Three movies from Alfred Hitchcock – all of which are classics in their own right – share a surprising connection that binds them all together. During the 1950s, the critically acclaimed and celebrated filmmaker helmed a handful of now-legendary films, including To Catch a Thief, Rear Window, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Vertigo, and North by Northwest. Three of these all star James Stewart, who had worked with Hitchcock in the prior decade via the 1948 thriller, Rope.

For both of them, James Stewart and Alfred Hitchcock’s three collaborations in the 1950s amounted to some of their best works. Six years after working together on Rope, the two teamed up again for Rear Window, with Grace Kelly as the female lead. In 1956, Stewart replaced Leslie Banks in Hitchcock’s remake of his 1936 mystery classic, The Man Who Knew Too Much. The fourth and final film to feature Hitchcock as the director and Stewart as the star was Vertigo, which hit theaters in 1958. Interestingly, the decision to include Stewart in all three of these films in particular served a special purpose.

Alfred Hitchcock Designed Vertigo, Rear Window, And The Man Who Knew Too Much To Be A Trilogy

The Last 3 Of Alfred Hitchcock’s 4 James Stewart Movies Form A Trilogy

In the 1950s, Alfred Hitchcock decided that he wanted three of his movies to complete a “trilogy.” Rear Window was part 1, The Man Who Knew Too Much was part 2, and Vertigo was part 3. Of course, all followed separate stories and different casts of characters, but Hitchcock’s idea wasn’t for them to share a single narrative. Rather, he wanted them to be linked thematically. According to Jimmy Stewart: A Biography by Marc Eliot, Hitchcock’s aim was to look at three subsequent life chapters: romance, marriage, and loss.

Each film was to be devoted to one of the three themes and go through them in order, with part 1 covering two people being in love, part 2 diving into the struggles that come with marriage, and part 3 exploring the emotional trauma that comes with the loss of that love.

Another way that Hitchcock sought to ensure that the three movies in his trilogy were interconnected was for them to have one constant, which was James Stewart playing the main protagonist. As for the female characters meant to build the stories of romance, marriage, and loss with Stewart’s heroes, Hitchcock decided to rotate them out. One of Alfred Hitchcock’s most frequent collaborators, Grace Kelly played the female lead in Rear Window, with The Man Who Knew Too Much moving on to Doris Day, and Vertigo memorably pairing him with Kim Novak.

Alfred Hitchcock & James Stewart’s 3 1950s Movies Being A Trilogy Makes Perfect Sense

The Central Theme Of Each Movie Fits Alfred Hitchcock’s Trilogy Plan

Knowing the backstory behind the joint plans for Rear Window, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Vertigo, it’s not difficult to see how they fit together as a trilogy, even if they don’t share much in common narratively speaking. While the specific challenges Stewart’s characters have to overcome vary from film to film, the internal struggle he deals with matches up with perfectly with each of the three themes, which represent stages in a romantic relationship.

In Rear Window, Stewart’s Jeffries is in love with Lisa, but is hesitant to commit to their relationship due to his concerns about the life he’d be dragging her into as the wife of a military pH๏τojournalist. The Man Who Knew Too Much jumps to the next stage, with Stewart’s character being someone already married for quite some time, and with the strength of their relationship now being tested by the kidnapping of their child.

The final installment in Alfred Hitchcock’s trilogy, deals with the pain that comes with one of two romantic partners’ inevitable death. Much of the film revolves around the “vertigo” Stewart’s Scottie has developed after witnessing his wife’s tragic demise. Put together, the Alfred Hitchcock movies make for an epic, three-part emotional journey.