20 Movies Way More Successful Than Anyone Expected
15. The Full Monty
Underdog success stories don't get much more heart-warming than The Full Monty - a $3.5 million comedic drama about male strippers set in Sheffield without major stars that became a global mega-hit.
Even with the film's apparently limited appeal outside of the UK, it managed to strike one hell of a chord the world over, ultimately grossing an incredible $257.9 million and becoming the UK's highest-grossing film of all time - until being unseated by Titanic a short while later.
This can be attributed to a few factors - the film's obvious novelty appeal, a cheeky and amusing marketing campaign, and strong word-of-mouth driven by its winning combination of comedy and heartfelt drama.
More than all this, though, The Full Monty was also nominated for four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, while winning a gong for Best Original Score.
Considering the film's modest conception and how easily it could've slipped through the cracks with a lesser distributor, that's an overperformance for the ages.