10 Iconic Movies That Spawned A Thousand Imitators
7. 48 Hrs.
When viewed through a modern lens, some of the insults traded between the characters haven't aged well at all, but along with putting Eddie Murphy on the fast-track to superstardom in his first big screen role, Walter Hill's 48 Hrs. also set the template for the buddy cop movie, which remains one of action cinema's favorite subgenres.
The chemistry between Murphy and Nick Nolte led to an explosion in popularity for the idea of teaming up two wildly different personalities, usually a world-weary and straight-laced character reluctantly sidled with a wise-cracking and volatile partner, and then forcing them into an action-packed adventure laden with quips before they ultimately developed a mutual respect that evolved into friendship.
By the time the decade was over the genre was already reaching saturation point with City Heat, Running Scared, Lethal Weapon, Dragnet, Shoot to Kill, Midnight Run, Red Heat, Renegades, Tango & Cash and countless others rolling off the production line.
The buddy movie has diversified and evolved a huge amount since 48 Hrs. was released in 1982, but the fact that Bad Boys For Life is currently the highest-grossing movie released this year shows the continued popularity of the basic setup, no matter how long ago the tropes fell into outright cliche.