Turner & Hooch/K-9
These two 1989 films shared the premise of an experience cop being partnered with a dog to solve crimes. Hilarity inevitably ensued.
Kalifornia/Natural Born Killers
Eleven months stood between these two films each about a couple engaging in multi-state killing sprees, released in 1993 and 1994 respectively. Both took inspiration from real-life killer Charles Starkweather, and both starred Juliette Lewis.
Street Fighter/Mortal Kombat
Hollywood wanted in on the rising interest in video games, releasing these two martial arts action films based on arcade fixtures within eight months of another in 1994 and 1995.
Showgirls/Striptease
There were only nine months between the former's release in 1995 and the latter's in 1996. While Showgirls has gone down in history as one of the most infamous flops in film history, Striptease is a mostly forgotten blip in star Demi Moore's career.
Dante's Peak/Volcano
Hollywood was obsessed with volcanic eruptions in 1997, as these two disaster films starring Pierce Brosnan and Tommy Lee Jones, respectively, made their way to theaters just two months apart.
Saving Private Ryan/The Thin Red Line
1998 saw the release of these dueling WWII films just five months apart from one another. Both were critical favorites from A-list directors (Steven Spielberg and Terrence Malick, respectively), both lost the Oscar for Best Picture to Shakespeare in Love.
Antz/A Bug's Life
Animators had insects on the brain in 1998 as Pixar and Dreamworks both told tales of a non-conformist ant who falls in love with an ant princess, leaves the mound and returns a hero.
Armageddon/Deep Impact
The disaster on Hollywood's mind in 1998? Asteroids. These two films were released only two months apart.
The Truman Show/Ed TV
It was Jim Carrey vs. Matthew McConaughey when these two films about a man's life being a 24-hour reality TV show were released within nine months of each other in 1998 and '99.
Entrapment/The Thomas Crown Affair
In 1999, two male actors best known for playing James Bond (Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan, respectively) each starred in his own film about a male art thief becoming entangled with the female insurance investigator pursuing him.
House on Haunted Hill/The Haunting
Both based on source material from 1959, oddly enough, these two films released in 1999 featured people tricked into staying in some spooky homes under false pretenses.
The Matrix/eXistenZ
These sci-fi films released in 1999 featured stories that questioned whether the world was real or an illusion. Both dealt with a virtual reality contained in a computer program, but only one launched an enduring franchise.
Scary Movie/Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the Thirteenth
Hot off the resurgence of the teen slasher flick in the late '90s, two films spoofing the likes of Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer hit theaters in 2000. Only one of them went on to spawn a franchise, for better or worse. (Have you seen Scary Movie 5? We rest our case.)
Chasing Liberty/First Daughter
In 2004, Mandy Moore and Katie Holmes both got to play the rebellious daughter of the President of the United States in romantic comedies.
Red Eye/Flightplan
Rachel McAdams and Jodie Foster each starred in their own 2005 thriller set on an airplane.
The Prestige/The Illusionist
Moviegoers were treated to not one, but two films about 19th century magicians in 2006.
Despicable Me/Megamind
Both 2010 animated films focused on a villain (who turned evil following a bad childhood) flirting with the good side as they help to stop an even worse villain.
No Strings Attached/Friends with Benefits
In 2011, romantic comedy fans were treated to not one, but two films about friends who gave casual sex a try, only to find feelings develop. Adding a meta layer to this one is the fact that one starred Ashton Kutcher and the other Mila Kunis, for whom life imitated art the following year.
Mirror Mirror/Snow White and the Huntsman
Released only two months apart, these 2012 films took on the classic Snow White story to varying degrees of success. The former, which featured Emily in Paris star Lily Collins as the heroine, was something of a flop. Meanwhile, the latter proved to be a hit—in spite of, or maybe because of, the drama in star Kristen Stewart's personal life involving director Rupert Sanders.
Olympus Has Fallen/White House Down
In 2013, terrorist attacks at the White House were the hot topic, with these two films tasking Gerard Butler and Channing Tatum with saving the day. Olympus performed well enough to garner two sequels, while White House Down, released three months later, was a bit of a bomb.
Hercules/The Legend of Hercules
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Kellan Lutz both got the opportunity to show off their pecs as the mythical Greek hero in 2014.
Spectre/Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation
The 2015 installments of these massive franchises saw their hero (played by Daniel Craig and Tom Cruise, respectively) chase down secret criminal organizations through Austria, Morocco and London while their intelligence agencies were shutting down. Originally planned for release one month after Spectre, Rogue Nation was bumped up five months by Paramount to avoid more direct competition between the two.