Car movies are an interesting deal because sometimes the good ones aren’t really that good. More car movies have lost money than made it but we have proof that some are literal cash cows. The list is cool and interesting although we think it has some omissions and curiosities on it. The first thing we noticed and you probably will as well is the fact that some of these are clearly not “racing” movies and that opens the door to other films that should be on the list. The “Fast and Furious” franchise is well represented here which isn’t a surprise because that series of movies has engrained itself into the American culture, quality and reality be damned. Just because we squawk about some of the films on the list (Turbo?!) that doesn’t mean our minds weren’t blown by some of the numbers shown.
The big films at the top of the list aren’t much of a surprise. Cars, The Fast and the Furious, Ricky Bobby, Days of Thunder, and a few other notables round out the top 10. We were interested to see Cannonball Run as the anchor film of the top 10. Down the list is where we saw the more interesting stuff. For instance, the immortal Kenny Rogers star vehicle Six Pack somehow out earned the racing epic known as Stroker Ace. I am not sure I want to live in a world where that happens. Other not-so-classics on the list include The Wraith, Driven, King of the Mountain, and Speedzone. There was a time when I was about 10 where I thought Speedzone was the greatest film ever made. Then I turned 11 and realized it was a poorly made Cannonball Run rip off.
This list was compiled by the people at BoxOfficeMojo.com and that site sure seems like a place you could lose yourself into for hours if you dig the movies. We have the list below and you can jump on their site and search up other lists as well. This is some pretty interesting stuff and it says a lot about our culture of gearheads! Now, which studio should make the BangShift movie and who should star in it?
CHECK OUT THE LIST AND THEN VISIT BOXOFFICEMOJO.COM TO SEE MORE LIKE IT
| Rank | Title (click to view) | Studio | Lifetime Gross /Theaters | Opening /Theaters | Date | ||
| 1 | Cars | BV | $244,082,982 | 3,988 | $60,119,509 | 3,985 | 6/9/06 |
| 2 | Fast Five | Uni. | $209,837,675 | 3,793 | $86,198,765 | 3,644 | 4/29/11 |
| 3 | Cars 2 | BV | $191,452,396 | 4,115 | $66,135,507 | 4,115 | 6/24/11 |
| 4 | Fast and Furious | Uni. | $155,064,265 | 3,674 | $70,950,500 | 3,461 | 4/3/09 |
| 5 | Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby | Sony | $148,213,377 | 3,807 | $47,042,215 | 3,803 | 8/4/06 |
| 6 | The Fast and the Furious | Uni. | $144,533,925 | 2,899 | $40,089,015 | 2,628 | 6/22/01 |
| 7 | 2 Fast 2 Furious | Uni. | $127,154,901 | 3,418 | $50,472,480 | 3,408 | 6/6/03 |
| 8 | Turbo | Fox | $83,028,128 | 3,809 | $21,312,625 | 3,806 | 7/17/13 |
| 9 | Days of Thunder | Par. | $82,670,733 | 2,307 | $15,490,445 | 2,307 | 6/29/90 |
| 10 | The Cannonball Run | Fox | $72,179,579 | 1,692 | $11,765,654 | 1,673 | 6/19/81 |
| 11 | Herbie: Fully Loaded | BV | $66,023,816 | 3,521 | $12,709,221 | 3,521 | 6/22/05 |
| 12 | The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift | Uni. | $62,514,415 | 3,030 | $23,973,840 | 3,027 | 6/16/06 |
| 13 | Speed Racer | WB | $43,945,766 | 3,606 | $18,561,337 | 3,606 | 5/9/08 |
| 14 | Death Race | Uni. | $36,316,032 | 2,586 | $12,621,090 | 2,532 | 8/22/08 |
| 15 | Driven | WB | $32,720,065 | 2,905 | $12,174,504 | 2,905 | 4/27/01 |
| 16 | Cannonball Run II | WB | $28,078,073 | 1,845 | $8,323,948 | 1,778 | 6/29/84 |
| 17 | Rush (2013) | Uni. | $26,947,624 | 2,308 | $187,289 | 5 | 9/20/13 |
| 18 | NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience (IMAX) | WB | $21,583,831 | 73 | $1,452,639 | 68 | 3/12/04 |
| 19 | Six Pack | Fox | $20,225,989 | 783 | $1,946,418 | 504 | 7/16/82 |
| 20 | Stroker Ace | Uni. | $13,000,000 | 1,385 | $4,668,135 | 1,385 | 7/1/83 |
| 21 | Redline | Chic. | $6,881,022 | 1,607 | $3,962,385 | 1,607 | 4/13/07 |
| 22 | Grandview, USA | WB | $4,743,119 | 1,069 | $2,194,293 | 1,069 | 8/3/84 |
| 23 | The Wraith | NCeV | $3,500,000 | 588 | $1,402,535 | 588 | 11/21/86 |
| 24 | Speed Zone | Orion | $3,077,361 | 1,195 | $1,475,494 | 1,195 | 4/21/89 |
| 25 | Red Rock West | Roxie | $2,502,551 | 22 | $11,562 | 1 | 1/28/94 |
| 26 | King of the Mountain | Uni. | $1,791,147 | – | $958,637 | 703 | 5/1/81 |
| 27 | Senna | PDA | $1,612,430 | 47 | $73,497 | 2 | 8/12/11 |
| 28 | Dust to Glory | IFC | $640,013 | 80 | $15,757 | 2 | 4/1/05 |
| 29 | Heart Like a Wheel | Fox | $272,278 | – | n/a | – | 4/1/83 |
| 30 | Snake and Mongoose | RM | $152,200 | 14 | $20,254 | 1 | 8/9/13 |
| 31 | Kart Racer | All. | $56,146 | 86 | $56,146 | 86 | 9/25/03 |
| 32 | Faster (2004) | Slam | $16,265 | 1 | $13,995 | 1 | 4/23/04 |
| 33 | Streets of Legend | Lions | $5,471 | 1 | $3,769 | 1 | 11/25/05 |
| 34 | Catch Me If You Can (1989) | MCE | $3,686 | 4 | $2,580 | 4 | 7/28/89 |
| TOTAL (All Movies): | $1,834,827,261 | – | – | – | – | ||
| AVERAGE (All Movies): | $53,965,508 | 1,772 | $16,952,531 | 1,740 | – | ||
| TOTAL (Wide Releases Only): |
$1,802,691,243 | – | – | – | – | ||
| AVERAGE (Wide Releases Only): |
$81,940,511 | 2,697 | $27,199,981 | 2,674 | – | ||
What about…
Vanishing
Point ???
1980-newer
Why isn’t the original Smokey and the Bandit on this list? It was second highest grossing film in 1977.
Its 1980 to almost current. I’d say what ever year fast 5 came out, because the 6th and 7th movies made more than fast5 did and they aren’t even mentioned.
Or Gumball Rally? Much better than the cannonball series of films, and features some epic racing between a Cobra and Ferrari Daytona. And, unlike most car films, the sounds of the cars is awesome.
Car films are an enigma.
How about “Used Cars”???