These days, multiplexes are full of remakes, and there are even movies that people didn’t even know were remakes, such as I Am Legend and Mr. Deeds. But there’s a reason why movie studios put so much effort into developing remakes.
Films that already have an existing fanbase will almost always make hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office, and a few remakes have even become some of the highest-grossing movies of all time, regardless of their quality. Between several Disney live-action remakes, a few monster movies, and an A-list-heavy heist flick, remaking movies is a big moneymaker.
Ocean’s Eleven (2001) - $450 Million
The movie landscape has changed quite a bit in the time since Ocean’s Eleven’s release 20 years ago. Though movies are now marketed based on them being long-running properties, they used to be heavily marketed around the movie stars that led them, and the 2001 movie was the perfect example of that.
Ocean’s Eleven is a great crime comedy, but what helped it make almost half a billion dollars wasn’t the fact that it was a remake of a 60s movie. The billing of George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and so many others was a dream cast, and any movie would be lucky to have just one of those bankable stars, let alone a whole roster of them.
Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (2005) - $475 Million
Not even being universally derided could stop Charlie and the Chocolate Factory from earning such a high figure. The Tim Burton-directed movie's success is owed to many different things, such as its connection to the beloved 1971 original movie and Johnny Depp in the lead role.
Surprisingly enough, despite the film’s reputation of being far inferior to the original movie, it actually received high praise from critics upon its release. Though their opinions might have changed in the time since, their original reviews would have certainly had a hand in ballooning the film’s box office gross.
Godzilla (2014) - $525 Million
2014’s Godzilla isn’t the first remake the amphibian creature has had. The Japanese monster got its first Hollywood remake in 1998, but that movie underperformed at the box office. The 2014 Godzilla is much better, and it’s far more faithful to the original, as it details Godzilla’s history and features stunning visual effects.
Part of the movie’s success is due to the exceptional way the movie was promoted, as the first trailer kept the monster hidden, which expertly built the hype of the film. Godzilla does have its flaws, such as the lack of character development, but it’s the absolute spectacle of the movie that made it a success, as there had never been a monster movie on this scale ever before.
King Kong (2005) - $562 Million
It’s massively impressive that King Kong managed to make $562 million, as the film is one of the movies of the 21st century over three hours. A film that long not only means that general audiences might be put off, but it also means that multiplexes aren’t able to screen it as much as other movies, which makes its box office gross all the more impressive.
King Kong is an epic movie in every way, as it isn’t just a monster movie, but a period drama too. The movie has several significant subplots, such as the production of Carl’s film to the troubles of King Kong. Between being a period production with grand costume and set design and being a high concept monster movie, it helped director Peter Jackson replicate the success he had with The Lord of the Rings.
War Of The Worlds (2005) - $603 Million
War of the Worlds was the second of three collaborations between Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg (with the other two being Minority Report and Munich) and the alien invasion movie was by far the most successful. Between casting a bankable star as the lead actor and the expert and intricate filmmaking of Spielberg, War of the Worlds was always going to be a sure-fire hit.
Not only that, but the movie is based on the extremely popular H.G. Wells novel of the same name, so there was already an existing fanbase. And though the movie is more frightening and suspenseful than what would be expected of a PG-13 film, keeping it from being R-rated is another reason why War of the Worlds is one of the biggest alien invasion hits at the box office.
It (2017) - $701 Million
Fans believed that Tim Curry’s depiction of Pennywise the clown in the original It movie was irreplaceable. But with help from some CGI effects, Bill Skarsgard’s portrayal of the clown in 2017’s It is even better. His performance is the very reason why the film is as terrifying as fans say it is, and the sheer amount of scares in the movie is why it reached $700 million.
It also capitalized on the phenomenal success of Stranger Things, casting Finn Wolfhard and basing it in a nostalgia-soaked 80s setting. The movie set a ton of box office records, including the record for the highest-grossing opening weekend for an R-rated film.
The Jungle Book (2016) - $966 Million
The Jungle Book was an impressive remake mostly because director Jon Favreau took some liberties with the source material. For instance, King Louie was turned into a giant gangster-type character voiced by Christopher Walken, and there were several other creative casting choices.
The Jungle Book isn’t just a remake of a classic, but it has become a classic itself, and the almost billion dollars that it grossed isn’t the least bit surprising. The movie even changed the ending to leave open the possibility of future sequels, which would surely be just as successful if not more so.
Aladdin (2019) - $1.051 Billion
Will Smith is a huge box office draw, and his absence from The Suicide Squad is surely part of the reason why it underperformed despite being largely regarded as "better" than the original movie. On the other side of the spectrum, he’s also a big reason as to why Aladdin grossed well over a billion dollars.
Smith had some big shoes to fill, taking over from Robin Williams in the original, but his portrayal was a hit with general audiences. And when it comes to promoting the movie, The movie's fans did Disney's marketing for them, as there were people who created some hilarious viral Genie memes.
Beauty And The Beast (2017) - $1.263 Billion
By 2017, Disney was in full swing of giving all of its older properties the live-action remake treatment. Though the remakes had all been hugely successful, none reached the box office heights of Beauty and the Beast.
The movie made so much more than any other remake up to that point that even Disney was probably surprised at its success. The movie doesn’t necessarily do anything unique compared to the other Disney remakes, but there’s no resisting that soundtrack and the beautiful looking visuals - and the fact that it was in 3D helped to its box office gross too.
The Lion King (2019) - $1.656 Billion
Jon Favreau has done wonders for Disney, as he directed both The Jungle Book and The Lion King, essentially making the studio more than $2.5 billion with just two movies.
The 2019 remake was critically panned for being too similar to the original, but it’s a case of critics and general audiences not being on the same page. People showed up at multiplexes in droves, and they loved the movie. From the voice cast including Beyoncé and Donald Glover to funny references to Frozen, Favreau knew exactly how to appeal to a brand new generation.