Universal Pictures/Logo Variations
Sean Beard, Jess Williams, Nicholas Aczel, Randomkid0627 and others
Captures by
Eric S., wolfie14, lukesams, logos2010, Logophile, Mr.Logo, TrickyMario7654, LogosForTheWin, Hb1290, filmbaza.net and logofreak98
Editions by
Michael Kenchington and Tjdrum2000
These are the logo variations used by Universal Pictures over the years.
Arabian Nights (1942):
- A logo similar to the 1st Universal Cartoons logo is shown, set against a blue starry night background with golden and white stars. The globe (which is two-dimensional) is red/brown and black, and the "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" text around the globe is pink. The entire variant is a still picture.
Canyon Passage (1946):
- A rare variation of the Universal logo is put upon a black/dark blue gradient background, with a gold globe and the words "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" around it.
The Birds (1963):
- The globe appears two-dimensional and static on a white background, with the words "UNIVERSAL PICTURES PRESENTS" (in blue) in a bold serif font.
- At the end of the film, the same globe is shown, but with "A UNIVERSAL RELEASE" inside a white rectangle.
Marnie (1964):
- Similar to The Birds variant, but the globe is drawn in a simpler style, with the oceans in red and the continents in white, and the black text "UNIVERSAL PRESENTS" in front of the globe. The logo is surrounded by a red/ivy border, which itself is surrounded by a black border.
Torn Curtain (1966):
- The logo from The Birds is superimposed over the closing scene, with the text "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" in a plain white sans serif font.
Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969):
- The widescreen logo appears bylineless.
Skullduggery (1970):
- The logo plays as normal, but the Van Allen belts are mirrored and the globe spins to the left instead of right. The globe fades to a spinning Franklin Globe, and the text fades away as the camera zooms closer to the globe before stopping at New Guinea, where the film is set.
Pufnstuf (1970):
- The 1963 logo makes a cameo appearance during the song "Living Island" and a verse about the world, briefly consisting of the image of the Earth and Van Allen radiation belts, but without the "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" text.
The Day of the Jackal (1973):
- The fullscreen logo appears bylineless.
The Sting (1973):
- The 1937 logo is used and is tinted in sepia.
The Hindenburg (1975):
- Again, the 1937 logo is used (albeit silent and in black and white), this time segueing into old newsreel footage.
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (1976):
- The 1937 logo is used before transitioning into a newsreel. The fanfare is extended for the logo and the title card of the newsreel.
The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977):
- A cheap version of the 1937 logo is shown. After the music finishes, the camera zooms out as the logo keeps spinning. A door opens in the distance, then Marty Feldman pops up from behind the logo and starts breaking off the letters before stopping the globe where Africa is. After some narration is heard, he crushes the globe and points down to Africa, segueing into the opening credits.
The Deer Hunter (1978):
- The logo is sepia-toned.
The Brink's Job (1978):
- Same as The Sting.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978):
- The 1927 logo is used, but with colorful fireworks.
The Nude Bomb (1980):
- The globe fades to a white circle on a green background, which transitions into the opening credits.
Smokey and the Bandit II (1980):
- An animated car chase is seen around the globe. The logo also shakes violently with the sound of a car crash and a car horn "laughing" in a Burt Reynolds fashion as it fades out.
Xanadu (1980):
- A recreation of the 1927 logo is used, with the globe on a zooming space background and the plane in yellow. As the opening credits roll, the globe remains on screen and a succession of increasingly modern flying machines (four-engine airliner, Concorde, flying saucer) emerge from behind the Earth. The music changes to different styles (respectively: 1920s jazz, 1940s swing, 1970s pop rock, and a Star Wars-esque fanfare) as the objects appear. Finally, a light zooms around the globe twice before zooming towards the camera to reveal the film's title card. The 1971 logo plays as normal after the film's end credits.
The Pursuit of D.B. Cooper (1981):
- The logo is zoomed out further than usual.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982):
- The logo plays in reverse.
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982):
- Exactly the same as The Sting and The Brink's Job. Plus, there is a new version of the 1937 fanfare, composed by James Horner.
D.C. Cab (1983):
- The logo fades into a picture of its starting point.
Jaws 3-D and Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn (both 1983):
- A variant of the 1971 logo specifically designed for 3D is used. The space background is still and both the globe and company name zoom in towards the screen. The "UNIVERSAL" text is in metallic gold and the Van Allen belts are missing. On the Blu-ray release of Jaws 3-D, the logo is off-center.
The Pirates of Penzance (1983):
- The 1927 logo is shown in widescreen with a sepia tone, although the clouds on the left and right sides of the screen seem to have been stitched with the clouds from the original fullscreen logo.
Psycho film series:
- Psycho II (1983): The logo appears in black and white.
- Psycho (1998 remake): The URL is in a different font and fades in early. This was seen only on the VHS release; on the theatrical print and other home video releases, this logo uses the early URL which fades in with the copyright info.
Cry Freedom (1987):
- After the logo finishes, it freezes and zooms out in a box.
The 'Burbs (1989):
- The logo has been reanimated in CGI (by Industrial Light & Magic), with the "UNIVERSAL" text and MCA byline in a different font. Then the text fades out, leaving only the globe, as the camera zooms into it before stopping at Mayfield Place, where the opening credits roll.
Problem Child (1990):
- The fullscreen DVD has the 75th Anniversary logo in open matte and has black bars on all four sides.
Mo' Better Blues (1990):
- The 75th Anniversary logo is shown, but with a voiceover by Flavor Flav of the rap group Public Enemy: "U-N-I-V-E-R-S-A-L, Universal, y'all been large for years! Yo, Spike! Start the movie, G!" He laughs and says, "Flavor Flav, you done it again."
Cry-Baby (1990):
- The 1927 logo is used, with a new biplane sound in stereo.
Cape Fear (1991):
- The logo animates as normal at first, but towards the end, it gains a blue tint and ripples as if underwater.
Jurassic Park franchise:
- Jurassic Park (1993): The logo starts in the middle, and rumbles three times after a heavy footstep sound is heard. Only seen on the behind-the-scenes featurette.
- Jurassic Park III (2001): The Universal and Amblin logos have a water ripple effect accompanied by the sound of a heavy footstep, referencing the first movie.
- Jurassic World (2015, Pinball FX series): The 1990 logo is used and tinted in the player's chosen color on the Pinball DMD.
- Jurassic World: Battle at Big Rock (2019 short) and Jurassic World: Dominion prologue (2021): The logo is a bit darker and the text and byline fade out. Also, the continents of North America and South America are replaced with a T-rex skeleton to match the series' logo.
- Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous (2020, TV series): The continents are replaced by Pangaea, and the logo animates at a much faster rate. The logo is bylineless and once it finishes its position, the "UNIVERSAL" text orbits to the left as the globe rotates to reveal more of the ocean, transitioning into the DreamWorks Animation Television variant in the same setting.
The Flintstones films:
- The Flintstones (1994): A variation of the 1990 logo is seen at the drive-in theater that the Flintstones go to in a live-action rendition of the original show's opening theme, about two minutes into the movie (no logo is seen at the start). The logo reads "UNIVERSHELL" and script is carved in bones, and the continents have been replaced by Pangaea. The music is an arrangement of the 1960 Universal Television theme, re-arranged by David Newman. On 35mm uncropped film scan prints, it's the same variant but in open matte.
- The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000): Similar to The Flintstones variant, albeit with the 1997 logo, accompanied by its respective fanfare. After it finishes, the URL, which is in a prehistoric font, fades away, and the "UNIVERSHELL" text spins around the other side of the globe as a spaceship flies into frame, segueing into the opening scene. The same variation is used on 35mm uncropped film scan prints, but is in open matte.
Street Fighter (1994, US):
- After the logo finishes animating, the "UNIVERSAL" text and MCA byline disappear, and the globe zooms out to form the film's logo as the opening credits play. (This variant was seen only on the US release; international prints use the Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International logo, which fades into the textless globe.)
The Paper (1994):
- The logo fades into a large antique clock situated above an open park in New York City.
Radioland Murders (1994):
- After the logo finishes animating, everything but the background disappears and the camera pans down to reveal a radio antenna.
Major Payne (1995):
- Instead of the usual fanfare, "Bad to the Bone" by George Thorogood and the Destroyers plays over the logo, accompanied by a "ding" sound effect when the registered trademark symbol appears.
Casper (1995):
- Once the logo finishes animating, the globe fades to the moon, and the text and byline fade away as the camera pans down into the opening scene. On 35mm uncropped film scan prints, the logo is in open matte.
Waterworld (1995):
- The logo is silent and animates slightly differently with a darker color scheme on the globe. Once the logo is complete, the text and byline fade out, and the camera slowly zooms into the globe as it slowly fills up with water.
The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space (1995):
- The 1963 logo is used. When it finishes animating, it fades to another space background where the opening credits play.
Twister film series:
- Twister (1996, international): As with the US/Philippines Warner Bros. variant, the Universal logo, in gray, emerges from a set of storm clouds.
- Twisters (2024, US/Canada): The logo plays as usual but gains a slight gray tint near the end. On the globe, storm clouds are seen covering a good portion of North America.
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (1996):
- At the beginning of This Island Earth, Mike and the bots riff the old Universal International logo.
BASEketball (1998):
- After the logo finishes animating, the text and the glow behind the globe disappear, leaving the globe and background intact. The film's opening credits then appear spinning around the globe. By the time the title appears, the globe fades to a baseball.
Mercury Rising (1998):
- The logo appears a little darker, and the copyright notice in the bottom right corner is removed.
Small Soldiers (1998):
- Same as Mercury Rising, but it is a little brighter.
Reach the Rock (1998):
- The 1990 logo is used, but with the 1997 fanfare.
Patch Adams (1998):
- The logo is zoomed out further, the URL is moved further away from the globe, and the copyright info fades in next to it afterwards. Widescreen DVDs have the URL and the copyright info fading in together and placed underneath the globe.
Life (1999):
- The logo is slightly off-center.
The Mummy franchise:
- The Mummy (1999): After the logo finishes, the "UNIVERSAL" text and URL disappear, and the globe fades into the sun. The URL is also set in the Macintosh "Chicago" typeface.
- The Mummy Returns (2001): After the logo finishes, the "UNIVERSAL" text and the URL disappear like in the first film, but this time the globe turns into a scorpion on top of a long stick. The URL is also in the same font as it was in the first film.
- The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008): After the logo finishes, the "UNIVERSAL" text and URL disappear just like the previous two films, but this time the shine from behind the globe disappears as well. The globe then spins around and zooms into China. On small widescreen prints, along with the film itself, the logo is in 16:9 open matte.
- The Mummy (2017): After the logo (with the Comcast byline in 3D) finishes, the screen zooms in to the left side of the earth and past the word "UNIVERSAL". The Earth is then completely black and surrounded by an eerie red glow, as the words "DARK UNIVERSE", in a spiky version of the Universal font, appear over the Earth in a similar manner to the normal Universal logo, only mirrored. The text shines, and after a few seconds, it cuts to black.
Dark Universe was Universal's attempt at making a cinematic universe based around their classic monsters, but it was scrapped after the critical and commercial failure of this movie, leaving this logo as a one-off variation.
Virus (1999):
- The logo is zoomed in.
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000):
- The globe freezes as it dissolves to a stylized fancy star above a cartoonish late-50s theater in Frostbite Falls, in which the movie's prologue starts. The camera pans down to the tree curtains as the opening titles takes place.
Erin Brockovich (2000):
- The URL is moved further away from the globe.
Gladiator (2000):
- The Universal and DreamWorks logos are both sepia-toned.
Josie and the Pussycats (2001, international):
- The globe morphs into a tongue-stud on a screaming girl's mouth. (This was only seen on international prints; on the US release, the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer logo morphs into the same girl.)
About a Boy (2002), Wimbledon and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (both 2004):
- The 1997 logo resembles the open matte variant. Only seen on small HD widescreen versions.
My Little Eye (2002):
- The logo has a computer screen effect.
Laurent Gerra à l'Olympia ("Laurent Gerra at Olympia", 2002, France):
- A plane passes by the logo.
Fast and Furious franchise:
- 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003): The logo turns into a silver vehicle rim; the URL is removed as well.
- Fast & Furious: Spy Racers (2019, TV series): The logo is metallic and on the grille of a car, which then flips to the DreamWorks Animation Television logo. Also, it's bylineless.
- Fast and Furious Crossroads (2020, video game): Same as The Fate of the Furious Super Bowl LI TV spot, only extended.
- F9 (2021): The 1990 logo is used, but it is cropped in 2.35:1 and uses the 1997 fanfare, setting up the opening flashback: a race that Dom's father participated in. The MCA byline is also replaced with the Comcast byline, and the registered trademark symbol is removed.
The Cat in the Hat (2003):
- As with the DreamWorks and Imagine Entertainment logos, the Universal logo is animated in the style of the original book, taking place on a teal background with no stars. The globe is red with the continents in white with black outline, the flash is white, and "UNIVERSAL" is in a white Suessian font along with the URL. The globe then morphs into the ball from the book as the text fades out. This was designed by Imaginary Forces.
- On international prints and TV broadcasts of the film (such as on BBC One), this is put after the DreamWorks logo.
Love Actually (2003):
- The logo's 2.35:1 scope aspect ratio is cropped to 16:9 widescreen. Only seen on small HD widescreen versions.
Peter Pan (2003):
- When the logo finishes, it freezes and fades to a nighttime sky. The fanfare is also replaced with wind chimes. On international prints, the whole logo is seen after the end credits and plays silently, while the Columbia Pictures logo plays at the beginning, with its fanfare also replaced by wind chimes.
Van Helsing (2004):
- The logo fades to black and white before the globe catches fire (along with the UNIVERSAL text) turning it into a flame from a torch being carried by a man. Also, the URL is removed.
Van Helsing: The London Assignment (2004):
- The 1927 logo appears static, with the biplane absent and clouds passing by. It then fades to the moon to start the movie. This appears after the movie's title, while the 1997 logo is shown at the beginning before the opening titles.
Balto III: Wings of Change (2004):
- After the 1997 logo, a sped-up version of the 1927 logo is seen as the opening song plays over it.
Shaun of the Dead (2004):
- According to its DVD trivia track, an early version of the film scored the Universal logo with sound effects from the fruit machine game Ed plays in the pub.
Friday Night Lights (2004) and Cinderella Man (2005):
- The logo has a golden tint.
Land of the Dead (2005):
- The 1927 logo is used, but the airplane has a different sound, and the background has different clouds that turn dark and stormy.
Serenity (2005):
- In the logo's last few seconds, the globe spins slightly faster before stopping completely as the rest of the logo animates normally. The shine from behind the globe fades away right after, followed by the URL. The globe turns into a more realistic version of the Earth as the camera zooms past the "UNIVERSAL" text, transitioning into the opening titles.
- One video has the same variant but the shine doesn't fade out until the globe starts to turn realistic.
Doom (2005):
- The globe is replaced with the planet Mars. After the logo finishes, the "UNIVERSAL" text and the URL fade away as the camera zooms into the Olduvai Research Station. Also, the logo doesn't appear until 30 seconds into the movie.
Munich (2005):
- The logo appears darker than usual with no byline.
Michaël Youn: Pluskapoil (2005):
- The "UNIVERSAL" text turns into the titular character's name, and the globe turns into a 1960s toy globe. Also, the light behind the globe becomes red.
Curious George (2006) and The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie (2008):
- The logo appears brighter than usual. On the former, the opening theme plays over it.
Miami Vice (2006):
- The logo is tinted in royal blue.
Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait (2006):
- The logo is recorded from a VHS and is on a TV screen. Also, the URL is removed.
The Land Before Time franchise:
- The Land Before Time XII: The Great Day of the Flyers (2006, DTV): Shortly after the logo (which also has the shadow and the URL both removed) is completed, the globe eventually stops rotating before the text spins around the other side of it. Then the continents of Earth slowly move to reform Pangaea as the camera zooms towards it, before fading the opening scene.
- The Land Before Time XIII: The Wisdom of Friends (2007, DTV): The 1999 version of the 1997 logo is used.
- The Land Before Time: Journey of the Brave (2016, DTV): The music from the 1997 logo is heard. Shortly after the byline fades in, the text fades out, the Earth's continents merge together into a landscape, the glow lights up slightly brighter, the light's color changes to light purple, and more stars in the background fade in. The camera zooms to the top of the globe as the light disappears, the glow slightly reduces, and the opening credits appear as the camera zooms through the clouds to the Great Valley.
The Holiday (2006, International):
- The logo is shortened and cut to its last few seconds.
The Kingdom (2007):
- As the normal logo plays, its color becomes desaturated to almost sepia before fading to white to proceed into the Relativity Media logo, which has a similar variation.
Dead Silence (2007):
- The 1927 logo is used with the same clouds as the Land of the Dead variant. It is also in a purple tint and scratched out.
Death Race remake film series:
- Death Race (2008): The logo animates in reverse, slowly changing from color to black and white, with car engine sound effects heard over the logo. By the time it reaches the beginning, it fades to a piston inside a car, segueing into the film's opening sequence.
- Death Race 2 (2010): The logo animates in reverse, but retains it normal colors. Towards the end (or beginning), the globe catches fire and the whole logo gets crushed by rocks, segueing into the movie.
Changeling (2008):
- The 1937 logo is used.
Leatherheads (2008):
- Same as Changeling, except it is tinted gold.
Role Models (2008):
- The logo appears somewhat darker than usual.
Beethoven film series:
- Beethoven's Big Break (2008): A dog barks to the last two notes of the theme.
- Beethoven's Christmas Adventure (2011): The text and byline fade out as the globe turns into a red decorative ball.
Couples Retreat (2009):
- The logo animates as normal, but gradually goes from color to black & white. Also, the URL is removed.
Public Enemies (2009):
- The contrast is slightly darker. Also, the URL is removed.
Brüno (2009):
- The logo animates as normal, but an umlaut appears above the "U" in "UNIVERSAL" to form the Latin letter "Ü" towards the end.
Battlestar Galactica: The Plan (2009):
- The logo animates differently, with the globe replaced by a blue planet named Caprica; also, the URL is slightly bigger. After it finishes, the camera zooms past the logo to transition into the opening scene.
Land of the Lost (2009):
- The 1963 "A UNIVERSAL PICTURE" logo is used (albeit more saturated than usual), and fades to the second half of the Relativity Media logo.
Drag Me to Hell, Inglourious Basterds (both 2009), Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), Knock at the Cabin, The Holdovers and Eileen (all 2023):
- Similar to Land of the Lost, but it doesn't fade to the Relativity Media logo.
On Ouija: Origin of Evil, Knock at the Cabin, digital prints of The Holdovers, and British prints of Eileen, the Comcast byline fades in at the bottom in the Futura typeface. On Ouija: Origin of Evil, the logo is even brighter than usual. This variant was done by Filmograph.
Wanted: Weapons of Fate (2009, video game):
- The view comes through the room where the main protagonist smacks an enemy with his computer keyboard, then a string of flying keyboard keys fly and stop over the slowly rotating globus, showing "UNIVERSAL" on the backs of the keys.
Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! (2009, DTV) and The Invention of Lying (2009, international):
- The 1999 version of the 1997 logo is used.
The Fourth Kind (2009) and Green Zone (2010):
- The logo appears a bit darker than usual, and the URL is missing.
Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball (2010):
- The 1927 logo is used.
The Wolfman (2010):
- Theatrical Version:
The logo is gray and the text is also glowing.
- Director's Cut:
The 1937 logo is used, but this time, the logo has been remade and is now in color: the globe is pale golden brown, the text is silver and the background is dark turquoise. Also, the outlines of the continents are added in, an element that was not in the original logo.
Repo Men (2010):
- TV static appears over the logo in its very last seconds.
Despicable Me franchise:
- Despicable Me (2010): In the film's Blu-Ray's Gru-Control special feature, it starts as Gru starts the movie by turning on the TV. The minions cheer as the film starts. Then Vector changes the channel to the Vector Channel. Gru changes the channel back to the logo, to which the minions cheer again. Vector changes it to his documentary, but Gru changes the channel back to the Illumination Entertainment logo.
- Minion Rush (2013-present): When your Minion goes through the movie theater (the Paradise Theatre from Despicable Me 2) in the location The Mall (itself based on the Paradise Mall from said movie), a still of the 2012 logo (with the Comcast byline; when you start the game up, the still logo is bylineless) is seen on the screen.
- Minions (2015): A 5-minion chorus (all voiced by Pierre Coffin) sings the fanfare, backed with the normal version, with one of the minions holding onto the last note all the way into the Illumination Entertainment logo.
- This was also the first track of the film's soundtrack as "Universal Fanfare". According to the soundtrack, Jerry Goldsmith (the original composer of the fanfare) was credited. On some prints, the logo is brighter, which makes it almost the same as Trash, except it uses the normal logo.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010):
- The logo is done in a retro video game style and the music is an 8-bit version of the theme, composed by Nigel Godrich. It's also the first track of the film's score soundtrack as "Universal Theme". According to the soundtrack, Jerry Goldsmith (the original composer of the fanfare) was credited, while both versions were mentioned in the digital release's trivia subtitle track. Also, the NBCUniversal byline is removed. However, according to the storyboard, it was supposed to be 16-bit with a bass rumble, a guitar squall and drums, drumming over the logo.
- The logo's regular music was also used when Lucas Lee (played by Chris Evans) comes out of his green room for the shooting of his film, in which the hits and the last note are synced to his actions, such as cracking his neck, using his skateboard and landing on his feet at the scene.
Catfish (2010):
- The logo is depicted as a Google Earth globe running on a Mac OS X. We first zoom out from Universal Studios Hollywood in San Fernando, California on the globe. A cursor then moves to the globe and drags it along, where upon it continues spinning, "UNIVERSAL", in the same UI font used in Mac OS X, fades in on the right side of the screen, moving into place, and an excerpt of the usual fanfare, composed by Jerry Goldsmith, begins playing. Also, the byline is absent. Once the text moves into place, the logo is minimized abruptly, like how a window is minimized in a Mac OS X, stopping the music in the process.
Skyline (2010):
- Exactly the same as Curious George and The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie, but with the NBC Universal byline. Also, the logo is cropped to 2.35:1.
Hop (2011) and Phil's Dance Party (2012, short):
- The globe is shaped like an egg. On the latter, the 2012 fanfare is used.
The Little Engine That Could (2011):
- The 1990 logo is used without the MCA byline, and the little train engine appears pulling "UNIVERSAL" across the Earth. After the engine moves the text into its usual place, it detaches from the "U", then it stands near it and makes a whistle.
The Thing (2011):
- The 1990 logo is used again, but is bylineless.
The Scorpion King franchise:
- The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption (2012): The logo is tinted in mustard yellow at first, but then returns to its normal colors, albeit desaturated. After it's complete, the continents on the globe begin shining as the logo changes to the sun, similar to The Mummy (1999) variant.
- The Scorpion King: Book of Souls (2018): The logo has a dark mustard tint to it, similar to that of the third movie's variant.
Pitch Perfect (2012), Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) and Pitch Perfect 3 (2017):
- The theme is sung in acapella by the film's cast. After the logo (except for Pitch Perfect 3) it cuts to the cast members singing the theme into the opening scene. The first film used the 100th Anniversary logo while Pitch Perfect 2 and 3 used the normal logo. The Pitch Perfect 2 and Pitch Perfect 3 versions are on their respective films' soundtracks as "Universal Fanfare". The Pitch Perfect 2 version is performed by Elizabeth Banks and John Michael Higgins and the Pitch Perfect 3 version is performed by the Barden Bellas. According to the soundtrack for all three films, Jerry Goldsmith (the original composer of the fanfare) was credited.
Ted (2012) and Ted 2 (2015):
- When the logo is complete, the byline disappears and the camera zooms into Boston on the globe. The second film uses the standard logo doing the same thing. Like the normal logos, these were animated by Wētā FX.
- TruTV airings of the first film use a weird variant of the standard version, where it plays as normal until the byline is about to fade in and it slows down suddenly. After that, it starts zooming and tilting on the text to the point it engulfs the screen and after a moment it then crossfades to the custom variant on due to poor plastering.
Werewolf: The Beast Among Us (2012, DTV):
- Similar to the Casper variant, but with the 2012 logo instead.
The Man with the Iron Fists (2012):
- When the logo is complete, it's accompanied by a ripple effect with smoke and hot coals coming from the bottom.
Oblivion (2013):
- The logo animates as usual, but it is darker and the "UNIVERSAL" text looks old and rusted. The Earth has been decimated to the point that the continents don't glow anymore and the Tet, a space station that is critical to the film's plot, floats above it.
47 Ronin (2013):
- The logo plays as usual with a slight grey tint. When the logo is complete, the text fades out, leaving the globe and the background intact. Then the opening titles play as the camera zooms in to Japan on the globe.
Dead in Tombstone (2013, DTV):
- After the logo is done, it fades onto on a golden piece of paper, in which gunshots are fired through. The screen then zooms through one of them as the film starts.
Unfriended (2014):
- The logo plays as usual, but it flickers and becomes datamoshed like a video chat service with bad internet connection; the music also becomes distorted.
Mrs. Brown's Boys D'Movie (2014, United Kingdom):
- The fanfare is NTSC-toned in PAL speed on PAL prints and low-toned in NTSC speed on NTSC prints, and the logo is also brighter than usual. Once the logo finishes, it transitions to the BBC Films logo (which moves from the top right to its usual position at the end of the Universal logo) as that logo's music plays.
Trash (2014):
- The logo plays as usual, but near the end some continents begin to light up on Brazil (referencing the film's location).
Dukhless 2 (2015, Russia):
- The logo is tinted in royal blue; it also fades in once the text appears and fades out when the Comcast byline fades in.
Crimson Peak (2015):
- Both the Universal and Legendary Pictures logos are tinted in red.
Krampus (2015): The logo is tinted in turquoise, and the text is covered in snow and ice. A snowstorm then appears, transitioning into the Legendary Entertainment logo. This was done by Filmograph.
By the Sea (2015): The 1963 logo is used.
The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016):
- The logo starts as usual. But as the cities light up, a gold texture starts forming from various areas on the globe, eventually making the Earth golden with continents intact. The sun behind it becomes a golden spark. The byline then fades out, while the spark continues to move as it dims out and "UNIVERSAL" rotates out as the golden globe becomes the Magic Mirror. The background slowly fades into the opening scene.
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016):
- The logo's music cuts out halfway through, and a vaguely EDM-sounding remix takes its place.
The Great Wall (2016): The logo is sped up; once it finishes, the globe darkens, then fades into the region of China, revealing the Legendary Pictures logo, which zooms and turns clockwise as the camera zooms into China, going all the way to a section of the Great Wall and through a crack in the section.
Fifty Shades Darker (2017):
- The light in the logo brightens to start the movie.
American Made (2017):
- The 2012 logo starts as usual. When the sun moves out, the music slows down, then a record scratch, which switches to "A Fifth of Beethoven" by Walter Murphy. When it occurs, the logo flickers to the scope version of the 1963-90 Universal logo in open-matte with the Comcast byline in the same style as MCA's. After it forms, the logo gains a VCR restoration effect and flickers into the 1980's footage to proceed into the Cross Creek Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Hercules Film Fund logos with the same variation. The closing version has the standard 2012 logo playing without music. The TV airings have the credits music playing over.
Happy Death Day films:
- Happy Death Day (2017): The logo starts as usual, but due to the film's time loop element it glows and disappears in a flash. The same thing occurs when the first few seconds play again. Then, it animates as usual.
- Happy Death Day 2U (2019): The logo starts off normally, but then flashes and splits into two boxes and then three, each showing the logo in the same aspect ratio, as it moves to the center in each box. The logo flashes back to normal before the Comcast byline fades in.
Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018):
- The logo animates as usual, but has a hologram effect, except for the Comcast byline, which appears in blue and fades in late. Also, the typeface looks different.
The House with a Clock in its Walls (2018):
- The matted version of the 1963 "A Universal Picture" logo is used (albeit cropped to fit the film's aspect ratio), with the Comcast byline below "P I C T U R E", complete with the reversing effect from the E.T. variant. The byline fades out as the text starts to draw forward to us. It fades to the Amblin Entertainment logo. On Netflix and some international prints of the film, this variant is replaced with the 2015 Entertainment One logo.
Mortal Engines (2018):
- The logo starts off normally, but light purple explosions begin to appear on the continents, dimming many of the lights after they come on. At the end, the text has been left with a similar appearance to that of the Oblivion variant, and the lights on the globe disappear, with several lava rivers taking their place. Also, the film's opening dialogue begins before the Comcast byline fades in.
Yesterday (2019):
- A concept logo was planned that would have the Universal theme music in a Beatles-style pop version. It was never used.
1917 (2019):
- The logo is tinted in blue and cut to the last few seconds, along with the DreamWorks, Reliance Entertainment and New Republic Pictures logos. At the end of the movie, the logo is still and tinted in blue.
Apollo 11 (2019):
- Same as American Made, but with brighter colors.
The Turning (2020):
- The logo animates at a faster rate than usual.
Freaky (2020):
- The logo has a red hue.
Bobbleheads: The Movie (2020, DTV):
- The logo is darker than usual and is silent. Crave's prints have this variant with the fanfare.
Candyman (2021):
- The logo is flipped horizontally, as if in a mirror, along with the MGM, BRON and Monkeypaw Productions logos, in reference to the plot element of saying of Candyman's name into a mirror five times.
No Time to Die (2021, international):
- The logo is shortened, the globe is in gray on a black background and the Comcast byline fades in early near the end of the animation. Shortly after, the globe fades into a white circle as the byline and text fade out, and segueing into the James Bond gunbarrel sequence via the circle moving to the left. The U.S. release of the film only has the MGM logo.
Licorice Pizza (2021, international):
- The logo is shortened and silent.
Marry Me (2022):
- The logo is accompanied by wedding music.
Ambulance (2022):
- The 2021 print logo (without the Comcast byline) is in white and 3D, and appears from blue and red ambulance lights. It is followed by the Endeavor Content and New Republic Pictures logos in the same fashion. After that, the standard logo plays normally, albeit with the opening theme over it.
The Northman (2022) and Deadline Day: Football's Transfer Window (2023, United Kingdom):
- The 2012 print logo appears in white on a black background.
The Munsters (2022):
- The 1927 logo is used, with the edges of a filmstrip on either sides of the screen. The sound of a film projector is also heard alongside the sound of the biplane.
Tár (2022):
- Almost the same as the variant used in Ouija: Origin of Evil, but the Comcast byline is in its modern font. Then the Van Allen belts and continents fade out, followed by the rest of the logo, which entirely fades into the Focus Features logo. This logo only appears on home media prints, and isn't seen on theatrical prints.
The Fabelmans (2022):
- The logo is faster than usual, while the theme plays normally. Near the end, just as the Comcast byline fades in, the Amblin logo appears over the Universal logo (which freezes) before fading into its own background.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Migration (both 2023), and Argylle (2024):
- The logo is shortened to when the text is seen. It also cuts in instead of fading in for the former two titles, like the normal logo.
- On The Super Mario Bros. Movie, an abridged version of the 2012 fanfare is used.
- On Migration, the fanfare is played by the Minions on a slightly off-key kazoo with a ukulele, which also continues over to the Illumination logo. Here, the long version of the fanfare, based on the 1997 version, is used, in which the first two notes of the ten-note score of the first half are skipped, with ukulele strumming on the last half and two test notes on the kazoo being played before the logo appears.
- On Argylle, the logo gradually fades in. It is also silent.
Five Nights at Freddy's (2023):
- The logo glitches throughout.
Genie (2023):
- The logo plays normally until snowflakes fall around it.
Monkey Man (2024):
- The first few seconds of the logo are cut out.
Mighty Monsterwheelies (2024, TV series):
- The 1997 print logo is used, which then zap into the DreamWorks Animation Television logo.
Piece by Piece (2024, international)
- The logo is recreated in the style of LEGO. The Comcast byline slides up from the bottom instead of fading in.