Genre Research: Institional Context

IMDb Top Rated Crime-Thriller Feature Films

The Dark Knight (2008) 9/10 (Action)

The Pulp Fiction (1994) 9/10 (Drama)

Inception (2010) 8.8/10 (Action/Mystery)

Gravity (2013) 8.8/10 (Sci-Fi/Drama) 

Goodfellas (1990) 8.8/10 (Drama)

Se7en (1995) 8.7/10 (Mystery)

The Silence of Lambs (1991) 8.7/10 (Drama)

The Usual Suspects (1995) 8.7/10 (Mystery)

Memento (2000) 8.6/10 (Mystery)

IMDb Highest Grossing Crime-Thriller Feature Films

The Dark Knight (2008) $533,316,061

The Dark Knight Rises (2012) $448,130,642

Skyfall (2012) $304,360,277

Inception (2010) $292,568,851

The Beverly Hills Cop (1984) $234,760,500

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) $227,137,090

Sherlock Holmes (2009) $209,019,489

Batman Begins (2005) $205,343,774

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) $186,830,669

Oceans Eleven (2001) $183,405,771  

The most popular Crime-Thriller films (such as Inception and The Dark Knight) are distributed by Warner.Bros in association with Legendary Pictures. The Warner Bros. Pictures Group brings together the Studio’s motion picture production, marketing and distribution operations into a single entity. Warner Bros. Pictures International is a global leader in the marketing and distribution of feature films, operating offices in more than 30 countries and releasing films in over 120 international territories, either directly to theaters or in conjunction with partner companies and co-ventures. The company produces and distributes a wide-ranging slate of some 18-22 films each year.


In 2012, the Warner Bros. Pictures Group grossed $4.3 billion at the worldwide box office ($1.66 billion domestic, $2.67 international) with both its domestic and international divisions crossing the billion-dollar mark for a 12th consecutive year.


Legendary Entertainment has co-produced 29 feature films. In addition, the company is also in the process of producing an additional four films and is developing various other projects. Of the 29 feature films produced, 28 have had theatrical releases and one has had a direct-to-video release. All films that were theatrically released were distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures (except for Watchmen which was distributed by both Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures) and the direct-to-video film was distributed by Warner Premiere. Note that in all cases the distributor or distributors are also co-producers. Also, in all cases the film listed is a work of Legendary Pictures, unless the film's name is followed by a subscript "E", indicating that Legendary East is the production company.

Within the last 10 years, it is evident that Police orientated plots have made a gradual move from films to TV series. Dedicated Police/Crime films are very rare – many current films are classified as ‘Crime-Thrillers’ and have minimal federal involvement. In the late 90s and early 2000s, Police/Crime films were quite popular, however, the protagonist was usually involved in the ‘under-cover’ unit of the authorities; therefore, the inclusion of law officials within the plot was declining. Current Crime-Thrillers such as ‘The Call’, ‘Tunnel Vision’ and ‘Single-shot’ have less ‘Police’ orientated plots.