The Biggest Summer Movie Releases of All Time

Audiences lined up for this reimagined version of H.G. Wells’s sci-fi classic, with Tom Cruise playing a divorced dock worker trying to protect his son and daughter (Dakota Fanning, in an early role) from giant, scary alien machines. The machines first appear by busting out of the city pavement. They then roam the streets, and eventually the countryside, killing every human in their path, before meeting their own, unexpected, demise.

In this animated Disney/Pixar collaboration, the flame-haired female character, Princess Merida of Dunbroch, lives in the historic Scottish Highlands where she defies local custom by refusing to be betrothed. When her mother turns into a bear, Merida — interestingly Disney’s first movie princess created by Pixar — must save her kingdom.

The lyrics “If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!” introduce viewers to a bunch of wacky parapsychology professors who team up to fight ghosts and other paranormal phenomena. Audiences loved both the film and its theme song. Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, and Harold Ramis starred, along with Sigourney Weaver and a giant marshmallow man.

Anthropomorphic talking cars were the stars here in this Pixar Animation Studio sports comedy, the last independently produced by Pixar after its 2006 purchase by Disney. A long list of big stars voiced the parts — including Owen Wilson, and Paul Newman, in his final role. The film’s success launched two sequels and two spinoffs.

Who knew that a toy line could turn into a movie — or movies? In this one, the fourth in the series, the original actors of the first three films were replaced by the stars Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci and Kelsey Grammar, among others. Some of the Transformers were new, too. The film, the first filmed on small digital IMAX cameras, bombed with critics but was a huge box office success.

strong>> Worldwide box office: $790.0 million

In “Azkaban,” Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint return to their roles to star in the third installment of the film franchise, based on book three of J.K. Rowling’s wizardly blockbuster series. In the story, Harry, now in his third year at Hogwarts, learns that the prisoner Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban and is out to kill him.

Alien refugees are living on Earth disguised as humans, but they must be policed: This becomes the job of the secret agency Men in Black, whose members also protect the planet from extraterrestrial threats. Tommy Lee Jones stars as Agent J, and Will Smith as Agent K, with fun results. The film drew critical praise, especially for its novel concept. The “Chicago Tribune’s” Gene Siskel gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four as a “smart, funny, and hip adventure film in a summer of car wrecks and explosions.”

This film version about the DC Comics superhero kicked off Warner Bros.’ series with Tim Burton directing Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne, in what for Keaton was an unusual serious role. Jack Nicholson starred as The Joker. Interestingly, The Joker’s origin story was changed in this film: The gangster falls into a vat of acid, prompting his pathologic transformation.

In this animated feature, Steve Carell voiced the normally bad guy Gru, who’s out to steal the moon, backed by his minions. Then, an unexpected turn: a trio of orphans come under Gru’s care, making him think twice about that moon heist. Russell Brand, Miranda Cosgrove and Kristen Wigg lent their voice talents to this 3D animation.

“Jaws”put scary, people-eating great white sharks on the map:. Director Steven Spielberg also intensified the terror with his trademark jump cuts. The story: Officials at an East Coast beach town welcoming beachgoers on the Fourth of July want a man-hungry great white gone. Toward this end, the mayor (Roy Scheider) engages marine biologist (Richard Dreyfuss) to challenge the giant mammal. Who can forget Scheider’s famous line, “I think we need a bigger boat.”

Looking around the cross-species genetics lab where his father once worked, Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) is bitten by a spider and develops spider-like, superhuman abilities. However, he is reluctant to use those abilities, leading to the death of his uncle, Ben, at the hands of a thief. That’s motivation enough for Peter to seek Ben’s killer and initiate a career of crime-fighting, pausing along the way to build his spandex disguise and court Gwen (Emma Stone).

“Despicable Me 3” was the sequel to, no surprise, to “Despicable Me 2,” and did well at the box office while leaving critics unimpressed. Stars from the earlier films like Steve Carell, Julie Andrews, and Benjamin Bratt lent their voices once more. This time, Anti-Villain agents Gru and Lucy Wilde pursue a former child star-turned villain who, in turn, is pursuing a diamond he wants to steal.

Monsters scored again, in receipts, this time from Disney Pictures. This computer-animated fantasy features a university where monsters learn to become “scarers,” who enter the human world to frighten children in their beds at night. The monsters aim to “harvest” the energy of the children’s screams. The film, featuring Billy Crystal and Helen Mirren as voice talents, was a sequel to “Monster, Inc.” Particularly fun in the latter film is the competition between main character “Mike” and “Sully” (John Goodman), the better scarer.

Three buddies wake up hungover after a bachelor party in Las Vegas. But where is the groom? He’s disappeared. So the friends set out to find him. What could go wrong? Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, John Bartha and Bradley Cooper star, but a cute baby steals the show. The film was a critical and commercial success and inspired two sequels.

Everyone knows the story of DC Comics’ super hero Superman, but where’d he come from? What happened on the planet Krypton that defined his mission? How’d he come to be adopted by the Clarks? And what singular event caused him to become a reporter? Henry Cavil stars in the film, which received mixed reviews, but praise for its action sequences.

This fifth installment in the Harry Potter series brought the Hogwarts gang together yet again. This time, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) tangles yet again with arch-villain Lord Voldemart (Ralph Fiennes). The action swirls around a vision Harry has of his godfather Sirius Black being tortured by the villain. The action peaks with Voldemort dueling Headmaster Dumbledore and Voldemort unsuccessfully inhabiting Harry’s body to try to get Dumbledore to sacrifice the boy wizard.

This sci-fi film left some viewers scratching their heads and others breathless at the stunning special effects, for which “Inception” won one of its four technical-category Academy Awards. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio who plays a professional thief who extracts information from his targets by using military technology to infiltrate their subconscious, a process called “Inception.” Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Elliot Page were among the other stars. Labyrinths and mazes in multiple countries are created, and viewers interpreted the film for months after.

This psychological thriller stars Bruce Willis as a child psychologist whose 9-year-old patient can talk to the dead. M. Night Shyamalan made a splash with “Sixth Sense”: Both the box office and critics approved. Six Oscar nominations followed. And audiences gasped en masse at the film’s big twist at the end (no spoilers here).

Life in the small town of Forks, Washington, is complicated: vampires and werewolves running around. Bad vampires, good vampires. This romantic thriller is the third installment from author Stephenie Meyer’s mega-successful Twilight series. Its plot: Teenager Bella (Kristen Stewart) loves vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson) and wants to join his immortal lifestyle. But first the evil and vengeful vampire Victoria must be dealt with. Then there’s Bella’s second suitor, the werewolf Jacob (Taylor Lautner).

Harry is in his sixth year at Hogwarts in this sixth installment of the Harry Potter film franchise. In “Half-Blood Prince,” the young wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) receives a mysterious textbook, finds young love and continues to battle his nemesis, Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes).

This very successful five-part film series by Disney Pictures started in 2003, based on an attraction — “Pirates of the Carribean” — at Disney’s theme parks. The first installment, “Curse of the Black Pearl,” starred Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, who helps his friend Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) save Will’s love, Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) from evil pirates. Leader of those pirates is Sparrow’s former first mate with whom he has a major bone to pick. The films allowed Depp to enter his lovable, always tipsy iconic character — prone to heavy eye makeup — into cinematic history.

A giant extraterrestrial saucer enters Earth’s orbit and threatens the human race, sending out smaller (but still sizable at 15 miles across each) spaceships to hover over major cities. After the aliens’ lasers destroy Washington, D.C., the U.S. president (Bill Pullman) strategizes, assisted by an eccentric satellite technician (Jeff Goldblum). Their plan, set to start in the Nevada desert, is set to start on July 4, “Independence Day.”

“Transformers” is the first installment of this five-part sci-fi series based on the Transformers toy line. Here, two Transformer factions, the Autobots (good guys) and the Decepticons (villains) are at war in another galaxy. The Decepticons then arrive on Earth, disguise their vehicles as familiar vehicles, and hack into U.S. networks to find the Decepticons’ leader. An Earth-bound teenager Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBoeuf) is drawn into the fray.

In this superhero cinematic spinoff from DC Comics, Superman is dead and the U.S. government forms Task Force X, composed of criminals and super-villains, to combat metahuman threats. A bomb is implanted in each criminal’s neck, to be detonated at the whim of intelligence officer Dr. June Waller (Viola Davis). Helicopter crashes and other mayhem ensue; The Joker (Jared Leto) gets involved. Will Davis and Margot Robbie also star.

Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) is a Southerner with a physical disability and an autism-like disorder. Despite these limitations, Gump manages to influence major events of the mid-20th century, from Chinese-American diplomacy and the Vietnam war to Watergate to appearing alongside John Lennon on a TV talk show where he influences Lennon’s iconic song “Imagine.” All along, Forrest stays loyal to his closest friends, Lieutenant Dan (Gary Sinese) and childhood friend Jenny (Robin Wright).

This superhero film is based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. The action starts when young Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) is abducted from Earth by alien thieves led by

Yondu Udonta (Michael Rooker). Later, a grownup Peter discovers a mysterious Orb, which Yondu learns about and wants back badly enough to send an assassin in to retrieve it.

In this superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character, actor Tom Holland plays Peter Parker and his alter ego, Spider-Man, whose special abilities stem from a bite by a radioactive spider when he was 15. The plot of the film revolves around stolen weapons espionage which the good guys try to wrest out of the hands of the bad ones.

Minions are little yellow creatures which exist to serve Earth’s biggest evil-doers. In the film they foment a string of unwelcome actions due to their ineptitude — like crushing an Egyptian pharaoh under a pyramid and exposing Count Dracula to sunlight. Searching for a new master, three minions end up in London where they plot with villainess Scarlet Overkill to steal Queen Elizabeth’s crown. Among the voice talents were Jon Hamm, Sandra Bullock, and Michael Keaton.

“Dark of the Moon” is the third installment in the Transformers franchise, and Shia LaBeouf is back to reprise his role. The plot harks back to America’s early space program: A Cybertronian spacecraft lands on the moon, carrying an invention that could end the war between the Autobots ( good guys) and the Decepticons (bad ones). NASA detects the crash and President John F. Kennedy calls for a mission to put a man on the moon as cover for investigating the spacecraft. Also starring are Josh Duhamel and Frances McDormand.

This computer animation from Pixar Animation Studios is considered one of the more important films of the 2010s. Certainly the concept is unique: The story takes place in the mind of a girl named Riley whose personified emotions — joy, sadness, anger, fear and disgust — attempt to guide or misguide her as she deals with the mixed feelings she has over moving with her parents from Minnesota to San Francisco.

In this second installment to the computer-animated comedy series, supervillain Gru (Steve Carell) is recruited by the Anti-Villain League to track down the dangerous mutagen PX-41, stolen from a secret laboratory at the Arctic Circle. Assisting him is agent Lucy Wilde (Kristen Wigg). The main suspect is Eduardo Perez, a.k.a. “El Macho” (Benjamin Bratt), whose front is a Mexican restaurant. Gru and Lucy go after him and cultivate a growing romance at the same time.

What do pets do all day while we’re at work? This computer animation from Illumination Entertainment offers one scenario: They socialize. A Jack Russell terrier Max (voiced by Louis C. K.) hangs out with the cats and dogs in his Manhattan apartment building. When his owner Katie (Ellie Kemper) adopts a mongrel, Duke, a cat attack follows and both pooches are sent by animal control to the pound. Luckily, a Pomeraniann who is in love with Max, plots a rescule.

This second installment in the Spider-Man franchise, following the adventures of that famous Marvel Comics character, finds Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) feeling low about continuing on as Spider-Man. This attitude reduces his powers. Of course a new villain, nuclear scientist Otto Octavious arrives, and Peter takes him on. At the same time, his doubts haunt him and his love interest, Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), becomes engaged to someone else.

This fantasy film, the eighth in the “Harry Potter” film series and its finale, sees Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint reprising their roles as Harry, Hermione and Ron, as well as Ralph Fiennes donning a lot of makeup to become arch-villain Lord Voldemort. In the film, the three young wizards hunt for Voldemort’s black-magic “Horcruxes,” which break a dark wizard’s soul into multiple parts. Many events ensue, ending with the final showdown between Harry and his nemesis. Twenty years later, Harry, Hermione and Ron, and Draco, are all married and proud to see their children depart Kings Cross Station en route to Hogwarts.

This sequel to “Spider-Man: Homecoming” is another entry in the growing list of movies emanating from Marvel Comics characters. “Far From Home,” however, stars Tom Holland as our hero. with Zendaya taking over MJ’s role. In this film, Peter Parker mourns the death of his mentor, Tony Stark. But more challenges await: During a trip to Europe, Peter is asked by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to help join the fight. Peter declines; but Fury is undeterred in drawing Peter in.

This sci-fi action film, a sequel to “Transformers,” again stars Shia LaBeouf as Sam Witnicky, who in “Revenge of the Fallen,” is having visions with Cybertronian symbols and is the target of the Decepticons. The latter (bad guys) are led by a Decepticon named The Fallen, who seeks to destroy all life on Earth by activating a machine that is an energon source.

What if we humans could bring back dinosaurs by cloning their DNA from amber-encrusted mosquitoes? That’s the concept of industrialist John Hammond, who buys an island just for this purpose and builds Jurassic Park, a theme park where he can show off his creations. As this first film in the Jurassic Park franchise starts off, a staffer’s death by a dangerous velociraptor prompts investors to demand a review of Jurassic Park’s safety by outside experts (Sam Neil, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum), just ahead of total mayhem.

Why shouldn’t women be superheroes, too? Certainly Wonder Woman can, as a staple of DC Comics since 1941. Misogyny figures into her history. But still, she’s an Amazonian princess (Gal Gadot) with superpowers, from the all-female island of Themyscira, who’s not sure how to relate to men. This is apparent after she rescues an army pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) who’s crashed his plane on her island. Princess Diana, as she’s known, then escorts Steve home to 1918 London, where she tries hard to fit into an environment gearing up for world war.

This third installment in the Toy Story series from Pixar Animation Studios has the family’s son Andy heading off to college, leading his mother to put Woody, Buzz Lightyear,and the other toys at the curb for trash pickup. Thankfully, the characters end up in a daycare center. From there the toys must decide: Stay and be mishandled by toddlers or go back home? What were Andy’s intentions toward his toy friends anyway? Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and other stars again provided voice talent in this film, which received critical acclaim and two Oscars and, worldwide, surpassed the $1 billion mark.

As the fifth installment of the Jurassic Park franchise, and a sequel to “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” this film brings back actors Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard as Owen Grady and Claire Dearing, who arrive on Isla Nublar off the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. Their mission: to rescue the remaining cloned dinosaurs on Earth before a volcanic eruption destroys the island and everything with it. The film received mixed reviews. But, interestingly, Jeff Goldblum, who dates back to the first “Jurassic” Park” in 1993, has a cameo role.

This enormously successful Disney animation featured the music of Tim Rice and Elton John (“Can You Feel the Love Tonight?”) and the appealing story of Simba, the lion cub who is set to succeed his father Mufasa as king. However, Mufusa is murdered by his own brother Scar, in a power grab, and Simba is made to believe he was the murderer. He flees the Pride Lands, grows up in the company of friends, including Nala who’s from his childhood, and later Simba’s great love. Later, this rightful king returns home to challenge Scar. Interestingly, “The Lion King” drew accusations of plagiarism from Japan because of similarities to that nation’s beloved anime series “Kimba the White Lion.”

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This second installment in Disney Pictures’ Pirates series starts with a wedding interrupted: Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) are about to tie the knot when the chairman of the East India Trading Company arrives to arrest them for allowing Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) to escape. Jack, meanwhile, has a mission to pursue, to keep villainous Davy Jones(Bill Nighy) who captains the ghost ship, The Flying Dutchman, at bay. Cannibals and a heart stored in a chest figure in. Notable are Jones’s computer-generated sea worms.

This fourth installment in Pixar Animation Studios’ highly successful franchise, Woody (Tom Hanks) and his lovable gang of toys are now with Bonnie, to whom now-grownup owner Andy has donated these items of his youth. The trouble is, Bonnie’s toys have a leader, Dolly, and Bonnie isn’t interested in playing with Woody. But Woody persists, sneaking into her backpack the day she enters kindergarten. The film, touchingly, is dedicated to the late Don Rickles, who previously voiced Mr. Potato Head.

E.T., short for “extraterrestrial,” becomes Elliott’s best friend after being abandoned on Earth by his fellow aliens. But Elliott and his sister Gertie (Drew Barrymore) must protect E.T. from the federal agents pursuing him and help him return home. “E.T.” became a blockbuster and held the distinction of being the highest-grossing movie of all time until “Jurassic Park” 11 years later. Its tension rises fanned by director Steven Spielberg’s familiar strategies, like portraying the feds only from the waist down — the scary adults to Elliott’s childish innocence.

This film is third in “The Dark Knight Rises” tragedy and picks up on the DC Comics character Batman (Christian Bale). This time, the villain is Bane (Tom Hardy), a masked terrorist who operates out of the sewers, and, before the story begins, has abducted a nuclear physicist from a CIA aircraft. Bruce Wayne/Batman, meanwhile, has disappeared from view because organized crime has waned in Gotham City. But not entirely: Bane intends to destroy Gotham, and Batman has to act, aided by once-corrupt Police Commissioner James Gordon (Gary Oldman) to whom Batman reveals his identity.

This computer-animated adventure story from Pixar Animation Studios is a sequel to 2003’s “Finding Nemo.” In “Dory,” Ellen DeGeneres voices the main character, a beautiful regal blue tang fish native to the Pacific. Dory is living with friends Nemo and Marlin when she suddenly remembers her parents and their home off the California coast. With her friends and a sea turtle named Hank, Dory sets out to unite her family. But en route, she encounters dangers, like a threatening giant Humboldt squid, and humans who capture her and take her to the Marine Life Institute.

This second installment of “The Dark Knight Trilogy,” a sequel to “Batman Begins,” brings back Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Michael Caine has his trusted butler and Gary Oldman. It features one of the final performances of Heath Ledger, who posthumously received an Academy Award for his portrayal of the villainous Joker, who’s out to destroy Batman.

This “Lion King” is a photorealistic, computer-animated redo of the 1994 film. And it did quite well as a new generation of parents took their children to see the movie they remembered from their childhoods..The film’s box office take of $1.6 billion made it the highest-grossing animated film of all time, overtaking even “Frozen.” Its voice cast — including Beyonce, Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen — was steller. But critics were unimpressed, calling out this version for its lack of originality.

This superhero sequel to 2004’s “The Incredibles” and the second film in the franchise Pixar Animation Studios created brings back the voice talents of Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, and Samuel L. Jackson. Its story revolves around the Incredibles’ efforts to restore the public’s trust in superheroes. But that’s a tough goal after the Incredibles battle the Underminer and save City Hall but are unable to stop the villain from robbing a bank and escaping. The government has had enough: It shuts down the Superhero Relocation Program, removing financial assistance to those battling corruption and crime.

In this film, Jurassic World is now a functioning dinosaur theme park built on the ruins of the original park destroyed years ago. Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), from the earlier films, is manager of the new park, where she welcomes her two nephews’ visit. But the nephews are delinquent, entering a restricted area and encountering the Indominus rex, a dinosaur made by a gene-altering procedure, and a highly lethal one.