Budget: $1.2M
If you’ve seen this gory, cutthroat classic, you know that the majority of the action in this film takes place in a single (incredibly disturbing) location. This, in addition to the fact it was filmed using a fairly small number of actors and actresses, lends to the fact they made over 100% profit back on the $1.2 million budget they produced it with.
The Hollywood legend that everyone knows and loves was actually the product of a short film that was produced using next to nothing. Lionsgate bought the film and put together the budget that was used to turn it into a successful movie that grossed over $115 million in theatres, launching a franchise that would become the second highest-grossing in its genre.
My Left Foot
Budget: $600,000
Daniel Day-Lewis played the amazing role of Christy Brown, a man who has been born with cerebral palsy and can only control one of his feet (we’ll let you guess which one). The “dramedy,” as it may be called in today’s film lingo, was produced in 1989 with a budget of just $600,000. Audiences fell in love with the performances, and "My Left Foot" wound up making nearly $15 million in theatres — not bad when you compare it to its production costs.
The film was nominated for several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. Daniel Day-Lewis won both the Academy and BAFTA Awards for Best Actor for his role, and Brenda Fricker won for Best Supporting Actress.
Moonlight
Budget: $4M
"Moonlight" is a unique coming-of-age tale about the emotional development of a young man throughout multiple stages of his life, from childhood through young adulthood. It brings some very important issues to light and shows them in a way that no movie really has before. The movie was put together with a modest budget of just $4 million but ended up grossing over $65 million after its release.
It won a number of awards, including being the first film with an all-black cast to win an Oscar for Best Picture. Not only that, but it was also the first LGBTQA themed film to win the same award. It was nominated for 5 of the other categories that year, too: a big win for writer and director Barry Jenkins. The film’s writer, Joi McMillon, became the first African American woman to be nominated for an Oscar in editing for her stellar behind-the-scenes performance, too.
The Purge
Budget: $3M
Considering the fact that "The Purge" has turned into a multi-million-dollar franchise, it may be hard to believe that the original movie was put together with a budget of just $3 million. Now, there are multiple multi-million-dollar films along with a limited series on TV. Each of the films (and the TV episodes) have their own theme, but they all follow the same storyline about “The Purge.”
The story is about one night per year during which the federal government sanctions all crime — including murder. In most of the films, the government themselves are on the “no-kill” list, with the exception of a few certain instances throughout the franchise. The budget for the more recent films has been a bit higher, thanks to the success of their predecessor.
Friday the 13th
Budget: $600,000
The original "Friday the 13th" is definitely a classic horror movie and arguably one of the best slasher films ever made — and they did it all with a budget of less than $600,000. The gory slaughter-fest hit nearly $60 million at the box office and turned into an extremely successful franchise. Now, there are loads of Friday the 13th movies, including "Freddy vs. Jason," which combines this franchise with "Nightmare on Elm Street"’s Freddy Kruger.
The movie was written and directed by Victor Miller and was his highest-grossing movie of all time. Miller is still writing screenplays today and has a horror film called "Eden Falls." Although he didn’t write the scripts for any of the movies that came after the first, he’s still responsible for creating a cult classic.