It would seem that by taking a casual look at box office returns, owning a franchise built around a popular comic book property would insure considerable success. However, out of Hollywood\u2019s competing studios, Universal Pictures International broke all records by grossing $3.73 billion within only four months. A great deal of that can be attributed to the immensely popular \u201cJurassic World,\u201d the fourth entry in a series starring computer generated dinosaurs. Even prior to the release of the Chris Pratt starring blockbuster, Universal was in the process of celebrating their most profitable year. So while \u201cJurassic World\u201d may have been just the latest installment of its own franchise, Universal was doing pretty well without it.<\/p>\n
Produced for approximately $150 million, \u201cJurassic World\u201d was Universal\u2019s most expensive film in quite some time. Up until now, the budget for 2014\u2019s \u201cDracula Untold\u201d was capped at $70 million, yet made $212 million. The rest of Universal\u2019s titles released during that year were made for less than $50 million. One should also recognize that 20% of \u201cJurassic World\u2019s” budget was provided by Legendary Pictures, thus totaling Universal\u2019s contribution to $120 million. Still, it cost almost twice as much to produce as \u201cDracula Untold.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adding to that success was last weekend\u2019s release of \u201cStraight Outta Compton.\u201d The NWA bio-pic earned $60 million domestically almost immediately after its debut. And the feature length animated sequel \u201cMinions\u201d pulled in a respectable $670 million. But that\u2019s not all. Internationally<\/em>, Universal has four of the top grossing films of the year, starting with \u201cFast & Furious 7,\u201d then \u201cJurassic World,\u201d followed by \u201cMinions\u201c at number 4 and \u201cFifty Shades of Grey\u201d at number 5. Not bad for a studio that has nary a Dark Knight nor a team of super powered Avengers to carry the Human Torch (so to speak).<\/p>\n Universal\u2019s two-year punch of profitability followed by even more profitability warrants some scrutiny, specifically with regard to whether there was a business model in place that led them on this path. The list of titles released during 2014 seems fairly unexceptional: a remake of \u201cEndless Love,\u201d another Liam-Neeson-kicks-butt actioner \u201cNon-Stop,\u201d \u201cA Walk Among The Tombstones\u201d (Liam-Neeson-kicks-butt Part Two), \u201cDumb And Dumber To (sic),\u201d \u201cThe Purge: Anarchy\u201d and the aforementioned \u201cDracula Untold.\u201d With the exception of \u201cDracula,\u201d most of those releases were not intended to be a part of a world-building franchise like Disney\u2019s Marvel Cinematic Universe or Warner Bros\u2019 recent efforts focusing on DC\u2019s comic book characters. In fact, the only properties Universal could lay claim to are the beloved monster movies that started with the silent era \u201cHunchback of Notre Dame\u201d and \u201cPhantom of the Opera.\u201d From the 1940s though 1950s, Universal were in fact the first studio to indulge in \u201cuniverse building\u201d by giving each monster their own picture plus the odd sequel or two while releasing additional titles featuring all the characters in one film.<\/p>\n So, essentially Frankenstein, the Wolfman, Dracula and sometimes the Mummy were the \u201cAvengers\u201d of their time.<\/p>\n \u201cDracula Untold\u201d is ostensibly Universal\u2019s launching pad for a whole new franchise of monster movies. A new \u201cWolfman\u201d and \u201cMummy\u201d were announced. Characters would appear in other characters’titles. And then\u2026 nothing. Part of this may be due to the fact that outside of Disney and Warner Bros, other studios have cooled on their plans to build franchises around popular properties. While Fox has enjoyed the fruits of their X-Men labors, this summer\u2019s \u201cFantastic Four\u201d bombed. Sony\u2019s bid to roll out an intertwined Spider-Man series featuring his rogue gallery of arch villains was killed once the numbers came in on \u201cAmazing Spider-Man 2.\u201d So much so that Sony finally conceded to having their leading Marvel character appear in Disney\u2019s upcoming slate of MCU films. That leaves us with Warner Bros and their attempt to flesh out DC\u2019s roster of superheroes. Yet, that too remains untested while we await the release of \u201cBatman Vs. Superman\u201d and \u201cSuicide Squad.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s not to say Universal will not forge ahead with its plan to make a new \u201cCreature From The Black Lagoon\u201d or \u201cHouse Of Frankenstein.\u201d They\u2019ve just been quiet on this as of late. But the differences between the Universal Studios of 2014 and 2015 are striking. 2014 was the year of moderately budgeted, medium profile flicks that doubled their money back. The response was \u201cyou don\u2019t have to own a franchise to be a Hollywood success story! You don\u2019t have to spend over $100 million to make a profit world-wide!\u201d But that response is negated by the Universal of 2015. Their top money earners were expensively produced franchise installments or sequels. Something like \u201cFifty Shades of Grey\u201d isn\u2019t really an exception because Universal sees the E.L. James adaptation as a potential franchise starter.<\/p>\n Universal Studios may never reap the benefits derived from bringing a superhero mythology to the screen. But they do have a portfolio made up of car chase driven heist flicks and dinosaur populated islands. Next on their release slate is Danny Boyle\u2019s \u201cSteve Jobs\u201d and Guillermo del Toro\u2019s \u201cCrimson Peak.\u201d Even though both are highly anticipated, should they perform under expectations Universal will still have a lot to brag about. Because in an era dominated by Iron Man, Captain America, Superman and a whole ensemble of heroic mutants, it\u2019s one thing to do so well without them. It\u2019s another to set an all time industry record.<\/p>\n Universal Studios 10 Highest Grossing Films (2014 and 2015)<\/strong><\/p>\n 2014<\/p>\n<\/caption>\n 2015<\/p>\n<\/caption>\n It would seem that by taking a casual look at box office returns, owning a franchise built around a popular comic book property would insure considerable success. However, out of Hollywood\u2019s competing studios, Universal Pictures International broke all records by grossing $3.73 billion within only four months. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":178,"featured_media":18160,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,17770,17780,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-photo","category-photography","category-photography-tips","category-trending"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n
\n Neighbors<\/em><\/td>\n $150,157,400<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Ride Along<\/em><\/td>\n $134,938,200<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Lucy<\/em><\/td>\n $126,663,600<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Lone Surivivor (initially released in December, 2013)<\/em><\/td>\n $124,907,273<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Non-Stop<\/em><\/td>\n $92,168,600<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Dumb And Dumber To<\/em><\/td>\n $84,966,865<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n The Purge: Anarchy<\/em><\/td>\n $71,962,800<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Unbroken<\/em><\/td>\n $62,528,610<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Dracula Untold<\/em><\/td>\n $56,280,355<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Ouija<\/em><\/td>\n $50,856,010<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n \n
\n Jurassic World<\/em><\/td>\n $639,568,530<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Furious 7<\/em><\/td>\n $351,032,910<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Minions<\/em><\/td>\n $320,084,045<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Pitch Perfect 2<\/em><\/td>\n $183,785,415<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Fifty Shades of Grey<\/em><\/td>\n $166,167,230<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Straight Outta Compton<\/em><\/td>\n $111,087,490<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Trainwreck<\/em><\/td>\n $102,394,125<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Ted 2<\/em><\/td>\n $81,257,500<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Unbroken (initially released in December, 2014)<\/em><\/td>\n $53,109,285<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n The Boy Next Door<\/em><\/td>\n $35,423,380<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"