Universal Pictures

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Universal City Studios LLC
Universal Pictures
Formerly
List
  • Universal Film Manufacturing Company (1912–1923)
  • Universal Pictures Corporation (1923–1936)
  • Universal Productions, Inc. (1936–1937)
  • Universal Pictures Company, Inc. (1937–1963)
  • Universal Pictures, Inc. (1963–1964)
  • Universal City Studios, Inc. (1964–1996)
  • Universal Studios Inc. (1996–2014)
Company type
Parent
NBCUniversal
Divisions
Subsidiaries
Website
Footnotes / references
[1][2][3]

Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (informally as Universal Studios or also known simply as Universal), is an American film production and distribution company owned by NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast.

Founded in 1912 by

major film studio in scope of the cinema of the United States, best known as "Hollywood", in terms of the overall film market. Its studios are located in Universal City, California, and its corporate offices are located in New York City
.

The most commercially successful film series from Universal include

Adelphia Cable assets for $17.6 billion2006USA Network begins 13-year streak as #1 cable network in total viewers
Focus Features releases Hollywoodland and Catch a Fire2007Illumination is founded
The Steve Wilkos Show premieres2010Universal releases Despicable Me
Law & Order: LA premieres2011Vivendi divested in NBCU; Comcast buys 51% of NBCU from GE, turning it into a limited liability company
The name "PBS Kids" is dropped out from Sprout (Leaving the name "Sprout")
NBCUniversal Archives is founded2012Universal celebrates its 100th anniversary
Chicago Fire premieres2013Comcast buys GE's remaining 49% of NBCU
PBS sells Sprout to Comcast/NBCU2014Comcast attempts to acquire Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion
Chicago P.D. premieres
NBCUniversal reaches a new long-term deal with WWE2015Chicago Med premieres2016NBCU acquires DreamWorks Animation2017Chicago Justice premieres
Sprout relaunches as Universal Kids2018Comcast acquires Sky after a heated bidding war with 21st Century Fox
FBI premieres2019NBCU acquires Cineo Lighting
Judge Jerry premieres2020NBCU launches Peacock
FBI: Most Wanted premieres2021Grand opening of Universal Beijing Resort
Law & Order: Organized Crime and FBI: International both premiere2022Karamo and Lopez vs Lopez both premiere2023Universal releases The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken and Oppenheimer

History

Early years

Carl Laemmle (1867–1939)
Mark Dintenfass (1872–1933), co-founder of Universal

Universal Studios was founded by

Latham Loop used in cameras and projectors, along with other patents, the Trust collected fees on all aspects of movie production and exhibition and attempted to enforce a monopoly
on distribution.

Soon, Laemmle and other disgruntled nickelodeon owners decided to avoid paying Edison by producing their own pictures. In June 1909, Laemmle started the Yankee Film Company with his brothers-in-law

, in what may be the first instance of a studio using stars in its marketing.

Ivanhoe
(1913)

The Universal Film Manufacturing Company was incorporated in New York City on April 30, 1912.

Rex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company, Champion Film Company, Nestor Film Company, and the New York Motion Picture Company.[14] Eventually all would be bought out by Laemmle. The new Universal studio was a vertically integrated company, with movie production, distribution, and exhibition venues all linked in the same corporate entity, the central element of the Studio system
era.

Melodrama A Great Love (1916) by Clifford S. Elfelt for Universal Big U. Dutch intertitles, 12:33. Collection EYE Film Institute Netherlands.

Following the westward trend of the industry, by the end of 1912, the company was focusing its production efforts in the Hollywood area.

Universal Weekly and Moving Picture Weekly[15] were the alternating names of Universal's internal magazine that began publication in this era; the magazine was intended to market Universal's films to exhibitors.[16] Since much of Universal's early film output was destroyed in subsequent fires and nitrate degradation, the surviving issues of these magazines are a crucial source for film historians.[16]

Universal advertisement touting the benefit of the studio's short films to theater operators[17]

On March 15, 1915,[18]: 8  Laemmle opened the world's largest motion picture production facility, Universal City Studios, on a 230-acre (0.9-km2) converted farm just over the Cahuenga Pass from Hollywood.[19] Studio management became the third facet of Universal's operations, with the studio incorporated as a distinct subsidiary organization. Unlike other movie moguls, Laemmle opened his studio to tourists. Universal became the largest studio in Hollywood and remained so for a decade. However, it sought an audience mostly in small towns, producing mostly inexpensive melodramas, westerns, and serials.

In 1916, Universal formed a three-tier branding system for their releases. Unlike the top-tier studios, Universal did not own any theaters to market its feature films. Universal branding their product gave theater owners and audiences a quick reference guide. Branding would help theater owners judge films they were about to lease and help fans decide which movies they wanted to see. Universal released three different types of feature motion pictures:[20][21]

  • Red Feather Photoplays – low-budget feature films
  • Bluebird Photoplays – mainstream feature release and more ambitious productions
  • Jewel – prestige motion pictures featuring high budgets using prominent actors

Directors of "Jewel" films included Jack Conway, John Ford, Rex Ingram, Robert Z. Leonard, George Marshall, and Lois Weber, one of the few women directing films in Hollywood.[18]: 13 

Starting in the mid-1920s, Universal branded its most expensive and heavily-promoted feature films as "Super-Jewel" productions. These included films such as

Surrender
(1928).

Despite Laemmle's role as an innovator, he was an extremely cautious studio chief. Unlike rivals

Lon Chaney became a drawing card for Universal in the mid-1910s, appearing steadily in dramas. However, Chaney left Universal in 1917 because of a salary dispute, and his two biggest hits for Universal were made as isolated returns to the studio: The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and The Phantom of the Opera (1925).[22]

During the early 1920s Laemmle entrusted most of Universal's production policy decisions to

Louis B. Mayer Productions, as vice-president in charge of production, and when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
was formed in 1924 Thalberg continued in the same position for the new company. Without Thalberg's guidance, Universal became a second-tier studio and would remain so for several decades.

Share of the Deutsche Universal-Film AG, issued March 4, 1930

In 1926, Universal opened a production unit in Germany, Deutsche Universal-Film AG, under the direction of

Hitler
's increasing domination of central Europe. With the advent of sound, these productions were made in the German language or, occasionally, Hungarian or Polish. In the U.S., Universal Pictures did not distribute any of this subsidiary's films. Still, some of them were exhibited through other independent, foreign-language film distributors based in New York City without the benefit of English subtitles. Nazi persecution and a change in ownership for the parent Universal Pictures organization resulted in the dissolution of this subsidiary.

In the early years, Universal had a "clean picture" policy. However, by April 1927, Carl Laemmle considered this a mistake as "unclean pictures" from other studios generated more profit while Universal lost money.[23]

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

In early 1927, Universal had been negotiating deals with cartoon producers since they wanted to get back into producing them. On March 4, Charles Mintz signed a contract with Universal in the presence of its vice president, R. H. Cochrane. Mintz's company, Winkler Pictures, was to produce 26 "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit" cartoons for Universal.[24] Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks created the character and the Walt Disney Studio provided the animation for the cartoons under Winkler's supervision.

The films enjoyed a successful theatrical run, and Mintz would sign a contract with Universal ensuring three more years of Oswald cartoons.

animators to work at his own studio. Disney and Iwerks would create Mickey Mouse in secret while they finished the remaining Oswald films they were contractually obligated to finish. Universal subsequently severed its link to Mintz and formed its own in-house animation studio to produce Oswald cartoons headed by Walter Lantz, which would later result in the creation of Woody Woodpecker
in 1940.

In February 2006, NBCUniversal sold all the Disney-animated Oswald cartoons, along with the rights to the character himself, to The Walt Disney Company. In return, Disney released ABC sportscaster Al Michaels from his contract so he could work on NBC's recently acquired Sunday night NFL football package. Universal retained ownership of the remaining Oswald cartoons.

Keeping leadership of the studio in the family

Logo version from 1931
Bela Lugosi in Dracula (1931)
Boris Karloff in Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

In 1928, Laemmle Sr. made his son, Carl Jr., head of Universal Pictures, a 21st birthday present. Universal already had a reputation for nepotism—at one time, 70 of Carl Sr.'s relatives were supposedly on the payroll. Many of them were nephews, resulting in Carl Sr. being known around the studios as "Uncle Carl". Ogden Nash famously quipped in rhyme, "Uncle Carl Laemmle/Has a very large faemmle". Among these relatives was future Academy Award-winning director/producer William Wyler.

"Junior," Laemmle persuaded his father to bring Universal up to date. He bought and built theaters, converted the studio to sound production, and made several forays into high-quality production. His early efforts included the critically panned

Oscar
.

Laemmle Jr. created a niche for the studio, beginning a series of

Universal horror. Among them are Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), The Mummy (1932) and The Invisible Man (1933). Other Laemmle productions of this period include Tay Garnett's Destination Unknown (1933), John M. Stahl's Imitation of Life (1934) and William Wyler's The Good Fairy
(1935).

The Laemmles lose control

Universal's forays into high-quality production spelled the end of the Laemmle era at the studio. Taking on the task of modernizing and upgrading a film conglomerate in the depths of the

scrapped
, but Carl Jr. held fast to distribution, studio, and production operations.

The end for the Laemmles came with a lavish version of

B-picture. The new film featured several stars from the Broadway stage version, which began production in late 1935, and unlike the 1929 film, was based on the Broadway musical rather than the novel. Carl Jr.'s spending habits alarmed company stockholders. They would not allow production to start on Show Boat unless the Laemmles obtained a loan. Universal was forced to seek a $750,000 production loan from the Standard Capital Corporation, pledging the Laemmle family's controlling interest in Universal as collateral
. It was the first time Universal had borrowed money for a production in its 26-year history. The production went $300,000 over budget; Standard called in the loan, cash-strapped Universal could not pay, and Standard foreclosed and seized control of the studio on April 2, 1936.

Although Universal's 1936 Show Boat (released a little over a month later) became a critical and financial success, it was not enough to save the Laemmles' involvement with the studio. They were unceremoniously removed from the company they had founded. Because the Laemmles personally oversaw production, Show Boat was released (despite the takeover) with Carl Laemmle and Carl Laemmle Jr.'s names on the credits and in the film's advertising campaign. Standard Capital's

C.M. Woolf and J. Arthur Rank, who bought a significant stake in the studio.[26] Gone were the big ambitions, and though Universal had a few big names under contract, those it had been cultivating, like William Wyler and Margaret Sullavan
, left.

Meanwhile, producer Joe Pasternak, who had been successfully producing light musicals with young sopranos for Universal's German subsidiary, repeated his formula in the United States. Teenage singer Deanna Durbin starred in Pasternak's first American film, Three Smart Girls (1936). The film was a box-office hit and reputedly resolved the studio's financial problems. The film's success led Universal to offer her a contract, which for the first five years of her career, produced her most successful pictures.

James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich in Destry Rides Again (1939)

When Pasternak stopped producing Durbin's pictures, and she outgrew her screen persona and pursued more dramatic roles, the studio signed 13-year-old Gloria Jean for her own series of Pasternak musicals from 1939; she went on to star with Bing Crosby, W. C. Fields, and Donald O'Connor. A popular Universal film of the late 1930s was Destry Rides Again (1939), starring James Stewart as Destry and Marlene Dietrich in her comeback role after leaving Paramount.

By the early 1940s, the company was concentrating on lower-budget productions that were the company's main staple: westerns, melodramas, serials, and

The Ritz Brothers (1940–43); musicals with Robert Paige, Jane Frazee, The Andrews Sisters, and The Merry Macs (1938–45); and westerns with Tom Mix (1932–33), Buck Jones (1933–36), Bob Baker (1938–39), Johnny Mack Brown (1938–43); Rod Cameron (1944–45), and Kirby Grant
(1946–47).

Universal could seldom afford its own stable of stars and often borrowed talent from other studios or hired freelance actors. In addition to Stewart and Dietrich,

comedians
a national and international profile.

During the war years, Universal did have a co-production arrangement with producer

(1943).

As Universal's main product had always been lower-budgeted films, it was one of the last major studios to contract with

three-strip Technicolor process until Arabian Nights (1942), starring Jon Hall and Maria Montez. Technicolor was also used for the studio's remake of their 1925 horror melodrama, Phantom of the Opera (1943) with Claude Rains and Nelson Eddy
. With the success of their first two pictures, a regular schedule of high-budget Technicolor films followed.

Universal International and Decca Records

In 1945, J. Arthur Rank, who had already owned a stake in the studio almost a decade before, hoping to expand his American presence, bought into a four-way merger with Universal, the independent company

Arabian Nights" cycles. He also reduced the studio's output from its wartime average of fifty films per year (nearly twice the major studio's output) to thirty-five films a year.[28]
Distribution and copyright control remained under the name of Universal Pictures Company Inc.

Universal International Studio, 1955

Goetz set out an ambitious schedule. Universal-International became responsible for the American distribution of Rank's British productions, including such classics as

Realart Pictures
for cinema re-release, but Realart was not allowed to show the films on television.

The production arm of the studio still struggled. While there were to be a few hits like

Francis (1950), the first film of a series about a talking mule, became mainstays of the company. Once again, the films of Abbott and Costello, including Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), were among the studio's top-grossing productions. But at this point, Rank lost interest and sold his shares to the investor Milton Rackmil, whose Decca Records would take full control of Universal in 1952. Besides Abbott and Costello, the studio retained the Walter Lantz
cartoon studio, whose product was released with Universal-International's films.

In the 1950s, Universal-International resumed their series of Arabian Nights films, many starring

.

Although Decca would continue to keep picture budgets lean, it was favored by changing circumstances in the film business, as other studios let their contract actors go in the wake of the 1948

MCA agent Lew Wasserman made a deal with Universal for his client James Stewart that would change the rules of the business. Wasserman's deal gave Stewart a share in the profits of three pictures in lieu of a large salary. When one of those films, Winchester '73
(1950), proved to be a hit, the arrangement would become the rule for many future productions at Universal and eventually at other studios as well.

MCA takes over

Ceremonial gate to Universal Studios Hollywood (the theme park attached to the studio lot)

In the early 1950s, Universal set up its own distribution company in France. In the late 1960s, the company also started a production company in Paris, Universal Productions France S.A., although sometimes credited by the name of the distribution company, Universal Pictures France. Except for the two first films it produced, Claude Chabrol's Le scandale (English title The Champagne Murders, 1967) and Romain Gary's Les oiseaux vont mourir au Pérou (English title Birds in Peru), it was only involved in French or other European co-productions, including Louis Malle's Lacombe, Lucien, Bertrand Blier's Les Valseuses (English title Going Places, 1974), and Fred Zinnemann's The Day of the Jackal (1973). It was only involved in approximately 20 French film productions. In the early 1970s, the unit was incorporated into the French Cinema International Corporation arm.

By the late 1950s, the motion picture business was again changing. The combination of the studio/theater-chain breakup and the rise of television saw the reduced audience size for cinema productions. The

Revue Studios. MCA owned the studio lot, but not Universal Pictures, yet was increasingly influential on Universal's products. The studio lot was upgraded and modernized, while MCA clients like Doris Day, Lana Turner, Cary Grant, and director Alfred Hitchcock
were signed to Universal contracts.

The long-awaited takeover of Universal Pictures by MCA, Inc. happened in mid-1962 as part of the MCA-

leading actors and directors under contract; offering slick, commercial films; and a studio tour
subsidiary launched in 1964.

Television production made up much of the studio's output, with Universal heavily committed, in particular, to deals with NBC (which much later merged with Universal to form NBC Universal;

that same fall.

At this time, Hal B. Wallis, who had recently worked as a major producer at Paramount, moved over to Universal, where he produced several films, among them a lavish version of Maxwell Anderson's Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) and the equally lavish Mary, Queen of Scots (1971).[29] Although neither could claim to be a big financial hit, both films received Academy Award nominations, and Anne was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor (Richard Burton), Best Actress (Geneviève Bujold), and Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Quayle). Wallis retired from Universal after making the film Rooster Cogburn (1975), a sequel to True Grit (1969), which Wallis had produced at Paramount. Rooster Cogburn co-starred John Wayne, reprising his Oscar-winning role from the earlier film, and Katharine Hepburn, their only film together. The film was only a moderate success.

In 1983, Universal Pictures launched an independent film arm designed to release specialty films, Universal Classics, and the division has sights on separation.[30] In 1987, Universal Pictures, MGM/UA Communications Co., and Paramount Pictures teamed up to market feature film and television products to China. Consumer reach was measured in terms of the 25 billion admission tickets that were clocked in China in 1986, and Worldwide Media Sales, a division of the New York-based Worldwide Media Group, had been placed in charge of the undertaking.[31]

In the early 1980s, the company had its own pay television arm Universal Pay Television (a.k.a. Universal Pay TV Programming, Inc.), which spawned in 1987, an 11-picture cable television agreement with then-independent film studio New Line Cinema.[32]

In the early 1970s, Universal teamed up with

20th Century Fox's international arm to handle the distribution of their titles, an ongoing arrangement. UIP nearly lost its connection with Universal Pictures in 1999 when Universal started Universal Pictures International to take over the assets of PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and wanted UPI to distribute their films starting in 2001.[33] Only a small handful of films were released theatrically by Universal Pictures International, up until the release of the film Mickey Blue Eyes. UIP then took over the theatrical distribution inventory of future films planned to be released by Universal Pictures International, such as The Green Mile and Angela's Ashes.[34] On October 4, 1999, Universal renewed its commitments to United International Pictures to release its films internationally through 2006.[35][36]

Matsushita, Seagram, Vivendi and NBCUniversal

Logo used from 1996 to 2012, still used on some properties, such as the independent company, Universal Music Group

Anxious to expand the company's broadcast and cable presence, longtime MCA head Lew Wasserman sought a rich partner. He located Japanese electronics manufacturer Matsushita Electric (now known as Panasonic), which agreed to acquire MCA for $6.6 billion in 1990.

On December 9, 1996, the new owners dropped the MCA name; the company became Universal Studios, Inc.

Pearson PLC
.

Matsushita provided a cash infusion, but the clash of cultures was too great to overcome, and five years later, Matsushita sold an 80% stake in MCA/Universal to Canadian drinks distributor Seagram for $5.7 billion.[38] Seagram sold off its stake in DuPont to fund this expansion into the entertainment industry. Hoping to build an entertainment empire around Universal, Seagram bought PolyGram in 1999 and other entertainment properties, but the fluctuating profits characteristic of Hollywood were no substitute for the reliable income stream gained from the previously held shares in DuPont.

Gate 2, Universal Studios (as it appears when closed on weekends)

To raise money, Seagram head Edgar Bronfman Jr. sold Universal's television holdings, including cable network USA, to Barry Diller (these same properties would be bought back later at greatly inflated prices). In June 2000, Seagram was sold to French water utility and media company Vivendi, which owned StudioCanal; the conglomerate then became known as Vivendi Universal. Afterward, Universal Pictures acquired the United States distribution rights of several of StudioCanal's films, such as David Lynch's Mulholland Drive (2001) and Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001) which became the sixth-highest-grossing French-language film of all time in the United States.[39][40] Universal Pictures and StudioCanal also co-produced several films, such as Love Actually (2003); a $40 million-budgeted film that eventually grossed $246 million worldwide.[41] In late 2000, the New York Film Academy was permitted to use the Universal Studios backlot for student film projects in an unofficial partnership.[42]

Burdened with debt, in 2004, Vivendi Universal sold 80% of Vivendi Universal Entertainment (including the studio and theme parks) to General Electric (GE), parent of NBC.[43] However, the sale of Universal to NBC and GE did not include Universal Music Group, which had been a part of the film company since 1962. UMG was placed under separate management through Vivendi.[44] The resulting company was named NBCUniversal, while Universal Studios Inc. remained the name of the production subsidiary. After that deal, GE owned 80% of NBC Universal; Vivendi held the remaining 20%, with an option to sell its share in 2006.

In late 2005, Viacom's Paramount Pictures acquired DreamWorks SKG after acquisition talks between GE and DreamWorks stalled. Universal's long-time chairperson, Stacey Snider, left the company in early 2006 to head up DreamWorks. Snider was replaced by then-Vice chairman Marc Shmuger and Focus Features head David Linde. On October 5, 2009, Marc Shmuger and David Linde were ousted, and their co-chairperson jobs were consolidated under former president of worldwide marketing and distribution Adam Fogelson, becoming the single chairperson. Donna Langley was also upped to co-chairperson.[45] In 2009, Stephanie Sperber founded Universal Partnerships & Licensing within Universal to license consumer products for Universal.[46]

GE purchased Vivendi's share in NBCUniversal in 2011.[47]

Comcast era (2011–present)

Gate 3 with signs for KNBC and KVEA

GE sold 51% of the company to cable provider Comcast in 2011. Comcast merged the former GE subsidiary with its own cable-television programming assets, creating the current NBCUniversal. Following Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval, the Comcast-GE deal was closed on January 29, 2011.[48] In March 2013, Comcast bought the remaining 49% of NBCUniversal for $16.7 billion.[49]

In September 2013, Adam Fogelson was ousted as co-chairman of Universal Pictures, promoting Donna Langley to the sole chairperson. In addition, NBCUniversal International chairman Jeff Shell would be appointed as chairman of the newly created Filmed Entertainment Group. Longtime studio head Ron Meyer would give up oversight of the film studio and appointed vice chairman of NBCUniversal, providing consultation to CEO Steve Burke on all of the company's operations. Meyer retained oversight of Universal Parks and Resorts.[50]

Universal's multi-year film financing deal with

Elliott Management expired in 2013.[51] In summer 2013, Universal made an agreement with Thomas Tull's Legendary Pictures to distribute their films for five years starting in 2014 (the year that Legendary's similar agreement with Warner Bros. Pictures ended).[52]

In June 2014, Universal Partnerships took over licensing consumer products for NBC and Sprout with the expectation that all licensing would eventually be centralized within NBCUniversal.[46] In May 2015, Gramercy Pictures was revived by Focus Features as a genre label concentrating on action, sci-fi, and horror films.[53]

On December 16, 2015, Amblin Partners announced that it entered into a five-year distribution deal with Universal Pictures by which the films will be distributed and marketed by either Universal or Focus Features.[54][55]

In early 2016, Perfect World Pictures announced a long-term co-financing deal with Universal, representing the first time a Chinese company directly invests in a multi-year slate deal with a major U.S. studio.[56]

On April 28, 2016, Universal's parent company, NBCUniversal, announced a $3.8 billion deal to buy

20th Century Fox
ended.

On February 15, 2017, Universal Pictures acquired a minority stake in Amblin Partners, strengthening the relationship between Universal and Amblin.[59]

In December 2019, Universal Pictures entered early negotiations to distribute upcoming feature film properties based on the Lego toys. Although the original Lego Movie characters are still owned by Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures will serve as a distributor of future releases and will develop additional Lego films. The future of the already in-development films is believed to remain the same.[60]

In June, it was announced longtime Universal International Distribution President Duncan Clark would be stepping down. He would transition to a consulting role with the studio in August and would be replaced by Veronika Kwan Vandenberg.[61]

Universal Filmed Entertainment Group

Universal Filmed Entertainment Group (UFEG) is an organizational unit within Universal Pictures,[62] a film studio and a division of NBCUniversal, which is a division of Comcast Corporation. UFEG functions as a coordinated framework encompassing various subsidiary companies and divisions responsible for the creation, marketing, and distribution of films and audiovisual content. UFEG operates under the umbrella of Universal Pictures, serving as a key division overseeing several entities, including Universal Pictures, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, Illumination, DreamWorks Animation, and Focus Features. The CEO of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group is Donna Langley.

Studio units
Production Distribution Other
Live-action
Animation

Units

  • Universal Pictures International
    • Universal International Distribution

Film library

In addition to its own library, Universal releases the EMKA, Ltd. catalog of 1929–1949 Paramount Pictures, owned by sister company Universal Television.

Film series

Title Release date No. Films Notes
Universal Monsters
1931–56 31
The Mummy 1932–2017; TBA 11 coproduction with Relativity Media, Sommers Company, Alphaville, K/O Paper Products, and Perfect World Pictures
Abbott and Costello 1940–55 3
Woody Woodpecker 1940–present 2 coproduction with
Walter Lantz Studios and Universal Animation Studios
Sherlock Holmes 1942–46 12
Ma and Pa Kettle 1947–57 10
Francis the Talking Mule 1950–56 7
Cape Fear 1962–91 2
The Birds 1963–94
McHale's Navy 1964–97 3
Airport 1970–79 4
American Graffiti 1973–79 2 coproduction with
Lucasfilm, Ltd.
The Jackal 1973–97 coproduction Warwick Films, Alphaville, and Mutual Film Company
Jaws 1975–87 4
Smokey and the Bandit 1977–83 3 Coproduction with
Rastar
(1-2)
The Car 1977–2019 2
The Blues Brothers 1980–98 coproduction with SNL Studios
Halloween 1981–82, 2018–present 5 coproduction with Compass International, De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, Miramax, and Blumhouse Productions
Endless Love 1981–2014 2
Conan the Barbarian
1982–84; TBA
The Thing 1982–2011; TBA coproduction with the Turman-Foster Company,
Morgan Creek Productions, and Strike Entertainment
Psycho 1983–98 5
Firestarter 1984–2022 2
Back to the Future 1985–90 3 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment
An American Tail 1986–99 4 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment, Amblimation, and Sullivan Bluth Studios
The Land Before Time
1988–2016 14 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment, Lucasfilm, and Sullivan Bluth Studios
K-9 1989–2002 3
Tremors 1990–present 7
Problem Child 1990–95 3
Darkman 1990–96 coproduction with Renaissance Pictures
Buried Alive 1990–97 2
Child's Play / Chucky 1990–98; 2013–present 5
Kindergarten Cop 1990–2016 2 Coproduction with Imagine Entertainment
Knight Rider 1991–2008 3
The Little Engine That Could 1991–2011 2
Backdraft 1991–2019 coproduction with Imagine Entertainment and Trilogy Entertainment Group
Beethoven 1992–2014 8
VeggieTales 1993–present 2 coproduction with Big Idea Entertainment
Jurassic Park 1993–2001; 2015–present 6 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment, Legendary Entertainment, and The Kennedy/Marshall Company
Carlito's Way 1993–2005 2
Hard Target 1993–2016
The Flintstones 1994–2000 coproduction with Hanna-Barbera and Amblin Entertainment
Timecop 1994–2003 coproduction with Renaissance Pictures
The Little Rascals 1994–2014 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment
Babe 1995–98
Casper 1995–2000 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment, Harvey Films, and Saban Ltd.
Balto 1995–2005 3 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment and Amblimation
Apollo films 1995–2019 coproduction with Imagine Entertainment, Statement Pictures, CNN Films, and Neon
Sudden Death 1995–2020 2
Dragonheart 1996–present 5
Twister 1 coproduction with Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. (both 1996)
Mr. Bean 1997–2007 2 coproduction with
Alvin and the Chipmunks 1999–2000
Jay Ward films From Dudley Do-Right to The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle
The Best Man 1999–2013
American Pie 1999–2020 9 (including the spin-off series)
Meet the Parents 2000–10 3 coproduction with DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Pictures, and TriBeCa Productions
The Chronicles of Riddick 2000–13 coproduction with
Dr. Seuss films 2000–18 4 From
The Grinch; coproduction with Imagine Entertainment, DreamWorks Pictures, and Illumination
Bring It On 2000–22 6 coproduction with Strike Entertainment
Gladiator 2000–present 1 coproduction with
Red Wagon Entertainment
, DreamWorks Pictures (2000), Paramount Pictures (2024)
Hannibal Lecter 2001–02 2 coproduction with the Weinstein Company and De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
Fast & Furious 2001–present 10 coproduction with Original Film, Relativity Media, and One Race Films
Bourne
2002–present 5 coproduction with the Kennedy/Marshall Company and Relativity Media
The Scorpion King coproduction with Alphaville and WWE Studios
Blue Crush 2002–11 2 coproduction with Imagine Entertainment
Undercover Brother 2002–19
Almighty 2003–07 coproduction with
Spyglass Entertainment, Shady Acres Entertainment
, and Original Film
Hulk
2003–08; TBA including
Hulk films; coproduction with Marvel Studios
Johnny English 2003–18 3 coproduction with StudioCanal and Working Title Films
Honey 4
...of the Dead
2004–05 2 coproduction with
Cruel and Unusual Films, and Strike Entertainment
Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy
2004–13 3 coproduction with Rogue Pictures, Relativity Media, Focus Features, Working Title Films, and StudioCanal
White Noise 2005–07 2 coproduction with Gold Circle Films
Nanny McPhee 2005–10 coproduction with Working Title Films
Doom 2005–19 coproduction with Di Bonaventura Pictures, Bethesda Softworks, and id Software
Smokin' Aces 2006–10 coproduction with Relativity Media
Curious George 2006–21 6 coproduction with Imagine Entertainment
Battlestar Galactica 2007–09 2
Mamma Mia! 2008–18 coproduction with Relativity Media, Playtone, LittleStar, Legendary Entertainment, and Perfect World Pictures
Death Race 5 coproduction with New Horizons, Cruise/Wagner Productions, and Relativity Media
Hit-Girl & Kick-Ass 2010–13 2 coproduction with
Marv Films
Despicable Me 2010–present 5 coproduction with Illumination
Ted
2012–15 2 coproduction with
Bluegrass Films, and Fuzzy Door Productions
The Man with... coproduction with
Bluegrass Films
Pitch Perfect
2012–17 3 coproduction with Gold Circle Films and Brownstone Productions
The Purge
2013–present 5 coproduction with Blumhouse Productions and Platinum Dunes
R.I.P.D. 2013–22 2
Ouija 2014–16 coproduction with Blumhouse Productions,
Hasbro Studios, Genre Films
, and Platinum Dunes
Neighbors coproduction with Point Grey, Relativity Media, and Good Universe
Ride Along coproduction with Relativity Media and Perfect World Pictures
Insidious 2015–18 coproduction with FilmDistrict, Focus Features, Gramercy Pictures, IM Global, Alliance Films, Stage 6 Films, Entertainment One, and Blumhouse Productions
Fifty Shades 3 coproduction with Focus Features,
Michael De Luca Productions, and Trigger Street Productions
The Secret Life of Pets 2016–present 2 coproduction with Illumination
Sing
Unbreakable 2016–19 coproduction with Touchstone Pictures, Blinding Edge Pictures, and Blumhouse Productions
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2016–23 coproduction with HBO Films, Playtone Films, Gold Circle Films, and Focus Features
Happy Death Day 2017–present coproduction with Blumhouse Productions
The Addams Family 2019–21 International distributor; coproduction with
Bron Creative
How to Train Your Dragon 2019–present 1 coproduction with
Marc Platt Productions
Trolls 2020–23 2 coproduction with DreamWorks Animation
Shrek 2022–present 1
The Bad Guys
The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2023–present coproduction with Illumination and Nintendo
Five Nights at Freddy's coproduction with Blumhouse Productions and Scott Cawthon Productions

Highest-grossing films

Universal was the first studio to have released three billion-dollar films in one year; this distinction was achieved in 2015 with Furious 7, Jurassic World, and Minions.[65]

 Indicates films playing in theatres in the week commencing 22 March 2024.
Highest-grossing films in North America[66]
Rank Title Year Box office gross
1 Jurassic World 2015 $652,270,625
2 The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2023 $574,939,710
3 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1982 $439,251,124
4 Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom 2018 $417,719,760
5 Jurassic Park 1993 $415,248,873
6 Jurassic World Dominion 2022 $376,851,080
7 Minions: The Rise of Gru $369,695,210
8 The Secret Life of Pets 2016 $368,384,330
9 Despicable Me 2 2013 $368,061,265
10 Furious 7 2015 $353,007,020
11 Minions $336,045,770
12 Oppenheimer 2023 $326,062,130
13 Meet the Fockers 2004 $279,261,160
14 The Grinch 2018 $270,620,950
15 Sing 2016 $270,329,045
16 Despicable Me 3 2017 $264,624,300
17
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas
2000 $260,044,825
18 Jaws 1975 $260,000,000
19 Despicable Me 2010 $251,513,985
20 Bruce Almighty 2003 $242,829,261
21 Fast & Furious 6 2013 $238,679,850
22 The Lost World: Jurassic Park 1997 $229,086,679
23 The Bourne Ultimatum 2007 $227,471,070
24 The Fate of the Furious 2017 $226,008,385
25 Ted 2012 $218,815,487
Highest-grossing films worldwide
Rank Title Year Box office gross
1 Jurassic World 2015 $1,670,400,637
2 Furious 7 $1,516,045,911
3 The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2023 $1,361,767,338
4 Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom 2018 $1,308,534,046
5 The Fate of the Furious 2017 $1,238,764,765
6 Minions 2015 $1,159,398,397
7 Jurassic Park 1993 $1,058,298,560
8 Despicable Me 3 2017 $1,034,800,131
9 Jurassic World Dominion 2022 $1,003,700,664
10 Despicable Me 2 2013 $970,761,885
11 Oppenheimer 2023 $953,967,794
12 Minions: The Rise of Gru 2022 $939,628,210
13 The Secret Life of Pets 2016 $875,457,937
14 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1982 $797,103,542
15 Fast & Furious 6 2013 $788,679,850
16 No Time to Die 2021 $774,153,007
17 F9 $726,229,501
18
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
2019 $721,040,050
19 Fast X 2023 $720,165,774
20 Sing 2016 $631,214,341
21 Fast Five 2011 $626,137,675
22 The Lost World: Jurassic Park 1997 $618,638,999
23 Mamma Mia! 2008 $609,841,637
24 Fifty Shades of Grey 2015 $571,006,128
25 King Kong 2005 $550,517,357

Includes theatrical reissue(s).

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Robert H. Cochrane (1879–1973) formed the Cochrane Advertising Agency in Chicago in 1904. He joined the Laemmle Film Service as advertising manager in 1906 and, for the next 30 years, devoted himself to promoting Carl Laemmle as the "star" of various motion picture enterprises. In 1912 Cochrane was elected vice-president of the Universal Film Manufacturing Company and served as president of Universal in 1936–37 after Laemmle sold his interests.[5]
  1. ^ International distribution only. Released by Warner Bros. domestically in North America.

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External links