Not every box office hit is The Avengers, making $1 billion in its opening weekend alone. Some take their sweet time, generating strong word of mouth and massive profits.
Some movies are called "sleeper hits." These are the types of movies that start off slow, often in a limited release before strong word of mouth carries it wide and into a larger swath of the population. These are the types of movies that aren't front-heavy - the types that spend dozens of weeks in the top ten instead of three or four. These are ten of the biggest sleeper hits in box office history.
10 Titanic (1997)
Titanic is the titanic of sleeper hits. Nothing else even comes close. Yes, the movie opened strong at #1 with $28.6 million. But that kind of opening does not herald the kind of money that Titanic eventually made.
The movie blew people away through its heartbreaking story and incredible production values, and strong word of mouth kept it at number one for fifteen consecutive weeks (it later hit number one again over Easter for a total of 16 non-consecutive weeks). From Christmas to Easter, Titanic stayed in the number one spot for all but one weekend (the weekend of April 3-5, where it was dethroned by Lost in Space). It ended up grossing $600 million domestic in its original run.
9 The Blair Witch Project (1999)
The Blair Witch Project opened in just 27 theaters the weekend of July 16-18, 1999. However, it made $1.5 million for a very strong per-theater average of $56,000.
It was eventually expanded to 1,100 theaters the weekend of July 30-August 1, accumulating $29.2 million for its wide release. It went on to spend eight consecutive weeks in the top ten, grossing an incredible $140 million domestic. It did very well overseas, adding to its $248 million worldwide gross.
8 Paranormal Activity (2007)
Paranormal Activity owes a lot to The Blair Witch Project, and it saw a very similar release trajectory. It was released in just 12 theaters the weekend of September 25-27, 2009, accumulating $77,000.
It remained in sub-1,000 theaters for the following three weeks, but it performed exceptionally well. It grossed $9.2 million over Columbus Day weekend, despite showing in just 160 theaters. It later grossed $19.6 million in 760 theaters the weekend of October 16-18. It finally went wide and proceeded to gross $107 million at the domestic box office.
7 Scream (1996)
Slasher movies were dead by 1996, resulting in Scream opening to just $6 million on the weekend of December 20-22, 1996. It placed fourth for the weekend and seemed destined for failure.
However, strong word of mouth and the Christmas break kept it afloat, and it actually gained money throughout the weeks. It made $9 million in its second weekend and $10 million in its third. It stayed in the top ten for eleven non-consecutive weeks, eventually grossing $103 million.
6 A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)
A Nightmare on Elm Street seemed like any other slasher, and it opened in tenth place with just $1.2 million the weekend of November 9-11, 1984. It should have come and gone without much fanfare.
However, it was released at a great time, and it performed well over the Thanksgiving three-day and post-Thanksgiving weekends. It eventually reached #2 the weekend of January 18-20, grossing $1.7 million and proving its strong staying power. It went on to gross $25 million domestically - about $60 million today.
5 The Sixth Sense (1999)
No one could have predicted just how big The Sixth Sense would become. It opened very strongly at #1 with $26.6 million. But it just wouldn't go away. It stayed in the top position for five consecutive weeks, including the Labor Day weekend where it grossed $29.2 million.
In all five weekends, it grossed more than $20 million. All told, it spent fifteen weeks in the top ten, grossing an astounding $293 million at the domestic box office.
4 There's Something About Mary (1998)
It's not just horror movies that prove sleeper hits. There's Something About Mary was a big one in 1998, opening in number four with $13.7 million the weekend of July 17-19. It dropped just 8% in its second weekend, remaining at number four with $12.5 million.
It then proceeded to climb, hitting #3 the next weekend before reaching #1 over Labor Day weekend with $10.9 million. It spent thirteen consecutive weeks in the top ten, culminating in a strong domestic take of $176.4 million.
3 Forrest Gump (1994)
Forrest Gump played very similarly to The Sixth Sense. It opened the weekend of July 8-10, 1994, hitting #1 with a strong $24.4 million. However, it spent an unbelievable fourteen consecutive weeks in the top five, eventually being pushed out the weekend of October 14-16.
The summer and early fall of 1994 totally belonged to Mr. Gump. All told, Forrest Gump grossed $327 million in its original box office run - about the equivalent of $570 million today.
2 Pulp Fiction (1994)
1994 saw the release of Pulp Fiction, which was a sleeper hit in a very bizarre and unique way. That is, it refused to die. The movie opened at #1 with $9.3 million and spent two weekends in the top spot. It spent just six weeks in the top ten, dropping to #11 over the Thanksgiving weekend.
It finished its top ten run with just $48.4 million. It stayed out of the top ten until Presidents' Day weekend, where it suddenly re-emerged at #9 with $2.8 million. It stayed in the top ten for another six weekends, finishing April 16 with a gross of $101.8 million.
1 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon really struck a nerve in early 2001. The movie opened in just 16 theaters, grossing $663,000. It broke through the top ten in its third weekend, hitting #8 after grossing $2.6 million in 143 theaters.
It proceeded to spend sixteen consecutive weekends in the top ten, peaking at number four the weekends of February 9-11 and April 13-16, which was the Easter long weekend. It finished its run with $128 million, making it the highest-grossing foreign film in domestic box office history.
