There’s arguably nothing more enjoyable than a good movie for some people – especially if it has a magnetic plot, great acting, on-point pacing, and good world-building. More often than not, viewers can tell that a lot of work has gone into making the final version that hits the big screen, and sometimes it can take longer for a movie to get to that point.
Whether it’s because of production issues that sidelined the project or because of an intense labor of love that took time to single-handedly create, these films took over a decade to complete. While in most cases that much time spent on a film can lead to a masterpiece, in some cases it feels like wasted time. Below, we compiled a list of movies that took longer than a decade to complete.
Updated on August 15th, 2023 bySoniya Hinduja:This article has been updated with additional content to keep the discussion fresh and relevant with even more information and new entries.
20The Thief and the Cobbler (1993)
Production span: 29 years
A genuine odyssey,The Thief and the Cobbleris an astonishing film not in the sense that it has a unique storyline but because of the fact that it took decades to complete and was still released in an unfinished state. The animated epic began in 1964 with grand dreams of outshining even Disney. Initially written and directed by Richard Williams, the movie followed a princess and a shoemaker who go on an adventure and swear to protect Baghdad.
However, the kind of ambition Richard had required time and talent. Without any reliable source to fund the work, the film suffered from repeated delays. During this time, Richard poured his heart and soul into crafting grand visuals and complex characters. In 1989, Warner Bros. took over the project, but their lack of faith in both artist and art led to a lot of editing before release. Two years later, in 1993, his renamedArabian Nightsaw a second release after being backed by Disney.
19Kill It and Leave This Town (2020)
Production span: 14 years
Mariusz Wilczyński was driven by loss and emotion when he began working onKill It and Leave This Town, and he had only one setting in mind: his hometown of Łódź, Poland. After his family died, the filmmaker wanted to bid them farewell in the only way he knew and started creating the masterpiece from scratch. The movie was initially supposed to be a short film, but Wilczyński ultimately turned it into his feature debut.
The story follows Wilczyński and his idea of living in a safe haven – a land of memories – where he can stay as long as he wants and preserve the essence and soul of everyone that is dear to him. After fourteen years of animation, his persistence paid off. Wilczyński directed scene-by-scene, camera in hand, polishing every nook and crevice of his super-sensitive coming-of-age tale. When it was finally released in 2020, the audience could notice thedirector’s refined vision and well-tested magicof the script.
18Mughal-e-Azam (1960)
In lavish 1960s Bollywood, when the national disputes had finally settled down and the country was learning to get back on its own two feet, producer and director K. Asif dreamed the impossible – to bring the 16th century Mughal majesty blazingly to life. The iconic story of two star-crossed lovers separated by their superiors and fatestill burns red in Bollywood history. The movie centered around Emperor Akbar’s son, Prince Salim, the rightful heir who grew up spoiled and unreliable.
After serving in the war, Salim returns as a new man and soon falls in love with a court dancer named Anarkali. When the Emperor learns of their relationship, there is a war that results in Anarkali being entombed alive. Asif’s story took over a decade to finish. The production began in 1946, but throughout the fourteen years, he shuttled between studios and switched actors. At one point, during the Partition of India, the project was even shut down. All the patience paid off in 1960, whenMughal-e-Azamwas released on India’s Independence Day and graciously became an epic.
17Twenty Years Later (1984)
Production span: 20 years
Highly regarded on its home ground but a lesser-known film in the international markets,Twenty Years Later(ironic choice of title) is considered to beone of the greatest projects that Brazil has delivered. Filming began in the ’60s when director Eduardo Coutinho envisioned an incredible story of revolution and friendship. Even though he didn’t intend for it to unfold over two decades, there is no denying the fact that the time period had a huge hand in making the movie a cult classic.
It follows João Pedro Teixeira, a peasant leader who is desperately searching for his family on Brazilian lands. Unflinching revolts against the officials resulted in his assassination in 1964. Because the movie takes up an important subject, its production was shut down when the Brazilian Military Dictatorship sent a few members of the crew to prison and even banned their equipment. However, Coutinho was undeterred and he returned with a formatted script, added a few more scenes, and delivered an end result that was phenomenal.
16The Other Side of the Wind (2018)
Production span: 46 years
A satirical drama film from the great mind of Orson Welles,The Other Side of the Windtook its first breath in 1970, with the principal photography itself lasting six years. Welles tries to mock a movie being made and the essays on masculinity it contained through a project that was supposed to be his comeback after spending years in exile in Europe. Up until the 1980s, the production went on and off, with certain disputes over final cuts rights hindering the pace.
Besides, at the time, Welles was already involved in legal and political matters. It didn’t help that the movie was facing a shortage of finances either. After Welles passed away in 1985, several attempts were made at completing his dear film. But it wasn’t until 2014 when Royal Road assumed guardianship andfinally put his vision to the screenby releasing it in 2018. It is true that legends often leave behind wonders for a future generation, and the film was particularly praised for its story.
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155-25-77 (2022)
Production span: 18 years
A coming-of-age movie, directed by Patrick Read Johnson,5-25-77follows the story of Pat, a teenage wannabe-movie director in Illinois, and his excitement for the premiere ofStar Warson June 01, 2025 (hence the title). Pat can’t finish any of his films (ironically, in an autobiographical way), much to his best friend’s frustration, but throughout the movie really comes into his own as both a high schooler and a film director.
The project was funded in 2001, and filming started in 2004. It took two years to film the entire movie, with subsequent versions of the film screened over the years. In 2015-2021, additional shots and special effects were filmed and added in, making the film’s production span a total of 18 years. It was finally released in 2022.
14A Tree of Palme (2002)
Production span: 10 ½ years
A Japanese anime film,A Tree of Palmefollows a small puppet, Palme, whose creator asks it to watch over his sick wife, Xian. After she dies, Palme receives a visit from a mysterious woman who asks him to deliver something special to a far-off place, Tama.
Palme is then off on a journey leading to the discovery of his own emotions, and what it means to be human. In a way, the movie does draw parallels withThe Adventures of Pinocchio. The film took seven years to plan out and was produced over three years and a half.
13Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Production span: 13 years
After the massive success of the originalAvatar,director James Cameronannounced in 2010 that the writing for a sequel would begin.Avatar: The Way of Waterpicks up 16 years after the Na’vi repelled the RDA invasion of Pandora. The main character from the first movie, Jake Sully, is now chief of the Omatikaya clan and is raising a family with Neytiri. But the RDA returns to colonize Pandora, this time with Recombinants – Na’vi avatars, implanted with the deceased memories of human soldiers.
Writing and visual effects prep work began on the movie in 2010, with filming in 2017-2020. Filming was affected and delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, so by the time it finally hit the big screens in December 2022, it had been nearly 13 years in the making. Ironically,Avatar 3was also announced in 2010, with the prep work and visual effects similarly taking place in the following seven years. Post-production began in 2020 and is expected to be completed in 2024, making for a 14-year-long production span.
12Blood Tea and Red String (2006)
Astop-motion-animated filmby director Christiane Cegavske,Blood Tea and Red Stringfocuses on the struggle between the aristocratic White Mice and the rustic Creatures Who Dwell Under the Oak. With parallels to the Pygmalion and Galatea sculptor-whose-creation-comes-to-life myth, the Mice commission the Oak Dwellers to create a beautiful doll.
However, they fall in love and he refuses to give her up to the Mice, therein resulting in a struggle between the two factions. Production took 13 years, as the movie was filmed in various places on the West Coast and in two studios.
11Boyhood (2014)
Production span: 12 years
Boyhoodis an epic coming-of-age drama film about growing up, starring Patricia Arquette, Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater, and Ethan Hawke. It follows the childhood and adolescence of Mason (Coltrane) from six to eighteen, as he grows up with his divorced parents (Arquette and Hawke).
Perhaps the one case where the long production schedule was intentional! The producer wanted to show the natural aging of the actors over 12 years, so filming took place once or twice a year – for three to four days – starting in summer 2002 and ending in October 2013.
