Hollywood’s recycling program

Don’t cry for the death of the classic cinematic experience—weep for the original screenwriter. Hollywood has always remade, reinvented and recast itself: We’re fresh off an updated Murder on the Orient Express, and a new Jumanji awaits this holiday season for those who…wanted it? But take a look over the past five years of box office top 10s, and you’ll see exactly how dependent (lazy) the studios have become on the idea that people just want to see the same familiar stories over and over. For now, they’re not wrong. And whose fault is that?

Legend:
* Sequel/franchise entry
** Based on existing property (remake, novel, comic book, character, toy)
*** Original story

2016

*1 Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
*2 Finding Dory
*3 Captain America: Civil War
***4 The Secret Life of Pets
**5 The Jungle Book
**6 Deadpool
***7 Zootopia
*8 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
**9 Suicide Squad
***10 Sing

2015

*1 Star Wars: The Force Awakens
*2 Jurassic World
*3 Avengers: Age of Ultron
***4 Inside Out
*5 Furious 7
*6 Minions
*7 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay—Part 2
**8 The Martian
**9 Cinderella
*10 Spectre

2014

**1 American Sniper
*2 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay—Part 1
**3 Guardians of the Galaxy
*4 Captain America: The Winter Soldier
**5 The LEGO Movie
*6 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
*7 Transformers: Age of Extinction
**8 Maleficent
*9 X-Men: Days of Future Past
**10 Big Hero 6

2013
*1 The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
*2 Iron Man 3
**3 Frozen
*4 Despicable Me 2
*5 Man of Steel
***6 Gravity
*7 Monsters University
*8 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
*9 Fast & Furious
**10 Oz The Great and Powerful

2012

**1 Marvel’s The Avengers
*2 The Dark Knight Rises
**3 The Hunger Games
*4 Skyfall
*5 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
*6 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2
*7 The Amazing Spider-Man
***8 Brave
***9 Ted
*10 Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted