Notable Movies by Ron Howard, 7-10

With one exception, Ron Howard's movies of the late '90s continued to rake in big numbers at the box office.

7. Apollo 13 (1995)

Not much attention was paid to the many moon missions in the years following the first lunar landing -- until something went wrong. Apollo 13 is based on the true story of NASA astronauts Lovell, Haise, and Swigert, who encountered massive technical difficulty when returning to Earth. The phrase "Houston, we have a problem" originated on this mission and is delivered by Tom Hanks's Lovell in this edge-of-your-seat movie. The rest of the cast includes Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris, and Kathleen Quinlan. Apollo 13 was a summer blockbuster, raking in more than $175 million at the box office and scoring two Oscars.

8. Ransom (1996)

Mel Gibson stars in this modern remake of a 1956 film of the same name. Gibson plays Tom Mullen, the wealthy father of a recently kidnapped boy. When the FBI's plan goes awry, Mullen takes matters into his own hands by going on national television to offer a deal to anyone who can bring his son safely home. It's a risky proposal and the film takes audiences through a multitude of twists and turns before the resolution. Ransom wasn't an Oscar contender, but it pleased audiences nonetheless, drawing in almost $140 million.

9. EdTV (1999)

In the early days of reality TV, even Ron Howard jumped on the bandwagon. EdTV is the story of television producer Cynthia (played by Ellen DeGeneres), who believes that the way to save her station's ratings is to broadcast a person's life, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Matthew McConaughey plays the feckless Ed Pekurny, whose life starts out fairly normal but doesn't stay that way for long. It's a mix of love story, morality play, and social commentary, but it didn't make a huge impression at the box office.

10. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, wrote the children's book How the Grinch Stole Christmas in 1957. After countless attempts to create a live-action film version were denied by Geisel, Howard won the chance to direct an adaptation of this silly but charming story of redemption and the magic of Christmas. Jim Carrey plays the Grinch, a large, green monster who steals the presents of the defenseless Whos of Whoville. Carrey's makeup and costume were notoriously awful, requiring three hours in the makeup chair each day. But it paid off for the makeup artists--they won an Oscar for their efforts and the costume department was also nominated for their work. The movie did fairly well at the box office, grossing $260 million, but critics didn't find much to like -- it's tough to improve on Seuss, even if your name is Ron Howard.

In the final three, Ron Howard gets a big nod and tries a controversial novel adaption.