Easy Rider: A Motorcycle Anthem of Rebellion That Changed Cinema Forever

Easy Rider was released to incredible fanfare in 1969. The movie made its director, Dennis Hopper, instantly famous, upended the trends of Hollywood, and altered the way studios conducted business—for a while anyway.

Easy Rider was a low-budget film that broke from convention, confusing movie executives with its mostly ad-libbed dialogue and somewhat unstructured story about two philosophical guys embarking on a road trip, riding choppers and smoking weed. Dennis Hopper explained, “It was the first time people on-screen were smoking grass without going out and committing some horrible atrocity.” 

The movie steamrolled into theaters, appealing to an untapped youth market uninterested in Mary Poppins or The Sound of Music. It became a celluloid battle cry for an entire generation ardently seeking change during a tumultuous time. 

For those too young to have been there, Easy Rider may seem trite, even silly today—especially with Dennis Hopper’s character, Billy, uttering the exclamation, “man,” 96 times. 

To appreciate the movie’s success, you need to understand the environment of upheaval Easy Rider was released in.