Category: Financial

SPIELBERG’S EXTRAORDINARY SUCCESS (1975-1982)

Jaws was the first of three hit movies for director Spielberg that helped put him on top of Hollywood in 1981, as God wasted no time in using him to show us all what to do with our TV’s once he became king of Hollywood.

To understand just how successful Jaws was, Jaws was the first movie to gross over $200 million at the domestic box-office, as it ended up grossing $260 million.  The previous box-office champ at the time was The Exorcist, a movie that grossed $165 million at the domestic box-office. That’s quite a jump…from $165 million to suddenly $260 million.

Jaws nearly put Spielberg on top of Hollywood, but it didn’t.  Robert Stevenson held that title at the time, according to Variety in July of 1977.  Soon after that George Lucas would obtain that title with the success of 1977’s Star Wars ($322 million) and his American Graffiti from 1973.

The combined success of the three Spielberg films Jaws, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, and Raiders Of The Lost Ark put him on top of Hollywood in 1981.  Spielberg has been Hollywood’s financial leader ever since, even though he hasn’t been nearly as successful since after 1998. 

And he is not the same person he was before 1999.  Before 1999, Spielberg was about making movies the best he could.  Since 1999, it’s been about him taking credit.

FIVE MOVIE FRANCHISES WITH FAILED SEQUELS THAT ATTACKED GOD…& 1986

The failed 1987 sequel to Jaws was one of five failed sequels connected to 1986, a year that revealed a revelation about what to do with our TV’s. 

1986:

• Two failed sequels to hit movies with critical scenes involving people checking into a motel, thus the revelation about ditching the TV.
• Two successful sequels Aliens and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

After 1986: 

• The failed sequels that immediately followed Aliens and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
• The 1987 sequel Jaws: The Revenge.