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Tropic Thunder

2008 · directed by Ben Stiller · 107 min
24,053 feet · Prominence
853rd of 24,106 films scored
The Rewatchables‘Tropic Thunder’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan, and Joel Anderson →

How this film scores

Draw65

Lifetime worldwide gross $196m, re-releases included; about $300m in 2026 money.

Rank1,142 of 11,051In 200837 of 300

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise80

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics76 baseAwards29 signal → +3 lift

Oscars1 nominated Supporting Actor
Golden Globes1 nominated Supporting acting
BAFTAs1 nominated Supporting acting
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy50

Judged directly: Downey's role and the controversy still cited.

Verdict50 of 100IMDb7.1 from 485kWikipedia72k views a monthAge18 years

Scored beside it · 1,041 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 65 praise 80 legacy 50averages 65, placing it at24,053 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Robert Downey Jr20,272 ftBen Stiller19,691 ftJack Black18,594 ftTom Cruise18,584 ftMatthew McConaughey18,096 ftJay Baruchel18,074 ftJason Bateman17,661 ftNick Nolte17,661 ftTobey Maguire17,661 ftSteve Coogan17,660 ftBill Hader17,659 ftJon Voight17,659 ftDanny McBride17,656 ftAlicia Silverstone17,654 ftJennifer Love Hewitt17,651 ftJustin Theroux17,646 ftChristine Taylor17,639 ft