' Box Office Profits – 2017 Most Valuable Blockbuster Tournament |first=Anthony |last=D'Alessandro |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=March 22, 2018 |access-date=March 22, 2018 |archive-date=March 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323004458/http://deadline.com/2018/03/wonder-woman-box-office-profit-2017-1202351443/ |url-status=live }} Several established franchises continued to spawn successful entries with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018) and Frozen II (2019) and Pixar's Toy Story 3 (2010) and Incredibles 2 (2018) alongside animated originals Zootopia (2016) and Inside Out (2015).[https://www.thewrap.com/30-highest-grossing-animated-movies-of-all-time/ 30 Highest-Grossing Animated Movies of All Time - TheWrap] Several older franchises were successfully resurrected by Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), Godzilla (2014), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Jurassic World (2015), and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). The most successful franchise of the decade was arguably Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe, particularly The Avengers series.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2020/07/our-25-favourite-summer-blockbusters-of-the-2010s/|title=Our 25 Favourite Blockbusters of the 2010s|date=July 13, 2020|website=Gizmodo Australia}}

The following decade, Hollywood saw blockbusters, such as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023),[https://www.animationmagazine.net/2023/06/weekend-animated-box-office-battle-its-sonys-spider-verse-vx-pixars-elemental/ Weekend Animated Box-Office Battle: It’s Sony’s ‘Spider-Verse’ versus Pixar’s ‘Elemental’|Animation Magazine] Oppenheimer (2023), Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022),[https://screenrant.com/highest-grossing-summer-blockbuster-movies-2020s/ 10 Biggest Summer Blockbuster Movies of The 2020s So Far - ScreenRant] Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021),[https://deadline.com/2022/02/spider-man-no-way-home-avatar-domestic-box-office-record-1234933726/ ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Beats ‘Avatar’ To Become Third-Highest-Grossing Movie At Domestic Box Office’] Avatar: The Way of Water (2022),[https://www.forbes.com/sites/markhughes/2023/03/13/avatar-2-topping-massive-23-billion-global-box-office/ ‘Avatar 2’ Topping Massive $2.3 Billion Global Box Office] The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023),[https://www.animationmagazine.net/2023/05/billion-dollar-super-mario-bros-blockbuster-power-jumps-to-digital-may-16/ Billion-Dollar ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Blockbuster Power Jumps to Digital May 16|Animation Magazine] Inside Out 2 (2024)[https://time.com/6989419/inside-out-2-box-office-pixar/ The Real Reasons Inside Out 2 Was a Hit|TIME] and Greta Gerwig's adaptation of Barbie (2023)[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/barbie-box-office-passes-super-mario-bros-movie-1235573712/ ‘Barbie’ Becomes Top-Grossing Movie of 2023 Domestically, Global to Soon Follow - The Hollywood Reporter] alongside several older franchises that were successfully resurrected like Top Gun: Maverick (2022)[https://deadline.com/2023/04/top-gun-maverick-box-office-profits-1235328891/ ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Cruises To No. 2 In Deadline’s 2022 Most Valuable Blockbuster Tournament - Deadline][https://variety.com/2022/film/news/top-gun-maverick-box-office-milestone-ninth-highest-grossing-movie-ever-1235321883/ ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Passes ‘The Avengers’ as Ninth-Highest Grossing Domestic Release in History - Variety] and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024).[https://www.thewrap.com/beetlejuice-2-box-office-jenna-ortega/ ‘Beetlejuice 2’ Is Going From Nostalgic Success to Blockbuster Hit - The Wrap]

Criticism

Eventually, the focus on creating blockbusters grew so intense that a backlash occurred, with some critics and film-makers decrying the prevalence of a "blockbuster mentality",{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e0Kxuj2IcnoC&q=blockbuster+mentality&pg=PA108|title=Movie Blockbusters|first=Julian|last=Stringer|date=June 15, 2003|page=108|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=9780415256087|via=Google Books}} lamenting the death of the author-driven, "more artistic" small-scale films of the New Hollywood era. This view is taken, for example, by film journalist Peter Biskind, who wrote that all studios wanted was another Jaws, and as production costs rose, they were less willing to take risks, and therefore based blockbusters on the "lowest common denominators" of the mass market.{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Biskind |title=Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-And Rock 'N Roll Generation Saved Hollywood |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=1998}} In his 2006 book The Long Tail, Chris Anderson talks about blockbuster films, stating that a society that is hit-driven, and makes way and room for only those films that are expected to be a hit, is in fact a limited society.{{cite web |last=Anderson |first=Chris |title=The Long Tail |url=http://www.longtail.com/bloggingheroes.pdf |publisher=Chris Anderson |access-date=April 20, 2011 |archive-date=December 5, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205122847/http://www.longtail.com/bloggingheroes.pdf |url-status=dead }} In 1998, writer David Foster Wallace posited that films are subject to an inverse cost and quality law.{{cite book|last=Foster Wallace|first=David|title=Both Flesh and Not|date=November 6, 2012|publisher=Little Brown & Company|location=New York|isbn=978-0316182379}}

Peter Biskind's book Easy Riders, Raging Bulls argues that the New Hollywood movement marked a significant shift towards independently produced and innovative works by a new wave of directors, but that this shift began to reverse itself when the commercial success of Jaws and Star Wars led to the realization by studios of the importance of blockbusters, advertising and control over production (even though the success of The Godfather was said to be the precursor to the blockbuster phenomenon).{{harvp|Biskind|1998|p=288}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.boxofficepro.com/century-in-exhibition-1970s-boxoffice-history/|title=A Century in Exhibition—The 1970s: A New Hope|date=November 27, 2020|website=Boxoffice}}