The Marvel Universe changed franchise filmmaking for an entire decade. It built a mega-franchise made up of smaller series that all came together in big event films, something that had only really existed in comics before. The model was so successful that even non-comic franchises started copying it, hoping to capture the same kind of cultural and box office impact. | © Marvel Studios
2001: A Space Odyssey is the movie that made modern sci-fi possible. Lucas, Scott, and Cameron have all called it a direct influence, and films like Star Wars and Alien were created in its shadow. The visuals, the design of spacecraft, even the use of classical music in space all trace back to Kubrick’s film. Decades later, it’s still seen as the starting point that showed sci-fi could be done on a grand, serious scale. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
Rebel Without a Cause was the first movie to fully center teenage life, made for teens and told from their perspective. It treated teenage angst as something real and worth exploring, not just a punchline or side plot. James Dean’s performance cemented the image of the disaffected youth, turning him into a cultural icon and shaping how teen stories were told in film. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
The Usual Suspects wasn’t the first film with a surprise ending, but it delivered one of the best. The writing and performances made the twist unforgettable, and the closing montage showed how the clues were there all along. Afterwards, countless movies tried the same trick, though most fell short of the original’s impact. | © Gramercy Pictures
Beverly Hills Cop redefined what a comedy could do at the box office, pulling in massive numbers and showing studios the formula for success. It proved that pairing a charismatic star with sharp writing was key, not just slapstick or cheap laughs. Eddie Murphy’s performance made him a superstar and set the stage for the smart, character-driven comedies that followed. | © Netflix
Avatar made 3D movies the biggest thing in theaters for years. Its success pushed studios to invest heavily in the format, with nearly every blockbuster releasing a 3D version after. Even if some people dismiss its cultural footprint, the movie’s influence on how films were made and marketed is hard to deny. | © 20th Century Studios
Fight Club sparked a wave of underground cool, with fans copying Tyler Durden’s gritty style while missing that he was the villain. The film’s critique of consumer culture turned into a pop culture slogan, quoted and referenced far beyond its message. It became one of those rare movies where the imagery and attitude shaped real-world fashion and conversation. | © 20th Century Studios
Pulp Fiction flipped the script on what a crime film could be. Its mix of sharp violence, pop culture chatter, and out-of-order storytelling set the tone for a wave of ’90s movies that tried to capture the same style. Quentin Tarantino’s approach changed how dialogue sounded on screen and proved that unconventional structure could still win over mainstream audiences. | © Miramax Films
The Wizard of Oz became one of the most quoted and referenced films in Hollywood history, with scenes and lines that still show up everywhere. Its use of Technicolor and musical storytelling set new standards for what movies could look and feel like. Released the same year as Gone With the Wind under Victor Fleming, it helped define the golden age of Hollywood. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
Blade Runner wasn’t a hit when it first came out, but its look ended up reshaping sci-fi. The dark, neon-soaked cityscape became the template for countless dystopian worlds through the ’80s and ’90s, and its influence is still easy to spot today. The film only found real respect years later with the director’s cut, which helped cement it as a cult classic and a visionary work ahead of its time. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
The Blair Witch Project showed how far a tiny budget and a camcorder could go. It kicked off the modern “found footage” genre long before everyone had phones or GoPros to film on. The movie also changed how films were promoted, using early viral marketing that made people question if the story was real. | © Summit Entertainment
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs showed animation could tell real stories with emotion, not just serve as a novelty. Its success kept Disney alive through the war years and launched the princess trend that still dominates today. More than that, it proved animation could stand beside live action, paving the way for Pixar and Disney’s later empire. | © Disney
Terminator 2: Judgment Day blew audiences away with special effects that felt decades ahead of their time. The groundbreaking use of CGI for the T-1000 set a new standard and pushed digital effects straight into the mainstream. It proved that computer-generated imagery could carry major action set pieces, paving the way for movies like Jurassic Park to take the technology even further. | © TriStar Pictures
Jaws didn’t just scare people out of the water, it changed how studios thought about movies. The film became the first real “summer blockbuster,” showing that a wide release paired with heavy marketing could draw massive crowds. After its success, studios started saving their biggest films for summer, turning the season into the box office battleground we know today. | © Universal Pictures
Star Wars redefined what blockbuster filmmaking looked like. Its groundbreaking effects set new industry standards, and its mix of sci-fi, Westerns, and epic fantasy gave it universal appeal. The franchise built a massive fan base through both movies and merchandising, while its success pushed Hollywood toward big-budget event films and interconnected universes. | © Lucasfilm
Some movies do more than entertain – they change the way films are made and how we see pop culture. These 15 movies kicked off trends that shaped entire decades of cinema.
