Major film studios are production and distribution companies that release a substantial number of films annually and consistently command a significant share of box office revenue in a given market. In American and international markets, major film studios, often known simply as majors or Big Four studios, are commonly regarded as four diversified media conglomerates whose various film production and distribution subsidiaries collectively command approximately 80 to 85% of American box office revenue. The term may also be applied more specifically to the primary motion picture business subsidiary of each respective conglomerate.
Since the dawn of filmmaking, major American film studios have dominated both American cinema and the global film industry. American studios have benefited from a strong first-mover advantage in that they were the first to industrialize filmmaking and master the art of mass-producing and distributing films with broad cross-cultural appeal. Big Four majors – Universal Pictures, Skydance Motion Picture Group (consisting of Paramount Pictures & Warner Bros.), Walt Disney Studios and Sony Pictures – distribute hundreds of films every year into all significant international markets. The majors enjoy "significant internal economies of scale" from their "extensive and efficient [distribution] infrastructure," while it is "nearly impossible" for a film to reach a broad international theatrical audience without being first picked up by one of the majors for distribution. All Big Four major studios are members of Motion Picture Association (MPA) and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
Overview
The current Big Four majors (Universal, Skydance, Disney, and Sony) all originate from film studios that were active during Hollywood's Golden Age. One of these were among that original era's Eight Majors, being that era's original Big Five plus its Little Three, collectively the eight film studios that controlled as much as 96% of the market during the 1930s and 1940s.
The original Big Five were Paramount Pictures, RKO Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Universal Pictures was, during that early era, considered one of the Little Three, along with United Artists and Columbia Pictures. RKO went defunct in 1958, but was brought back by RKO General in 1978. United Artists began as a distribution company for several independent producers, later began producing its own films, and was eventually acquired by MGM in 1981. Columbia Pictures eventually merged in 1987 with Tri-Star Pictures to form Columbia Pictures Entertainment, now known as Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.
During the Golden Age, Walt Disney Productions was an independent production company and not considered a "major studio" until 1984, when it joined 20th Century Fox, Columbia, Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer, Paramount, Universal, and Warner Bros. to comprise the Big Seven. The decay of MGM in 1986 led the studio to become a mini-major upon its sale in 1986, reducing the majors to the Big Six. In 1989, Sony acquired Columbia Pictures Entertainment, which became Sony Pictures Entertainment in 1991.
In 2019, Disney acquired Fox, reducing the majors to a new Big Five for the first time since Hollywood's Golden Age. Thus, Paramount and Warner are the only Golden Age Big Five members to remain as majors today.
On April 23, 2026 Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders voted to officially approve a proposed acquisition of the company by Paramount Skydance, though the outcome of this vote will remain non-binding until the proposed acquisition is approved by U.S. federal regulators. On June 12, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice approved Paramount Skydance's purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery.
While the Big Four's main studio lots are located within of each other, Paramount (part of Skydance Motion Picture Group) is the only member still based in Hollywood and located entirely within the official city limits of the City of Los Angeles. Warner Bros. (another part of Skydance Motion Picture Group) and Disney are both located in Burbank, while Universal is in the nearby unincorporated area Universal City, and Sony is in Culver City.
Disney is the only studio that has been owned by the same conglomerate since its founding. The offices of that parent entity are still located on Disney's studio lot and in the same building.
Meanwhile, Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is owned by Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation and is the only US film studio owned by a foreign conglomerate. Universal, now owned by Philadelphia-based Comcast (via NBCUniversal), was previously owned by foreign companies including Japan's Matsushita Electric, Canada's Seagram, and France's Vivendi in succession. Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures report to a corporation headquartered in New York City — Skydance Corporation. Most of today's Big Four also control subsidiaries with their own distribution networks that concentrate on arthouse pictures (e.g., Universal's Focus Features) or genre films (e.g., Sony's Screen Gems); several other specialty units were shut down or sold off between 2008 and 2010.
Outside of the Big Four, there are several smaller American production and distribution companies, known as independents or "indies". The leading independent producers and distributors such as Lionsgate Studios, the aforementioned Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (now owned by Amazon), and A24, are sometimes referred to as "mini-majors". From 1998 through 2005, during a portion of the Big Six period, DreamWorks SKG commanded a large enough market share to arguably qualify it as a seventh major. In 2006, DreamWorks was acquired by Viacom, Paramount's then-corporate parent (Viacom, after other mergers and acquisitions and rebrandings, included its movie studio's well-known name when the parent company merged with National Amusements and Skydance Media to form Paramount Skydance Corporation in 2025). In late 2008, DreamWorks once again became an independent production company; its films were distributed by Disney's Touchstone Pictures until 2016, at which point distribution switched to Universal.
Today, the Big Four major studios are primarily financial backers and distributors of films whose actual production is largely handled by independent companies – either long-running entities or ones created for and dedicated to the making of a specific film. For example, Disney and Sony Pictures distribute their films through affiliated divisions (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and Sony Pictures Releasing, respectively), while the others function as both production and distribution companies. The specialty divisions (such as Disney's Searchlight Pictures and Universal's Focus Features) often acquire distribution rights to films in which the studio has had no prior involvement. While the majors still do a modicum of true production, their activities are focused more in the areas of development, financing, marketing, and merchandising. Those business functions are still usually performed in or near Los Angeles, even though the runaway production phenomenon means that most films are now mostly or completely shot on location at places outside Los Angeles. This source uses acronyms used in political economy but not in Hollywood itself. NICL means new international division of cultural labor and TNMC means transnational media corporation.
The Big Four major studios are also members of the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
Majors
Current
Studio(conglomerate) Genre/B movie Animation Other divisions and brands OTT/VOD US/CA market share (2025) Walt Disney Studios Walt Disney Pictures
20th Century Studios
Searchlight Pictures 28% Skydance Motion Picture Group Paramount Pictures
Warner Bros. Pictures
New Line Cinema
Warner Bros. Clockwork 27%Aggregate for predecessor entities: 21% Warner Bros. Entertainment and 6% Paramount Pictures. Universal Filmed Entertainment Group Universal Pictures
Focus Features 20% Sony Pictures Columbia Pictures
TriStar Pictures
Sony Pictures Classics 7%
Past Other major film studios of the 20th century included:
RKO Radio Pictures (RKO) (1929–1958) – one of the Big Five studios, bought by Howard Hughes in 1948, was mismanaged and dismantled and was largely defunct by the 1957 studio lot sale; revived several times as an independent studio, with most recent film releases in 2012 and 2015; now owned by Concord Originals. United Artists/United Artists Releasing (UA) (1919–1981) – one of the Little Three studios, originally only a distributor for independent film producers, acquired by MGM in 1981; brand name was resurrected in 2019 when Annapurna Pictures and MGM renamed a distribution company, which was a joint venture between the two companies, to United Artists Releasing; revived in 2024 as a label under the Amazon MGM Studios umbrella. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1924–1986) – one of the Big Seven studios (and one of the Big Five studios during the Golden Age), acquired by Ted Turner in 1986, who sold the studio back to Kirk Kerkorian later that year while retaining MGM's pre-May 1986 library; became a mini-major studio upon the sale; emerged from bankruptcy in 2010; now owned by Amazon, which also owns and operates Amazon MGM Studios, Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Freevee, and MX Player. 20th Century Fox (TCF, 20CF, 20th, or Fox) (1935–2019) – one of the Big Six studios (and one of the Big Five studios during the Golden Age), became part of Walt Disney Studios when The Walt Disney Company acquired Fox's owner in 2019; 20th Century Fox was renamed 20th Century Studios the following year. Warner Bros. Pictures (WB, Warner, Warner Brothers or Warner Bros.) (1923–2026) – one of the Big Five studios, became part of Skydance Motion Picture Group when Paramount acquired Warner's owner to form Skydance Corporation in 2026. Paramount Pictures (Paramount) (1912–2026) – one of the Big Five studios, became part of Skydance Motion Picture Group when Paramount acquired Warner's owner to form Skydance Corporation in 2026.
Instant majors "Instant major" is a 1960s coined term for a film company that seemingly overnight had approached the status of major." In 1967, three "instant major" studios popped up, two of which were partnered with a television network theatrical film unit, with the most lasting until 1973: Cinerama Releasing Corporation (partnered with ABC Pictures International, the film production company of ABC) National General Corporation (distributor for Cinema Center Films, the film production company of CBS) Commonwealth United Entertainment
Mini-majors Mini-major studios (or "mini-majors") are the larger, independent film production companies that are smaller than the major studios and attempt to compete directly with them.
Current
Studio(conglomerate) Main units Other divisions and brands OTT/VOD US/CA market share (2025)Lionsgate StudiosLionsgate Films
Summit Entertainment 4% A24 3% Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
United Artists
Orion Pictures N/A
Past Past mini-majors include: 20th Century Pictures – merged with Fox Film after a fallout with United Artists to become 20th Century Fox in 1935. Republic Pictures – originally a "poverty row" B-movie producer, produced many serials and was formed by the consolidation of six minor production companies in 1935. Ceased production in 1958.Scheuer, Philip K. (April 2, 1958). "Film Making to Be Ended by Republic: Studio Will Step Up Efforts to Rent Lot Use to Independents". Los Angeles Times. p. B1. It was rebooted in 1985. Viacom then purchased it in the early 2000s.