The 1990s; a time before the internet when two people could fall in love by meeting in real life, or listening to one of their stories on the radio. They were much simpler times. It was also a time when romance movies made as much box office money as other genres like action, thrillers, or comedies, even becoming the highest-grossing films in some years. Here are the highest-grossing romance movies from each year in the 1990s, according to the worldwide box office numbers by Box Office Mojo.
1990 - Ghost - $505 Million
Ghost was a supernatural romance film that had many good things going for it. It was the highest-grossing film of that year; it made Patrick Swayze a sex symbol; it probably still is Demi Moore’s best movie ever, and it earned Whoopi Goldberg an Academy Award.
All of these things happened because audiences went to the theater to watch the love story between Sam (Swayze) and Molly (Moore), as even after he’s killed, he can't leave this world without talking with her one last time. Parodies have been made for decades about the clay vase, and its eroticism, but the film is still in the minds of those audiences that watched the film more than 30 years ago.
1991 - Beauty and the Beast - $424 Million
Disney’s animated Beauty and the Beast is a romance movie with magical elements, as it takes the enemies-to-lovers romantic trope to its most endearing ending. The story follows Belle, as she’s imprisoned by the Beast (a prince magically transformed into a monster) in exchange for her father’s freedom. As they spend more and more time together, they start to see each other's best qualities.
This film was the third-highest-grossing film of 1991, only surpassed by Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and its success is still remembered. So much so, that in 2017, Disney released a live-action remake with Emma Watson and Dan Stevens.
1992 - The Bodyguard - $411 Million
The Bodyguard is a romance movie about a popular R&B singer, Rachel Marron (Whitney Huston), and an ex-Secret Agent and new bodyguard, Frank (Kevin Costner). When he starts working for her, they don’t get each other, but as the film goes on, and the threat of her stalker gets more real, they start finding common ground and falling in love.
The film was such an accomplishment, that it was the second-highest-grossing film of that year, only surpassed by Disney’s Aladdin, and the soundtrack is still one of the most famous ever made. With all that success behind it, it makes sense that the movie is getting a remake with a spin on its lead character.
1993 - Sleepless in Seattle - $227 Million
Sleepless in Seattle tells the love story of Sam (Tom Hanks), a widowed dad, and Annie (Meg Ryan). After Sam’s son calls the radio looking for a new partner for his father, she can’t stop thinking about Sam, and, after watching An Affair to Remember, sends him a letter telling him to meet her at the top of the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day.
This is one of Nora Ephron’s best movies, a rom-com staple, and one of those films that still makes audiences swoon. Hanks, Ryan, and Ephron had such a good time working together that they repeated the combination in 1998’s You’ve Got Mail.
1994 - Four Weddings and a Funeral - $245 Million
Four Weddings and a Funeral was Hugh Grant’s big welcome to Hollywood and the rom-com world. He plays Charles, in this movie that, as the title implies, has four weddings and a funeral. His partner in romance is played by Andie MacDowell, and even though her character could be a bit more developed, their chemistry together is off the charts. The film was the eighth-highest grossing of that year, starting a successful career for both lead actors, but also director Mike Newell and Richard Curtis.
About why the movie was a success, director Mike Newell told The Guardian: “I now think it didn’t hit the mark because it was funny or romantic, but because it was about the development of friends. That’s what gives it its great undertow of warmth. It’s a cocoon.”
1995 - While You Were Sleeping - $182 Million
While You Were Sleeping was the confirmation that Sandra Bullock was a rom-com star, even if the concept might not have aged very well. Lucy (Bullock) has a crush on a man, Peter (Peter Gallagher), whom she sees getting on the train every morning. After an accident, she saves him, and accompanies him to the hospital, where he’s in a coma. There, as it only happens in movies, through a mix-up, his family believes she’s his fiancée and she doesn’t deny it. From there on, the family kind of adopts her, and she starts spending time with Peter’s brother, Jack (Bill Pullman), so much so, that they fall in love.
1996 - Jerry Maguire - $273 Million
Jerry Maguire tells the story of the sports agent of the same name (played by Tom Cruise, in his movie star phase), who gets fired after a memo, and tries to restart his career with just one client, Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.), and Dorothy (Renée Zellweger), a working partner who will be much more. This is a romance and an underdog movie all in one, and has some of the most quotable lines of the '90s, like “Show me the money!”, and, especially, “You had me at hello.”
About casting Zellweger for the film, director Cameron Crowe told Deadline: “She came in and met Tom. We have video of that because I was filming, and you just see something happen when Tom sees her. He lights up. The two of them together have a very particular chemistry. It brought out more of the story of the movie and less of the movie in the movie. As Jerry discovers Dorothy, we discover Renee.”
1997 - Titanic - $ 2.26 Billion
Titanic is still talked about 25 years later, and not only because it made stars of Leonard DiCaprio and Kate Winslet and is still one of the highest-grossing films of all time, as it stands fourth ever, without adjusting for inflation, only surpassed by the two Avatars and Avengers: Endgame after earning $2.26 billion (yeah, with a B).
The tragic love story between Jack (DiCaprio) and Rose (Winslet) and how the most famous boat ever sank, was rewatched again and again by '90s tweens, before winning a record 11 Oscars, and yet there’s still doubt of whether it’s a masterpiece or not, and if Rose could’ve made some room for Jack in that door in the middle of the water.
1998 - There’s Something About Mary - $369 Million
There’s Something About Mary was an R-rated comedy directed by the Farrelly brothers, that tells the story of Ted (Ben Stiller) and his reconnection with Mary (Cameron Diaz), a girl he met in high school and with whom he had a disastrous first date with, 13 years later.
This is a hilarious, and at times, a bit dirty comedy (the gel gag is still talked about), and one of Cameron Diaz’s funniest, when she was at the peak of her powers. Every character in the movie falls in love with her, and audiences understand it, as she’s charming, playful, sexy, and funny. The movie was so good, and audiences laughed so much at it, that it became very rewatchable, so much so, that it was the fourth highest-grossing film of that year.
1999 - Notting Hill - $363 Million
Notting Hill was the confirmation that the '90s were the decade where Julia Roberts was the biggest rom-com queen of all. The fact that she was paired with another rom-com staple in Hugh Grant proved this film was going to be a slam dunk, and it was, as it still is one of the best '90s romantic comedies. The story is also a fun one, as movie star Anna Scott (Roberts) goes to a bookstore in Notting Hill and meets, and falls in love with the owner, William (Grant).
As with any movie written by Richard Curtis, there are a lot of fun quips, charming dialogue, and a beautiful speech by Anna that’s almost as quoted as the Jerry Maguire one: “I’m also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.” With all that in mind, it makes perfect sense that the film made $363 million at the box office, making it the seventh-highest-grossing movie of that year.