Why Hollywood Stopped Making Courtroom Drama Movies

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https://screenrant.com/courtroom-dra...d-reasons-why/

The decline of the courtroom drama movie can be attributed to a number of factors, including the rise in television shows like Law & Order and David E. Kelley's Ally McBeal and The Practice. Additionally, Hollywood's releases have trended toward bigger budget spectacles with mid-budget genres like the romantic comedy and the courtroom drama being relegated to streaming platforms or TV. Many of these factors were far beyond the control of the people responsible for making these films.

Golden Age Of Legal Dramas On Television



Courtroom dramas have been a regular staple of television programming. Going back to the likes of Perry Mason and Dragnet, legal dramas have been a go-to backdrop for episodic storytelling. In the past, TV and film approaches to courtroom fare have managed to coexist, yet over time, that dynamic has been upended in favor of TV courtroom dramas. This shift started with the debut of Law & Order on September 13, 1990, which spawned many spin-offs, and these extensions ensured that the legacy of a popular legal drama would continue on for years to come.

Though Law & Order didn't become popular when it first hit the airwaves, by the end of the 1990s, Dick Wolf's long-running procedural had garnered a spin-off, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and numerous case-of the-week imitators like The Practice, Ally McBeal, the NCIS franchise, and JAG, which all proved successful. Thanks to the various Law & Order shows and knock-offs, the 2000s proved to be the golden age for courtroom dramas on television. This golden age inspired a plethora of choices that came with something that courtroom drama movies lacked: a trusty brand name. Why would viewers risk spending $10 on a movie ticket to an unfamiliar courtroom drama movie when they could stay on the couch and get the reliable Law & Order/JAG formula?