Here's a new edition of "Directors at the Box Office", which seeks to explore the directors' trajectory at the box office and analyze their hits and bombs. I already talked about a few, and as I promised, it's John Hughes' turn.
Hughes grew up on a neighborhood full of "mostly girls and old people", which meant he was alone most of the time. He subsequently moved to Chicago, which would be a setting for his future films. An avid fan of film, he began selling jokes to well-established performers such as Rodney Dangerfield and Joan Rivers. He later got a job as a regular contributor for National Lampoon. This allowed him to get in touch with some film industries, where he started as a screenwriter. His career mostly consisted of screenwriting, but he soon decided to direct his own films.
From a box office perspective, how reliable was he to deliver a box office hit?
That's the point of this post. To analyze his career.
It should be noted that as he started his career in the 1980s, the domestic grosses here will be adjusted by inflation. The table with his highest grossing films, however, will be left in its unadjusted form, as the worldwide grosses are more difficult to adjust.
Sixteen Candles (1984)
"It's the time of your life that may last a lifetime."
His directorial debut. It stars Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling, and Anthony Michael Hall. The film follows newly 16-year-old Samantha Baker, who deals with a seemingly unrequited crush on high school senior Jake Ryan while also being pursued by freshman Farmer Ted.
Around this point, Hughes was known for raunchy comedy, having written National Lampoon's Vacations. But he was interested in telling something that could be more wide appealing. He got Universal involved, wherein Hughes would write another film, Mr. Mom, for the studio.
Hughes had asked his agent for headshots of young actresses, and among those he received were those of Robin Wright, Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy. Sheedy had auditioned for the role of Sam, but was dropped because Hughes thought Ringwald was more fitting for the role. Inspired by Ringwald's appearance, he put the photo up over his desk and wrote the film just over a weekend with her in mind for the lead role. For the male lead in the film, it had come down to Schoeffling and Viggo Mortensen. Ringwald pursued Mortensen to get the role. Emilio Estevez also auditioned for Jake. For the part of Ted, Hughes saw a number of actors for the role including Jim Carrey, Jon Cryer, Keith Coogan and Ralph Macchio.
The film debuted with $4 million, and as it was the 80s, it legged out to $23 million, becoming a box office success. The film also received great reviews, becoming one of the most popular coming-of-age films of the 80s. Of course, some have condemned the film, as many feel a lot of aspects have not aged well. These include sexism, rape, and racism (the character of Long Duk Dong).
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Budget: $6,500,000.
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Domestic gross: $23,686,027. ($71.7 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $23,686,027.
The Breakfast Club (1985)
"They only met once, but it changed their lives forever."
His second film. It stars Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The film tells the story of five teenagers from different high school cliques who serve a Saturday detention overseen by their authoritarian vice principal.
Hughes wrote the script around the time when he was writing Sixteen Candles, but he wrote the Sixteen Candles script in mere days and it impressed the studio executives and they chose it to be his directorial debut.
Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall both starred in Sixteen Candles. Towards the end of filming, Hughes asked them to be in The Breakfast Club. Ringwald was originally approached to play the character of Allison Reynolds, but she was "really upset" because she wanted to play Claire Standish, which saw the auditions of Robin Wright, Jodie Foster, Diane Lane and Laura Dern. She eventually convinced Hughes and the studio to give her the part. The role of Allison ultimately went to Ally Sheedy.
Emilio Estevez was originally cast in the role of John Bender, but when Hughes was unable to find someone to play Andrew Clark, Estevez was recast. Nicolas Cage was considered for the role of John Bender, which was the last role to be cast, though the role was narrowed down to John Cusack and Judd Nelson. Alan Ruck also auditioned for the role. Hughes originally cast Cusack, but decided to replace him with Nelson before shooting began, because Cusack did not look intimidating enough for the role. At one point, Hughes was disappointed in Nelson because he stayed in character and harassed Ringwald off-camera, with the other actors having to convince Hughes to not fire him. Rick Moranis was originally cast as the janitor but was released by Ned Tanen, who felt that Moranis' portrayal as an over-the-top Russian caricature didn't suit the serious nature of the film.
Even with his name credited to many profitable films, Hughes was still not seen as a serious filmmaker, especially because he wanted to direct. As such, Hughes convinced Universal that he could get the film made for just $1 million and shot at a single location, which could reduce any risk. The actors rehearsed for three weeks and then shot the film in sequence. Nelson tried other opinions for the ending scene until eventually landing the fist pump.
Thanks to its low budget, it was a major success, earning $51 million worldwide. It also received highly acclaimed reviews, and it's become a landmark in high school movies. From its lines, to its soundtrack, to its iconic poster or its ending, it's one of the most influential films of cinema.
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Budget: $1,000,000.
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Domestic gross: $45,875,171. ($134.2 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $51,525,171.
Weird Science (1985)
"It's all in the name of science. Weird science."
His third film. Based on the 1951 pre-Comics Code comic Made of the Future by Al Feldstein, it stars Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, Kelly LeBrock, and Bill Paxton. The film follows Gary and Wyatt, two unpopular college teenagers. Their desperation to be liked leads them to create a perfect woman. However, their gorgeous creation turns out to be more than just a woman.
Hughes wasn't happy during filming of this movie, because it interfered with another project he cared about much more and resulted in his working a punishing schedule for months, but he agreed to direct it because Universal gave him a deal where he could also direct the more-valued project, The Breakfast Club, if he started this one first. Hughes didn't actually spend much time in the script; he said he wrote it in just two days.
The film earned $38 million worldwide, making it another success for Hughes. But in contrast to his previous films, reception was more mixed.
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Budget: $7,500,000.
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Domestic gross: $23,834,048. ($69.7 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $38,934,048.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
"One man's struggle to take it easy."
His fourth film. It stars Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, Jennifer Grey, Jeffrey Jones, Cindy Pickett, Edie McClurg, Lyman Ward, and Charlie Sheen. It tells the story of a high school slacker, Ferris Bueller, who skips school with his best friend Cameron and his girlfriend Sloane for a day in Chicago, regularly breaking the fourth wall to explain his techniques and inner thoughts.
Hughes wrote the film in 1985, keeping track of his progress in a spiral-bound logbook, estimating that it took him one week to finish it. Hughes intended to focus more on the characters rather than the plot, "I know how the movie begins, I know how it ends. I don't ever know the rest, but that doesn't seem to matter. It's not the events that are important, it's the characters going through the event. Therefore, I make them as full and real as I can. This time around, I wanted to create a character who could handle everyone and everything." As they went into filming with the first draft, the first cut ran at two hours, 45 minutes.
Hughes said that he had Broderick in mind when he wrote the screenplay, saying Broderick was the only actor he could think of who could pull off the role, calling him clever and charming. Hughes was surprised by Mia Sara, and gave her the role of Sloan. He also met Alan Ruck when he auditioned for The Breakfast Club, and decided that he was perfect for Cameron (although he initially wanted Emilio Estevez). Nevertheless, Ruck was worried over his age; he was 29 when he played the 17-year-old Cameron.
The parade scene took multiple days of filming; Broderick spent some time practicing the dance moves. During the first day, Hughes used very long shots, and radio stations announced that he was filming a movie in the area and invited bystanders to show up. Word got out quickly, to the point that 10,000 people showed up. Several of the people seen dancing (including the construction worker and the window washer) originally had nothing to do with the film. They were simply dancing to the music being played, and John Hughes found it so humorous that he told the camera operators to record it.
The film was Hughes' highest grossing film, earning $70 million domestically. It also received acclaim, becoming one of the most iconic 80s movies. Man, Hughes was just unstoppable.
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Budget: $5,000,000.
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Domestic gross: $70,136,369. ($201.4 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $70,136,369.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
"What he really wanted was to spend Thanksgiving with his family. What he got was three days with the turkey."
His fifth film. It stars Steve Martin, John Candy, Laila Robins and Michael McKean. It tells the story of Neal, an uptight marketing executive, and Del, a well-meaning but obnoxious salesman, who become travel companions when their flight is diverted, and embark on a three-day odyssey of misadventures trying to reach Chicago in time for Neal's Thanksgiving Day dinner with his family.
Hughes said he was inspired to write the film's story after an actual flight he was on from New York to Chicago. The flight was diverted to Wichita, Kansas, taking him five days to get home. He wrote the script in just 3 days. Rewrites Hughes did during filming made the amount of footage he shot much larger than the original screenplay needed, and the film's first cut was three hours and 45 minutes long, featuring a number of additional characters and subplots. One key subplot about Neal's wife not believing him and suspecting that he is with other women was cut. The young man who robs Neal and Del was to be introduced as a pizza deliveryman who places a six-pack of beer on the vibrating motel bed, causing a can to burst when Neal attempts to open it. The film could've been PG-13, yet Hughes decided to keep that scene where Steve Martin snaps and says 18 fucks, automatically earning it the R-rating.
It opened during Thanksgiving, but the film kept legging out across the holidays, eventually closing with $49 million domestically, becoming another hit for Hughes. It received critical acclaim, with many praising it for Hughes branching out from teen comedies. To this day, it has become a Thanksgiving classic.
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Budget: $15,000,000.
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Domestic gross: $49,530,280. ($137.2 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $49,530,280.
She's Having a Baby (1988)
"Man. Woman. Life. Death. Infinity. Tuna casserole. One movie dares to tell it all."
His sixth film. The film stars Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth McGovern, and tells the story of a young newlywed couple who try to cope with married life and their parents' expectations.
To give you an idea of how busy Hughes was; this movie was filmed at the same time as two other Hughes movies: The Great Outdoors, and Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Some of the same cast members from both films appear in this film in cameos seen at the end of the picture.
Well, everything had to end and that was the winning streak for Hughes; it became his first financial failure, and it also received unfavorable reviews. Hughes took it personal, given that this was a passion project for him.
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Budget: $20,000,000.
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Domestic gross: $16,031,707. ($42.6 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $16,031,707.
Uncle Buck (1989)
"He's crude. He's crass. He's family."
His seventh film. It stars John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Laurie Metcalf, Jay Underwood, Macaulay Culkin, Gaby Hoffmann, Elaine Bromka, and Garrett M. Brown. The film tells the story of a bachelor who babysits his brother's rebellious teenage daughter and her younger brother and sister while the parents are away.
One night during filming, Candy went to a bar with music supervisor Tarquin Gotch, and spent most of the night there meeting people. The next day, Hughes heard a caller on a radio talk show excitedly describe his evening with Candy. Hughes was upset with Candy, and despite Candy's assertion that Buck was supposed to appear disheveled, Hughes cancelled his scenes for the day, and told him to get himself together and get some sleep.
After his misfire, Hughes bounced back, with the film earning almost $80 million worldwide. Despite mixed reviews, it has become a classic, as well as one of Candy's most memorable roles.
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Budget: N/A.
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Domestic gross: $66,758,538. ($169.4 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $79,258,538.
Curly Sue (1991)
"Look out, America. The world's smallest con artist is in town."
His eighth and final film. It stars James Belushi, Kelly Lynch and Alisan Porter. It tells the story of a homeless con artist and his young orphan companion who gain shelter with a rich divorce lawyer.
Hughes and Jim Belushi did not get along and argued constantly. Production was shut down for a while because Belushi refused to come to the set.
The film was a commercial failure, and received horrible reviews. While Hughes continued writing and producing films, he stopped directing, before dying in 2009.
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Budget: $25,000,000.
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Domestic gross: $33,691,313. ($77.8 million adjusted)
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Worldwide gross: $33,691,313.
Other Projects
Well, as mentioned, Hughes was more known for writing and producing. It's just that he often directed. So here's his highest grossing films as writer (that he did not direct):
| No. | Movie | Year | Studio | Domestic Total | Overseas Total | Worldwide Total | Budget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Home Alone | 1990 | 20th Century Fox | $285,761,243 | $190,923,432 | $476,684,675 | $18M |
| 2 | Home Alone 2: Lost in New York | 1992 | 20th Century Fox | $173,585,516 | $185,409,334 | $358,994,850 | $28M |
| 3 | 101 Dalmatians | 1996 | Disney | $136,189,294 | $184,500,000 | $320,689,294 | $67M |
| 4 | Flubber | 1997 | Disney | $92,977,226 | $85,000,000 | $177,977,226 | $80M |
| 5 | Maid in Manhattan | 2002 | Sony | $94,011,225 | $60,895,468 | $154,906,693 | $55M |
| 6 | Beethoven | 1992 | Universal | $57,114,049 | $90,100,000 | $147,214,049 | N/A |
| 7 | Dennis the Menace | 1993 | Warner Bros. | $51,270,765 | $66,000,000 | $117,270,765 | $35M |
| 8 | Home Alone 3 | 1997 | 20th Century Fox | $30,882,515 | $48,200,000 | $79,082,515 | $32M |
| 9 | National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation | 1989 | Warner Bros. | $74,515,899 | $0 | $74,515,899 | $25M |
| 10 | Mr. Mom | 1983 | 20th Century Fox | $64,783,827 | $0 | $64,783,827 | $5M |
| 11 | National Lampoon's Vacation | 1983 | Warner Bros. | $61,418,063 | $0 | $61,418,063 | $15M |
| 12 | Drillbit Taylor | 2008 | Paramount | $32,862,104 | $17,082,221 | $49,944,325 | $40M |
| 13 | National Lampoon's European Vacation | 1985 | Warner Bros. | $49,364,621 | $0 | $49,364,621 | $17M |
| 14 | Miracle on 34th Street | 1994 | 20th Century Fox | $17,320,136 | $28,944,248 | $46,264,384 | N/A |
| 15 | The Great Outdoors | 1988 | Universal | $41,455,230 | $2,000,000 | $43,455,230 | N/A |
| 16 | Pretty in Pink | 1986 | Paramount | $40,471,663 | $0 | $40,471,663 | $9M |
| 17 | Baby's Day Out | 1994 | 20th Century Fox | $16,827,402 | $13,400,000 | $30,227,402 | $48M |
| 18 | Some Kind of Wonderful | 1987 | Paramount | $18,553,948 | $0 | $18,553,948 | N/A |
| 19 | Just Visiting | 2001 | Disney | $4,781,539 | $11,395,193 | $16,176,732 | $35M |
| 20 | Career Opportunities | 1991 | Universal | $11,336,986 | $0 | $11,336,986 | N/A |
| 21 | National Lampoon's Class Reunion | 1982 | 20th Century Fox | $10,054,150 | $0 | $10,054,150 | N/A |
| 22 | Dutch | 1991 | 20th Century Fox | $4,603,929 | $0 | $4,603,929 | $17M |
| 23 | Savage Islands | 1983 | Paramount | $1,963,756 | $0 | $1,963,756 | $7M |
| 24 | Reach the Rock | 1998 | Gramercy | $4,960 | $0 | $4,960 | N/A |
So Why Did He Stop Directing?
Hughes had planned to direct two additional films with his good friend and collaborator John Candy. After Candy's premature death in 1994, however, Hughes decided to quit directing altogether and focus on writing and producing. The loss of Candy is what ultimately kept him away from the director's chair, because he loved working with the actor so much.
FILMS (FROM HIGHEST GROSSING TO LEAST GROSSING)
| No. | Movie | Year | Studio | Domestic Total | Overseas Total | Worldwide Total | Budget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uncle Buck | 1989 | Universal | $66,758,538 | $12,500,000 | $79,258,538 | N/A |
| 2 | Ferris Bueller's Day Off | 1986 | Paramount | $70,136,369 | $0 | $70,136,369 | $5M |
| 3 | The Breakfast Club | 1985 | Universal | $45,875,171 | $5,650,000 | $51,525,171 | $1M |
| 4 | Planes, Trains and Automobiles | 1987 | Paramount | $49,530,280 | $0 | $49,530,280 | $15M |
| 5 | Weird Science | 1985 | Universal | $23,834,048 | $15,100,000 | $38,934,048 | $7.5M |
| 6 | Curly Sue | 1991 | Warner Bros. | $33,691,313 | $0 | $33,691,313 | $30M |
| 7 | Sixteen Candles | 1984 | Universal | $23,686,027 | $0 | $23,686,027 | $6.5M |
| 8 | She's Having a Baby | 1988 | Paramount | $16,031,707 | $0 | $16,031,707 | $20M |
Across those 8 films, he has made $362,793,453 worldwide. That's $45,349,181 per film.
The Verdict
Insanely profitable.
Hughes earned a lot of goodwill, given that he was the main force behind these iconic 80s films. Even to this day, no other writer/director accomplished what he did with teen/coming-of-age films. There's a reason why we immediately think of him when we think of teen/coming-of-age films. His impact is still felt to this day; multiple films have all been influenced by his works. But teen films weren't his whole shtick. You can see with Planes, Trains and Automobiles that he was willing to move to something more mature, even if still a comedy. Or comedies focused on adults like the Vacation films.
Not many people can say they have 3 Christmas classics (the Home Alone films and Christmas Vacation) to their name.
Now, it's quite sad that he didn't direct anything after 1991. After that, he only wrote and produced. And by the 21st century, he was just credited with a story, until his death in 2009 (at just 59 years old). It makes you wonder what other films we missed with him directing. Yet while he's primarily known for this specific genre, it's unclear if he'd continue doing it if he made it to his 70s. You can tell by the very little amount of credits in his last years that he lost interest in filmmaking.
But of course, that doesn't mean much. At the end of the day, Hughes remains one of the most important filmmakers of the past 40 years. People will continue watching all these films in the years to come. That's a pretty good legacy.
Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.
The next director will be John Hughes. An essential figure of the 80s.
I asked you to choose who else should be in the run and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. Well, we'll later talk about… Kenneth Branagh. We'd like to say he's the master of Shakespeare… but Akira Kurosawa begs to differ.
This is the schedule for the following four:
| Week | Director | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| September 30-October 6 | James Wan | The biggest horror filmmaker today. |
| October 7-13 | Martin Campbell | How the fuck did he go from Casino Royale to Green Lantern? |
| October 14-20 | J.J. Abrams | We're so done with the mystery box, pal. |
| October 21-27 | Kenneth Branagh | How dost thou likest thine apples? |
Who should be next after Branagh? That's up to you.
And this week, I bring 10 different choices. Which one of these deserves a post?
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Martin Brest: He had a lot of goodwill… then Gigli happened.
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Cameron Crowe: A director that killed it in the 80s thru the early 2000s, before heading to director's jail.
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Joe Dante: Another essential 80s filmmaker.
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Terry Gilliam: Honestly, I'm surprised no one ever mentioned him.
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Renny Harlin: If you think directing multiple flops can kill a director's career, you have to look at Harlin to prove you wrong.
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Richard Linklater: Another one I'm surprised no one has mentioned.
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Oliver Stone: A very controversial filmmaker, but with a fascinating filmography. Multiple masterpieces, and multiple duds.
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Gus Van Sant: What was he trying to prove with the Psycho remake?
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Paul Verhoeven: An expert in satire.
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Peter Weir: In the span of 26 years, he made just 3 films and then announced his retirement.
So which one of these deserves the next post?
by SanderSo47