A film series or movie series (also referred to as a film franchise or movie franchise) is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series.[1]
Description
Sometimes the work is conceived from the beginning as a multiple-film work – for example, the Three Colours series – but in most cases the success of the original film inspires further films to be made. Individual sequels are relatively common, but are not always successful enough to spawn further installments.
The following list is ordered by the highest-grossing film franchises (minimum $500 million gross). Updated to October 13 2019.[3]
Indicates sub-series (such as the Harry Potter series within the larger Wizarding World franchise).
Indicates a franchise which contains a movie that crosses franchises (example: "The LEGO Batman Movie" is included in both the Batman franchise and the LEGO franchise).
^"Greatest Movie Series - Film Franchises of All-Time". filmsite.org. Retrieved April 1, 2020. A film series is a collection of related movies released in succession over a period of time, for instance, the Tarzan movies. Usually, films in a series include common elements, such as characters (i.e., the Frankenstein films), actors/actresses (Astaire & Rogers), or names in a title (the Pink Panther films), etc. Sometimes, a film series is based upon the same director (i.e., Robert Rodriguez' Mariachi Trilogy, or Baz Luhrmann's Red Curtain Trilogy), or it can be based upon the studio (i.e., Hammer's Dracula films).
