5.9k Share this
To have a blockbuster movie, you don’t necessarily need a big budget. There are many films out there that have made it big yet on a low budget.
Big-time memorable blockbusters have had a balance between great content and a low budget. There has been a massive return on the movie investment.
20 Low Budget Movies That Yet Became Super Hits
You can always tell when a movie has had a huge budget. Low-budget movies are also excellently done.
They don’t cost that much yet stand out in the market. Such movies receive massive reception from the audience.
Check out the following low-budget movies that still became super hits.
1. The Conjuring – $20 million budget
[embedded content]
The Conjuring was released in 2013 with a budget of $20 million. It became a massive hit making a worldwide gross of $318,000 million.
Due to its exceptional success, a sequel followed in 2016. It went ahead to make 320 million dollars.
2. Pi – $60 million budget
[embedded content]
Even though director Darren Aronofsky is prominent for making big-budget movies, it wasn’t the same with Pi. Only 60 million was spent on this movie.
Pi is a psychological thriller about a paranoid mathematician convinced that who believed he could unlock the universe. The movie made $3.2 million worldwide.
3. Super Size Me – $65,000 budget
[embedded content]
In this movie, Morgan Spurlock indulges in bad eating habits by eating at McDonald’s for a full month. Super Size Me was done on a budget of 65,000 dollars.
Interestingly, the movie made more than 20 million dollars in the box office. It was an extremely successful movie.
4. Once – $150 million budget
[embedded content]
Once is a musical film that was released in 2007. Even though the budget was $150 million, this movie did extremely well.
It was surprising when the movie made $20.7 million on such a low budget. This romantic musical drama received several awards.
5. Halloween – $325,000 budget
[embedded content]
The original Halloween starred Jamie Lee Curtis. It was made at a budget of $325,000 dollars.
This movie garnered a worldwide gross of $47 million. Following its success, a franchise Halloween reboot was made.
6. Mad Max – $350,000 budget
[embedded content]
The 1979 original Mad Max was produced on a $350,000 budget. It went ahead to make a worldwide gross of 8.7 million dollars.
It is reported that some crew members were paid cases of beer to cut costs. Despite the squeezed budget, it still made it big.
7. Napoleon Dynamite – $400 million budget
[embedded content]
In 2004, the comedy movie Napoleon Dynamite was released. It is said the budget of the movie was extremely tight at $400 Million
Napoleon Dynamite was extremely successful, making $46.1 million globally. After its success, the lead star Jon Heder renegotiated his payment and was given a cut of the profits.
8. Open Water – $500,000 budget
[embedded content]
Open Water is a shark thriller based on a true story. The movie’s budget was half a million dollars yet made a whole $54.6 million globally.
The movie’s success was enough to prove that a shark thriller didn’t require a huge budget. With good content, millions can be made out of a shark thriller.
9. Friday The 13th – $550 million budget
[embedded content]
Friday The 13th is a true classic horror movie. It was done at a budget of $550 million but made a worldwide gross of $39.7 million.
The film has since brought forth sequels that are making headlines to date. In 2009, a remake of the original was produced.
10. Insidious – $800 million budget
[embedded content]
Insidious is a low-budget movie turned into a million-dollar movie. This a frightening film on a budget of only $800 million.
When the film became so successful, it shocked even the filmmakers. It was among the highest-grossing films of 2011.
11. Blue Valentine – $1 million
[embedded content]
Blue Valentine starred Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling. Even with such megastars, the movie’s budget was low at $1 million.
This romantic drama received an excellent reception making $15.4 globally. This was almost 15 times more than what had been used to make the movie.
12. Rocky – $1.08 million
[embedded content]
Rocky is the movie that turned Sylvester Stallone into a star and a household name. The budget of the movie was 1.08 million dollars.
Rocky went on to garner $117.2 million worldwide and also made a franchise. The movie won 3 Oscar Awards.
13. Saw – $1.2 million budget
[embedded content]
Seems low-budget horror movies end up doing extremely well at the box office. Saw is one such horror movie that was done on a low budget of $1.2 million.
Saw was extremely successful, bringing in $103.9 million, leading to a full-on franchise. So far, there have been eight Saw movies produced, all on a low budget.
14. Buried – $2 million budget
[embedded content]
Buried is a movie about a guy trying to escape after getting trapped in a coffin. This movie called for one actor with a budget of $2 million.
Even though the movie’s budget was pretty low, it managed to have on the set one of the best actors, Ryan Reynolds. The movie had an excellent reception making $19.4 million.
15. Moonlight – $4 million budget
[embedded content]
Moonlight was done on a $4 million budget but achieved an international gross of $65.3 million. This was such a high return on a very low-budget movie.
The movie was extremely successful that in 2017 it won the Academy Award for Best Picture. It also received an award for the Best Adapted Screenplay.
16. Get Out – $4.5 million budget
[embedded content]
If you thought low-budget horror movies could not captivate the audience, you couldn’t be more wrong. Get out is a horror movie made on a $4.5 million budget.
With that low budget, Get Out brought it a whole $255.4 million. It didn’t only bring in 50 times what it cost to make it but also won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
17. My Big Fat Greek Wedding – $5 million budget
[embedded content]
This is one of the highest-grossing romantic comedies in the year 2002. Its budget was $5 million but attained a global gross of $368.7 million.
For a movie of a low budget to return such high profits was unheard of. The movie made 75 times more profit than what it costed to make the movie.
18. Annabelle – $6.5 million budget
[embedded content]
Annabelle is a horror movie done on a budget of $6.5 million. It was a big movie despite receiving a couple of negative reviews.
The movie managed to gather $37.1 million. Annabelle was a long-awaited movie that was well received by the audience.
19. Juno – $7.5 million budget
[embedded content]
Juno was a small indie film whose budget was $7.5 million budget. This was such a low-budget movie leading Jennifer Garner had to consider a pay cut.
The movie starred Michael Cera and Ellen Page. It made $231.4 million globally; it was truly a great hit.
20. Little Miss Sunshine – $8 million budget
[embedded content]
Little Miss Sunshine was done at the cost of $8 million. Regardless of its extremely low budget, it was a box office triumph.
This comedy-drama movie made a whopping $101 million. In addition, it received numerous awards, more so the Oscars for Best Original Screenplay.
Conclusion
From the movies above, it is evident that a movie can make it big, even with a low budget. Economic constraints do not determine the success of a movie.
We salute the big stars who took pay cuts for low-budget movies. They are a true definition of what passion is all about.
Source: Celebpie
