What a difference 25 years can make…or maybe not. Hollywood clearly likes to recycle, and this strategy has produced some huge franchises – many which have been reborn since their inceptions in ’89.
25 years ago this week, Tim Burton’s big-screen version of “Batman” was released. Starring Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader and Jack Nicholson as the original Joker, this was the highest-grossing film of ’89 with $251 million. Adjusted for inflation, according to Box Office Mojo, that would be just over $500 million. Fast-forward to today: Zach Snyder is shooting Ben Affleck as Batman for “Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice”, while Keaton is receiving early Awards Season buzz for his role in “Birdman” (out Oct. 17), a dark comedy about an actor best known for playing a movie superhero who’s trying to make a comeback in a Broadway show. Two and a half decades later, both Keaton and Batman are back at it.
The second-biggest release of the Summer of ’89 was “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”, which, as it turned-out, wasn’t Indy’s last adventure after all. The character and star Harrison Ford returned with “The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” in ’08, and rumors persist that a 5th “Indiana Jones” film could be in the works.
“Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” (an equally ironic title) was also a Summer release 25 years ago, and obviously, it wasn’t the final voyage of the Starship Enterprise. There was one more movie from the series (“VI: The Undiscovered Country – ’91), four from the “Next Generation” team and the two recent reboots, with a third in pre-production.
The sequel “Ghostbusters II” opened in June of 1989. A Quarter-Century of Junes later, speculation rages concerning the possibility of a “Ghostbusters III”. The recent death of Harold Ramis, the genius behind the franchise, may have ended all hope. The Steve Martin comedy “Parenthood” also hit screens that Summer. The TV relationship drama, based on the film, remains a hit for NBC. And 25 years ago next month Disney re-released the animated classic “Peter Pan”. As we speak, Warner Bros. is in production on a live-action “Pan” origin story, starring Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard.
1989 seems so long ago, but not when it comes to Hollywood, where everything old is eventually new again.