Jerry Bruckheimer aka "Mr. Blockbuster" (Mania.com)

By:Jarrod Sarafin
Date: Sunday, May 27, 2007

Since the monster known as Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End hits theater screens this weekend, I thought “Why Not?” Let’s talk about him. In fact, I’m close to putting up a *Fan boy Alert* advisory along side this Star Spotlight due to the fact that internet critics everywhere are well in tune on thinking of creative insults towards Michael Bay. What strikes me as odd on that one is Jerry Bruckheimer isn’t Michael Bay. Michael Bay isn’t Jerry Bruckheimer. It’s funny how since they’ve worked together so very often, some critics seem to forget that fact.

With Jerry Bruckheimer, I think he deserves talking about just out of sheer “power” and “standing” inside the studio executive circles. The man has made the Power List on Entertainment Minded Power Rankings with magazines such as Forbes, Entertainment Weekly, Premiere, etc for over a decade now. He’s been in the top 10-40 of those various rankings for the last 4-5 years. There’s a reason for it. He’s been a powerhouse behind some very marketing ventures in the industry the last 25 years. Within the last decade, he’s branched off into some even more successful television hits which increased that power ranking of his.

Overall, by letting him get Spotlighted, I’m more interested in hearing your thoughts on the man.

There seems to be a faction of people which consider the whole Summer Tent pole Movie concept to be a reason why Hollywood has turned into spurning out “crap” in their minds while others seem to like the occasional popcorn shoot ‘em up for what it is, mindless entertainment. This can be a highly heated issue to discuss, hence, the fanboy alert is probably deserving.

The thing about Bruckheimer is he’s strictly a producer first and foremost. With nearly 4 decades of films under his belt, he has yet to direct one movie or film. He’s too busy calling the shots overseeing so many movies and television programming I doubt he’ll get that first directorial credit on his resume. That is, if he even wants to direct something in the first place. To get an idea on what films and television he’s been in charge with, here’s a list.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
Déjà Vu (2006) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Glory Road (2006) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
National Treasure (2004) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
King Arthur (2004) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
Bad Boys 2 (2003) (with TriStar Pictures)
Veronica Guerin (2003) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Kangaroo Jack (2003) (with Warner Bros.)
Bad Company (2002) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Pearl Harbor (2001) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Black Hawk Down (2001) (with Revolution Studios)
Remember the Titans (2000) (with Walt Disney Pictures)
Coyote Ugly (2000) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Armageddon (1998) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Enemy of the State (1998) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Con Air (1997) (with Touchstone Pictures)
The Rock (1996) (with Hollywood Pictures)
Dangerous Minds (1995) (with Hollywood Pictures)
Crimson Tide (1995) (with Hollywood Pictures)
Bad Boys (1995) (with TriStar Pictures)
The Ref (1994) (with Touchstone Pictures)
Days of Thunder (1990) (with Paramount Pictures)
Beverly Hills Cop 2 (1987) (with Paramount Pictures)
Top Gun (1986) (with Paramount Pictures)
Beverly Hills Cop (1984) (with Paramount Pictures)
Thief of Hearts (1984)
Flashdance (1983) (with Paramount Pictures)
Young Doctors in Love (1982)
Cat People (1982)
Thief (1981)
Defiance (1980)
American Gigolo (1980) (with Paramount Pictures)
March or Die (1977)
Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
Rafferty and the Gold Dust Twins (1975) (associate producer)
The Culpepper Cattle Company (1972) (associate producer)

Seriously, just look at the list. Forgetting whether you like a lot of these movies or not on a personal level, there is little to no doubt about their success rates when looking as an analyst. Jerry and long time friend, co-producer Don Simpson, made some very wise choices when the whole Hollywood Tent pole Concept was gaining steam around the industry. This was around the time where James Cameron, Richard Donner and John McTiernan were churning out highly bankable franchises such as Terminator, Aliens, Lethal Weapons, Predator and Die Hard. Whether one fan absolutely hates the last 10 years of summer movies or not, nobody can deny the hits mentioned above by these directors.

Honestly, it could be backtracked to before those directors and be traced more towards Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola and some others who really started the summer movie concept with Jaws, Indiana Jones, Star Wars and other smash hit popcorn munching pop culture phenomenon.

Whatever the case, producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson, became powers in the industry in the midst of this new wave of smash hits by collaborating on Flashdance, Beverly Hills Cop, Top Gun, Days of Thunder, Bad Boys and finally The Rock. Longtime friend Don Simpson died untimely while The Rock was being filled (it would later be dedicated to him). Untimely because he died of Cardiac Arrest after they found multiple drugs in his system.

After his death, Jerry Bruckheimer would go it along and it was around this time where he would also venture into creating and overseeing television programming over shows which would help contribute to him getting on Power Lists lately. Here’s a list of his TV shows:

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation(1999-present)
CSI: NY (2004-present)
CSI: Miami (2002-present)
The Amazing Race (2001-present) TV Series (exec. producer)
Modern Men (2006) TV series (exec. producer)
Justice (2006) TV Series (exec. producer)
E-Ring (2005-2006) TV Series (exec. producer)
Close to Home (2005-present) TV Series (exec. producer)
Just Legal (2005-2006) TV Series (exec. producer)
Skin (2003) TV Series (exec. producer)
Cold Case (2003-present) TV Series (exec. producer)
Profiles from the Front Line (2003) TV Series (exec. producer)
Without a Trace (2002-present) TV Series (exec. producer)
Soldier of Fortune, Inc. (1997-1998) TV Series (exec. producer)
Stargate: SG1 (1997-present) TV Series (exec. producer)

As you can see, the man is overseeing and in charge of some very successful television franchises. It’s the residues in syndication and programming off these shows which contribute to him being a very powerful man inside the studio scene.

Let’s not also forget about the bankability of his movie franchises and past movies. Here’s a box office receipt look at some of his movies:

Movie	Opening $	Theaters	Domestic $	Overseas $	Worldwide $
Beverly Hills Cop	15.2 mil	1,532	234.7 mil	81.6 mil	316.3 mil
Top Gun	8.1 mil	1,028	176.7 mil	177.0 mil	353.8 mil
Beverly Hills Cop 2	26.3 mil	2,326	153.6 mil	146.3 mil	299.9 mil
Days of Thunder	15.4 mil	2,307	82.6 mil	75.2 mil	157.9 mil
Bad Boys	15.5 mil	2,132	65.8 mil	75.6 mil	141.4 mil
Crimson Tide	18.6 mil	2,382	91.3 mil	66.0 mil	157.3 mil
Dangerous Minds	14.9 mil	1,348	84.9 mil	94.6 mil	179.5 mil
The Rock	25.0 mil	2,392	134.0 mil	200.9 mil	335.0 mil
Con Air	24.1 mil	2,824	101.1 mil	122.8 mil	224.0 mil
Enemy of the State	20.0 mil	2,393	111.5 mil	139.1 mil	250.6 mil
Armageddon	36.0 mil	3,127	201.5 mil	352.1 mil	553.7 mil
Gone in Sixty Seconds	25.3 mil	3,006	101.6 mil	135.5 mil	237.2 mil
Coyote Ugly	17.3 mil	2,653	60.7 mil	53.1 mil	113.9 mil
Remember the Titans	20.9 mil	1,865	115.6 mil	21.0 mil	136.7 mil
Black Hawk Down	28.6 mil	3,101	108.6 mil	64.3 mil	172.9 mil
Pearl Harbor	59.0 mil	3,214	198.5 mil	250.6 mil	449.2 mil
Bad Company	11.0 mil	2,944	30.1 mil	35.8 mil	65.9 mil
Bad Boys II	46.5 mil	3,186	138.6 mil	134.7 mil	273.3 mil
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl	46.6 mil	3,269	305.4 mil	348.5 mil	653.9 mil
King Arthur	15.1 mil	3,086	51.8 mil	151.6 mil	203.5 mil
National Treasure	35.1 mil	3,017	173.0 mil	174.4 mil	347.4 mil
Glory Road	13.5 mil	2,222	42.6 mil	$291,000	42.9 mil
Deja Vu	20.5 mil	3,108	64.0 mil	116.5 mil	180.5 mil
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest	135.6 mil	4,133	423.3 mil	642.3 mil	1.065 billion
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End	n/a yet	4,362	n/a yet	n/a yet	n/a yet
National Treasure: Book of Secrets	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a

Yes, there’s a reason his nickname in Hollywood is “Mr. Blockbuster”.

As you can, films he oversees have a habit of banking massive amounts of cash for the studios. Who knows where Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, National Treasure: Book of Secrets or Prince of Persia: Sands of Time end up on box office success but it would be a sound guess to assume they make quite a lot of money.

There you go, an overview of Bruckheimer…Past, Present & Future.

Now, it’s time to hear your thoughts on the man, his films & his television. Are you a fan of some of the popcorn fare above or do you consider Bruckheimer a thorn in your imaginative side? Let us hear your thoughts on the man.