ALFRED HITCHCOCK

Last Movie Before the Streak: The Wrong Man (1956)

The Streak: Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), Psycho (1960), The Birds (1963)

Streak Ender: Marnie (1964)

Since I’m assuming most of you reading this haven’t seen many Alfred Hitchcock movies, I’ll keep this relatively brief. In a career spanning six decades, Hitchcock directed more than 50 feature films and multiple episodes of television. He is, by and large, considered one of the greatest directors of all time. While we could split hairs all day over his filmography, there is no denying that the four-film stretch of Vertigo, North by Northwest, Psycho, and The Birds is perhaps the best stretch of any director’s career.

All four have been deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the U.S. Library of Congress, resulting in their selection for preservation in the National Film Registry. Truthfully, you’d be hard-pressed to find any “Best of Film” list that doesn’t include most of these masterpieces. On one such list, the American Film Institute (AFI) ranked Vertigo (9th), Psycho (14th), and North by Northwest (55th) among the 100 greatest movies of all time. While not on the Top 100, The Birds was ranked the seventh-greatest thriller of all time by AFI. Sadly, I have a word count, so I can’t list every single ranking and accolade that has been bestowed on these four films because I’d end up at well over 5000 words. Just trust me when I tell you that this hot streak is unparalleled.

WILL SMITH

Last Movie Before the Streak: Six Degrees of Separation (1993)

The Streak: Bad Boys (1995), Independence Day (1996), Men in Black (1997), Enemy of the State (1998)

Streak Ender: Wild Wild West (1999)

Honestly, if we want to be totally fair, we could probably say Will Smith’s streak started when he was nominated for his first Golden Globe in 1993 for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a nomination that was repeated the very next year, but let’s stick with his blockbuster hot streak of the mid-90s. First up, you’ve got Michael Bay’s debut feature Bad Boys, a movie that has since spawned three financially successful sequels over the course of nearly 30 years. Despite middling reviews from critics, it was a box office success, making $141 million on a $20 million budget. Not only has it inspired a plethora of other buddy cop action movies with its bombastic action sequences, cast chemistry, and improvisational style, but it’s a benchmark film, especially in black culture, that is often quoted to this day.

After Bad Boys, Smith used his effortless charm and swagger to dominate 1996 with Independence Day, the year’s highest grossing movie at $817 million. In fact, at the time, it was the second highest grossing movie ever behind Jurassic Park. Aside from making Smith a household name, Independence Day has been credited with driving the resurgence of disaster and sci-fi movies in subsequent years, even making the cover of Time magazine. It shattered box office record after box office record on its way to being one of the most popular, influential, and culturally significant movies of the decade.

In 1997, Smith struck gold again on July 4th weekend with Men in Black. Director Barry Sonnenfeld took the same qualities that made Smith so damn likeable in Bad Boys and Independence Day, but amped up the family-friendly humor. As a result, Men in Black was a critical and financial smash. Critics heralded the screenplay, action sequences, jokes, performances, and chemistry between Smith and Tommy Lee Jones (an emerging trend), which led audiences to make it the third-highest-grossing film of 1997, as well as the ninth-highest-grossing film of the decade and Sony’s highest-grossing film at the time ($590 million). The film was so popular that sales of Ray-Ban’s Predator 2 sunglasses, the type worn by Smith’s character Agent J, tripled after the film’s release.

Now, I admit, given the astronomical success of Bad Boys, Independence Day, and Men in Black, Enemy of the State is more of a coda to the streak than part of it. However, the fact remains that it was a critical and financial success, grossing $251 million at the box office, with reviews praising the writing, direction, and chemistry between Smith and Gene Hackman (again). Smith also won two Grammys in 1998 and 1999, so when combined, it all still feels like part of a hot streak, especially considering how much he crashed and burned with Wild Wild West, a critical and commercial failure that even Smith has called “a mistake.”

NICOLAS CAGE

Last Movie Before the Streak: Kiss of Death (1995)

The Streak: Leaving Las Vegas (1995), The Rock, (1996), Con Air (1997), Face/Off (1997), City of Angels (1998)

Streak Ender: Snake Eyes (1998)

Coming off a string of serviceable but generally unremarkable fare that culminated with the box office bomb Kiss of Death, Cage started his streak in grand fashion by winning his first and only Oscar, Golden Globe, and SAG Award, on top of at least 13 additional acting awards, for his performance in the heavy drama Leaving Las Vegas.

He followed that up with three of the most iconic action movies of the 90s, working with legendary directors Michael Bay and John Woo in the process. The Rock (fourth-highest-grossing film of 1996), Face/Off (eighth-highest-grossing film of 1997), and Con Air (eleventh-highest-grossing film of 1997) brought in over $800 million at the box office combined, solidifying Cage as an A-List megastar. They also have been inspiring memes, jokes, and tattoos for the past two decades, proving their cultural staying power.

Then, in 1998, he switched gears, dropping City of Angels, a romance movie that made nearly $200 million at the box office. Admittedly, critical response to the film was mixed, but this five-film stretch proved that Cage was a bankable star across multiple genres. That is until Brian de Palma’s Snake Eyes, both a critical and financial miss, started a string of hit-and-miss offerings from Cage at the turn of the century.

JIM CARREY

Last Movie Before the Streak: Earth Girls Are Easy (1988)

The Streak: Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), The Mask, (1994), Dumb and Dumber (1994), Batman Forever (1995), Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995)

Streak Ender: The Cable Guy (1996)

Truth be told, aside from 1985’s Once Bitten and television’s In Living Color, Jim Carrey had only been featured in bit parts before he burst onto the scene in 1994 with three of the 90s greatest comedies. So, not only is this an impressive hot streak, but looking at it with the context of being a global introduction makes it even more incredible.

Released in February ’94 (Ace Ventura), July ’94 (The Mask), and December ’94 (Dumb and Dumber) to audience (if not critical) acclaim, Carrey’s comedic sensibilities and rubber face set the world on fire. All three movies were financial hits, making a combined $706 million, which is remarkable considering Carrey wasn’t yet a household name. On top of that, each one led to full-on franchises that included animated series, prequels, sequels, spinoffs, and even a video game. Hot streak aside, it’s maybe one of the best years for an actor ever.

In 1995, Carrey followed up that tremendous year by starring in Batman Forever and dropping an Ace Ventura sequel. Granted, Batman Forever hasn’t been held in high regard by critics or fanboys, but it still made $336 million at the box office (third-highest-grossing film of 1995), and most people readily admit that Carrey’s portrayal of The Riddler is the best thing about the oft-derided sequel. With When Nature Calls, Carrey more than doubled the box office take of the first Ace Ventura, proving that as slight and silly as the premise was, people loved it. However, the hot streak came to a relative end in 1996 when Carrey starred in Ben Stiller’s The Cable Guy. Despite being a modest commercial success, it received middling reviews from audiences who were seemingly unprepared for a darker Jim Carrey. That said, it has since become a cult classic, and Carrey returned to prominence shortly thereafter with Liar, Liar in 1997 and The Truman Show in 1998.

HARRISON FORD & SYLVESTER STALLONE

The Ford Streak: Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977), Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), The Fugitive (1993), What Lies Beneath (2000), Cowboys and Aliens (2011), Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023) The Stallone Streak: Rocky (1976), Cobra (1986), Cliffhanger (1993), Driven (2001), The Expendables (2010), The Suicide Squad (2021)

Streak Ender: Father Time, probably

There isn’t much to say here, but it’s a nice fun fact that seems like a relevant way to end this article. Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford are the only two actors in history to have a movie open at Number One at the box office in six different decades. The lists above aren’t exhaustive, as each of them has had more than one movie open in the top spot in some decades, but it’s still an impressive streak that may rarely be matched and potentially never beaten. Both legends are getting up there in years, so only time will tell if either of them will be able to extend this streak to seven decades once 2030 rolls around. I’d bet Tom Cruise will be the next person to join this exclusive club.