The summer of 1998 was a huge season at the box office with multiplexes across the land packed with moviegoers lined up early in the lobby to snag their desired seat for hit films including “Saving Private Ryan,” “Lethal Weapon 4,” “There’s Something About Mary,” “Godzilla,” “Doctor Dolittle,” “The X Files” and “The Truman Show.”
But there was one movie that towered above them all and that was the July 4th weekend release (July 1, 1998) Armageddon starring Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler and Billy Bob Thornton. “Armageddon” was released in 3,184 theaters in the United States and Canada and ranked No. 1 at the box office. Its opening weekend gross was $36 million with a total of $54.2 million from its first five days in wide release on its way to a $201.6 million domestic gross for Disney’s Touchstone Pictures.
“Armageddon” was directed by Michael Bay, hot on the heels of his smash hits “Bad Boys” starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in 1995 and the following summer’s “The Rock” starring Oscar winners Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage.
Jerry Bruckheimer produced this epic science fiction/disaster flick, his second film following the death of his longtime business partner Don Simpson — Bruckheimer’s first film after Simpson’s death was 1997’s “Con Air” that starred Nicolas Cage, John Malkovich and John Cusack.
J.J. Abrams is among five credited writers on the script that also includes Jonathan Hensleigh and Tony Gilroy,
The massive marketing campaign leading up to “Armageddon”‘s release that even included a Super Bowl XXXII commercial all-but insured that it would be a successful endeavor. There was even an EXTREMELY SIMILAR film released two months prior in May titled “Deep Impact” that starred Morgan Freeman, Robert Duvall and Tea Leoni. Paramount Pictures’ “Deep Impact” was a solid box office performer but it grossed $61 million less than its counterpart.
Armageddon saw oil driller Harry Stamper and his team partnering with NASA to prevent an asteroid that is the size of Texas from destroying the Earth. Harry’s team consisting of A.J. (currently dating Harry’s daughter Grace against Harry’s wishes), Chick, Rockhound, Oscar, Bear and Fredie joins NASA astronauts for a training excursion prior to boarding two shuttles — Independence and Freedom — into space where they will land on the asteroid. Once they dock on the asteroid, their goal is to drill inside, insert and detonate a nuclear bomb to destroy it before it reaches Earth’s atmosphere.
Armageddon was nominated for four Oscars including Best Song, the Aerosmith hit “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing and Best Visual Effects.
The Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (which were founded by Blockbuster Entertainment, Inc., and ran from 1995 until 2001) were good to 1998’s top grossing movie with Willis winning Favorite Actor (Sci-Fi) and Affleck winning Favorite Supporting Actor (Sci-Fi).
“Armageddon” was the second highest grossing film in Bruce Willis’ storied box office catalog, trailing only 1999’s “The Sixth Sense” which grossed $673 million. Ironically, Willis starred in “Armageddon,” “The Sixth Sense” and “The Kid” (2000) in a deal with Disney chairman Joe Roth to avoid litigation after the 1997 project “Broadway Brawler” fell apart with Willis (also a producer on the film) getting the lion’s share of the blame according to the LA Times.
“Armageddon” ranks fourth on Ben Affleck’s box office list behind “Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice,” “Suicide Squad” and “Justice League,” but well ahead of his Oscar winners “Shakespeare in Love,” “Argo” and “Good Will Hunting.”
