Find out how this story about a struggling rapper managed to beat out an epic about orcs, elves, hobbits and wizards at the box office.
In November 2002, Eminem’s movie 8 Mile was released. It was a hip-hop drama film written by Academy award winner Scott Silver (who also later wrote 2010’s biographical boxing film The Fighter). 8 Mile proved to be really popular, not only because it starred the best rapper of the time, but also because the story was fantastic.
8 Mile is set in 1995, and story focuses on a young white rapper named Jimmy "B-Rabbit" Smith Jr. (played incredibly well by Eminem), who lives in a trailer park in Warren, Michigan, and his attempt to launch a career in rap, a genre dominated by African Americans.
The movie had positive reviews when it came out, some people praising the engaging story and the debut acting performance of Eminem. A month later, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was released. LOTR was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Art Direction, Best Sound Editing, and Best Visual Effects. But it still got beat at the box office by Eminem’s hip-hop drama.
8 Mile toppled The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers from its four-week hold at the top of the UK box office. The hip-hop drama took £4,440,334 at 423 cinemas in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
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