The 10 Highest-Grossing Movies By Chris Columbus, Ranked
While he may not be as popular as some of Hollywood's more lionized filmmakers, such as the Fast and Furious franchise film director, Justin Lin, or The Dark Knight trilogy's Christopher Nolan, Chris Columbus is just as worthy of immense recognition with the masterpieces he has written, directed, and produced. Born in 1958 in Spangler, Pennsylvania, Columbus developed an early passion for filmmaking and went on to study film at the NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Beginning his professional filmmaker career in 1984, he wrote the romantic drama, Reckless, starring Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah. He is also responsible for penning the comedy-horror Gremlins, which became a success after Steven Spielberg bought his script. Here are ten of Christopher Columbus' highest-grossing movies of his career.
10 Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone
Some may go as far as to say that Chris Columbus only writes fantastical scripts for children's movies. But that isn't the case. He is the kind of writer that really steps outside the confines and limitations of traditional screenwriting to birth something truly spectacular. He knows his niche, and it's not action or suspense, but rather comedy, fantasy, and at times a bit of adventure and romance-drama. Hence, when he directed Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 2001, he made sure to capture those elements in J.K. Rowling's novel. The film describes Harry Potter (Dan Radcliffe), a foster child who learns he is the biological son of two powerful magicians; a power which he also inherited. He leaves his "normal" family and life to learn the art of wizardry at an English boarding school called Hogwarts, where he discovers many truths about himself and his deceased parents. The film grossed 965 million against a $125 million budget, being only the first film installment.
9 Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets
Following the massive financial success of The Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets became the second installment of the Harry Potter series as well as the third highest-grossing film globally of the series. Dan Radcliffe reprises his role as Harry Potter as the main character, including Emma Watson as Hermione Granger, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, Bonnie Wright as Ginny Weasley, Richard Harris as Professor Albus Dumbledore, and Tom Felton and Draco Malfoy. Harry is warned that his year at Hogwarts would be a turbulent one, rife with bloodstained walls encoding hidden messages and talking serpents! Against a $100 million budget, the film grossed a worldwide total of $875.4 million at the box office.
8 Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban
During the early 2000s, not only were J.K Rowling's fictional fantasy books super-popular among adolescents and teenagers, but the movie adaptations were also captivating the minds of every child that loved a good adventure story. In 2004, Chris Columbus was yet again the producer along with famed British film producer, David Heyman. In this movie series, Harry Potter reunites with his friends Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) as they return to Hogwarts for a new school year. But trouble is lurking, as it has been revealed that Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), who is thought to have betrayed Harry's parents to the evil Lord Voldemort, has escaped the Azkaban prison and is coming to kill him. The plot thickens and truths unfold as Harry overcomes another obstacle in his training. The dark fantasy film grossed $789.5 million at the box office.
7 Night At The Museum
Whether it's flying cars and an entire world of wizardry or talking artifacts in a museum, Chris never fails to disappoint. Coming in at number four of Columbus' highest-grossing films is Night At The Museum. Ben Stiller takes the lead role as Larry Daley, a night-shift security guard at the New York American Museum of Natural History. Larry's life is seen as one in shambles: he's been divorced from his wife, Erica (Kim Raver), who sees him as a bad example to their son, Nick (Jake Cherry) because of his unstable job history. However, as Larry settles into the night shift, he discovers that the exhibits come to life through a tablet that his boss, Reginald (Bill Cobbs), and his two subordinates, Cecil (Dick Van Dyke) and Gus (Mickey Rooney), are planning to steal for its vitality. The film grossed $576.4 million against a $110 million budget.
6 Home Alone
In 1990, every child must've wanted the life of the Home Alone character, Kevin McCallister. Clever with both his mouth and his brain, he tends to be a sore thumb in the eyes of his sibling and other family members. Kevin's parents, Peter (John Heard) and Kate McCallister (Catherine O'Hara) are planning a trip to Paris for Christmas with the rest of the family. Simultaneously, career thieves Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern) are targeting houses to hit in the Chicago suburb, and when they learn of the McCallister's upcoming trip to Paris, they see easy money. However, after the plane leaves for Paris, Kevin's parents realize he has been forgotten. Now, he must fend for himself and outsmart the robbers who still planning to follow through with their theft. Columbus made this family comedy into a classic Christmas flick, grossing $476.6 million in the process.
5 Mrs. Doubtfire
Released in 1993, Mrs. Doubtfire was also directed by Chris Columbus and was based on the 1987 novel, Alias Madame Doubtfire. Before it became more of a trending comedic gesture to put men in dresses, such as we see with Tyler Perry's Madea and Martin Lawrence in Big Momma's House, Robin Williams pulled off the identity of a nanny named Mrs. Doubtfire. The family comedy focuses on Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams), a devoted father who has been divorced by his wife, Miranda (Sally Field) after losing his job and throwing a crazy party for their son, Chris (Matthew Lawrence). Miranda is given full custody of their children on the grounds that Danielle can find a stable job. After realizing that Miranda needs a housekeeper, he decides to apply in order to spend time with his children. To accomplish this, he must alter appear as a woman. The film was good enough for a sequel and grossed $441.2 million worldwide.
4 Night At The Museum: Battle Of The Smithsonian
Three years later in 2009, Chris Columbus is back on the production team for Night At The Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. The story of the animated artifacts continues as former museum night security guard, Larry Daley (Ben Stiller), now owns his own direct response television company that sells inventions inspired by the museum escapades. When Larry goes to visit his exhibition friends at the museum, Dr. McPhee (Ricky Gervais) informs him that they will be replaced with holographic information providers after they are taken to the Federal Archives of The Smithsonian Institute, meaning they will no longer come alive at night. But when war ensues between the owner of the tablet, Akhmenrah (Rami Malek), and his evil brother, Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria), Larry and his friends work together to stop Kahmunrah from taking over the world. The dramatic sequel grossed a total of $402.2 million at the box office.
3 Home Alone 2: Lost In New York
After witnessing the success of the first installment of Home Alone in 1990, Chris Columbus and John Hughes directed and produced the sequel to the highly anticipated family comedy, Home Alone 2: Lost In New York. Still a very young and clever, often to a fault, Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin), his parents, Peter and Kate McCallister, and his siblings Buzz (Devin Ratray), Megan (Hillary Wolf), Jeff (Michael Maronna), have decided to head to tropical Florida for Christman, much to the disdain of Kevin, who prefers a snowy white Christmas. He gets his wish at the airport when he mistakenly boards a plane to New York. His father had him hold his wallet, so Kevin took full advantage by staying at the luxurious Plaza Hotel. But as fate would have it, he encounters the clumsy thieves, Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern) who have revenge on their minds. Despite grossing a bit less than the first film at $358.9 million, Home Alone 2 still remains a staple Christmas movie.
2 Night At The Museum 3: Secret Of The Tomb
They say if something is nice, do it twice. But in the case of Chris Columbus being on the production team of Night at The Museum: Secret of The Tomb, the third time's a charm. The third movie series may have lost its steam by 2014, grossing its lowest at $353.7 million, but at least it wasn't a box office bomb. In this series, Larry (Ben Stiller) is now the director of nighttime operations at the American Museum of Natural History. The Tablet of Akhmenrah, which is the source of magic that sparks the lifeless exhibits at night, was found by archeologists in Egypt in 1938, and were warned that it would bring about "the end." When Akmenrah shows Larry the corrosion of the tablet, Larry, his son Nick (Skyler Gisondo), and museum friends embark on a trip to London's British Museum to preserve the tablet and, by extension, keep the exhibits alive at night. Actors who have been a part of the film's franchise from its inception include Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, Dan Stevens, Ben Kingsley, Steve Coogan, and others.
1 Fantastic Four: Rise Of Silver Surfer
Sources: NY Times, Movie Insider, The Hollywood Reporter, Reel Chicago
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