Top 10 Recent Movies That Brutally Bombed

As a franchise, “Spider-Man” has usually done well at the box office, with the live-action and animated versions netting hundreds of millions. “Madame Web,” unfortunately, didn’t see the same success. Based on the origin story of supporting character Cassandra Webb, it was the studio’s attempt at expanding the universe. Leading up to its wide theatrical release, a wave of negative reviews from critics rippled throughout the fanbase. As a result, countless pre-ordered tickets were cancelled before it even premiered. It opened to disappointing numbers, and things didn’t get better from there. When all was said and done, it just barely recouped its budget. It didn’t even crack $50 million in the U.S. — making it a flop in every sense of the word.

Some movies seem to have all the odds stacked against them. Between the COVID-19 pandemic, a lack of advertising, and backlash to inclusive characters, “Strange World” never had a fighting chance. Centered around a family of explorers tasked with saving their society’s energy source, the film was initially thought to do well, with many predictions quoting a minimum of $30 million for its opening weekend. It missed that mark, not even making half of its projected amount. The numbers didn’t get much better from there, leading to the studio losing nearly $200 million. It performed better on Disney+, although streaming might’ve been partly why families didn’t see the film in theaters.

With the original stage show making billions during its tenure, you’d think that the film adaptation would do similarly well. That wasn’t the case at all for “Cats.” Though the cast was stacked with popular musicians and actors, it wasn’t enough to distract from the underwhelming visuals and music seen in the trailers. The final result wasn’t much better, with audience numbers dropping significantly each weekend after its premiere. The lackluster product combined with a gargantuan competitor releasing at the same time ultimately sealed its fate. When the smoke cleared, “Cats” was a bona fide bomb, falling short of recouping its budget by almost $20 million. The net loss was even more shocking, making it one of the worst performing movies of 2019.

The first film in this ill-fated series managed to defy all expectations and become one of the highest-grossing releases of 2019. The sequel did the same, but in the opposite direction. Despite casting Lady Gaga and having an established fan base, “Joker: Folie à Deux” was a financial disaster. Originally predicted to easily clear the hundred-million mark in its first weekend, that estimation dropped by a significant amount each passing week. Eventually, it was revealed that it hadn’t even cleared $40 million, a fraction of what was once projected. To break even, it was supposed to earn at least $375 million, missing that mark significantly. It was a shocking fall from grace, continuing a downward trend for DC.

For some films, the writing is on the wall when it comes to their financial success. With all the controversy surrounding Ezra Miller and their criminal antics in the year leading up to the release of “The Flash,” it seemed clear to many that the repercussions would show in the box office results. Just grossing under $110 million in the United States and Canada, it was clear that the projections would be even worse than people had originally thought. Warner Bros. was predicted to have lost a staggering $200 million when all was said and done, with the only saving grace being its release in IMAX theaters. Even with that slight padding, it still had the third-highest sophomore drop in the genre’s history.

You’d think a film adaptation of a beloved video game series would be a box office cheat code. Yet, “Borderlands” barely made back a quarter of its overall budget. Critics and fans alike were disappointed with the lackluster interpretation of the game’s concept and the poor utilization of the cast. As a result, their already abysmal numbers continued to decrease with each passing week. While Lionsgate suffered a loss of at least $20 million, the same couldn’t be said for the games’ developers. Gearbox claimed they saw an increase in their overall sales despite the film’s poor performance, making them the only winner in the entire situation.

For the most part, “X-Men” has proven to be a valuable franchise. Since starting in the early 2000s, each new release was successful— until this glaring exception. With the third-highest budget in the series, it was clear that expectations for “Dark Phoenix” were high. They even projected an opening of $50 million, which they ended up missing by a significant amount. It was the first installment in the series to not top the box office, doing so poorly that it was pulled from over 1,600 theaters by its third week. It was a huge fall from grace, causing the prequel series to go out with a whimper.

To say this was a bomb would be an understatement. Francis Ford Coppola — known for legendary works like “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now”— decided to put everything on the line, finally producing “Megalopolis” after decades of it being in development hell. He even provided a whopping $120 million of his own money to ensure it was made. It barely made a tenth of that, with the worldwide gross clocking in at just over $14 million. The interest simply wasn’t there, even with a cast stacked with successful actors like Adam Driver and Laurence Fishburne. With all the years spent bringing it to fruition and a fortune lost, we can’t help but wonder if it was worth it.

Predictions for this film’s failure began long before it was even released. The first trailer alone had a staggering amount of dislikes, making it clear that it would have an uphill climb ahead. It didn’t help that it’s one of the studio's most expensive films to date, having to make at least $500 million to break even. It was already going to have trouble reaching that goal even without the changes to fundamental aspects of the original and the controversial political views from its two biggest stars— two factors that led to its eventual demise. Poised to lose nearly $100 million, this was Disney’s true folly.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions.

The Post-apocalyptic Steampunk Flick Lost the Studio Almost $175 Million

It Flopped So Hard That It Ended the Film Franchise Entirely

It Made So Little That the Studio Had to Write It Off as a Loss

The Remake Didn’t Even Make Half of the Original’s Opening Numbers

Did So Poorly That It Dropped from the Box Office Top 10 By Week Three

Pouring large amounts of money into a film is always a risk, even when it’s part of a once-beloved franchise. The fifth installment of the “Indiana Jones” series wasn’t just the most expensive of the franchise. At almost $300 million in production alone, it’s one of the most expensive films of all time. It needed to make at least twice that to break even and reach $800 million to profit— a goal the series hadn’t surpassed even in its heyday. Needless to say, it didn’t even come close. Disney bore the brunt of the cost, losing $143 million in the process. If that isn’t a sign to finally hang up Indy’s whip and hat, we don’t know what is.


Which recent box office bomb surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments below!