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While not every movie can be a fiscal smash , the biggest box seat office bombs of all time prove that some project can take down careers , genres , and even studios . While picture studios do everything possible to ensure they take as few risks as possible , adorn in a film is always a gamble . The common criticism that Hollywood only produces reboots , sequel , remaking , and spinoffs is not without justification . This call come from the fact that , for studios , an intellectual property with proved potential and a built - in fanbase will always be more appealing than an strange , original prospect .
However , this approach does not always bear fruit . Thebox office unsuccessful person of superhero movies in 2023shows that no genre is going to be a surefire strike forever . While superhero moving-picture show were once the biggest earner , they have now made for some dear losses . This can be the same for big challenging production that spiral out of restraint , attempt to start franchises that go bad to set up , and star - studded pic that do n’t interest audiences . Regardless of the confidence going in , these box berth bombs have made an unfortunate mark in Hollywood story .
Box office trope viaBox Office Mojo .
Movies
Worldwide receipts
Loss
John Carter ( 2012 )
$ 284.1 Million
$ 255 Million
The Lone Ranger ( 2013 )
$ 240 Million
The Marvels ( 2023 )
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$ 206.1 Million
$ 237 Million
The 13th Warrior ( 1999 )
How Do You Know is a romantic comedy that follows Lisa Jorgenson (Reese Witherspoon), a professional softball player caught in a love triangle with a corporate executive (Paul Rudd) and a major league baseball pitcher (Owen Wilson). Directed by James L. Brooks, the film explores themes of love, career crossroads, and personal dilemmas, featuring an ensemble cast that includes Jack Nicholson in a supporting role.
$ 61.7 Million
$ 227 Million
Mortal Engines ( 2018 )
$ 83.7 Million
$ 204 Million
Cutthroat Island ( 1995 )
$ 18.3 Million
$ 202 Million
Sinbad the Sailor : Legend Of The Seven Seas ( 2003 )
$ 80.8 Million
$ 199 Million
foreign World ( 2023 )
$ 73.6 Million
$ 197 Million
Battleship ( 2012 )
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is the fifth entry in the Indiana Jones franchise, directed by James Mangold and starring Harrison Ford in his final portrayal of the titular character. The film will see Jones in 1969 on an adventure with his goddaughter, Helena Shaw, as they find themselves in the middle of an uneasy space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, with the former enlisting the help of former Nazis with ulterior motives.
$ 303 Million
Pan ( 2015 )
$ 128.4 Million
$ 185 Million
Tomorrowland ( 2015 )
$ 209 Million
King Arthur : Legend Of The Sword ( 2017 )
$ 148.7 Million
$ 183 Million
Sheriff James Averill tries to protect immigrant farmers from wealthy cattle barons in 1890s Wyoming. Conflict intensifies as Averill and a mercenary, Nathan Champion, both vie for the affection of Ella Watson, a local madam. The escalating tensions culminate in a brutal battle that questions their roles and the harsh realities of the American frontier.
Titan A.E. ( 2000 )
$ 36.8 Million
$ 170 Million
Turning Red ( 2022 )
$ 19.8 Million
$ 167 Million
The Adventures Of Pluto Nash ( 2002 )
$ 7.1 Million
$ 156 Million
Mars Needs Moms is an animated sci-fi movie based on a book by Berkeley Breathed. Known for being a box office bomb, the 2011 Disney film follows a young boy named Milo who goes on a mission to rescue his mother from Martians who have kidnapped her to raise their own children.
Final Fantasy : The spirit Within ( 2001 )
$ 85.1 Million
$ 155 Million
Dark Phoenix ( 2019 )
$ 252.4 Million
Mulan ( 2020 )
$ 66.8 Million
$ 159 Million
Wonder Woman 1984 ( 2020 )
The Flash is a DC Extended Universe film starring Ezra Miller as Barry Allen, A.K.A. The Flash. Wishing for a world where his mother still lives, Barry Allen manages to find a way to travel through time to save her. However, Barry ends up in an alternate universe where metahumans aren’t present, meaning a living General Zod arrives to conquer the planet. To save this world and return home, Barry will seek the help of two alternate reality heroes, Batman (Michael Keaton) and Supergirl (Sasha Calle).
$ 166.5 Million
A Wrinkle In Time ( 2018 )
$ 133.2 Million
$ 152 Million
The Flash ( 2023 )
$ 271.3 Million
$ 150 Million
Mars take Moms ( 2011 )
$ 39 million
Based on the book of the same name by Madeline L’Engle, A Wrinkle In Time is a classic science-fantasy tale. After learning her astrophysicist father is being held captive on a distant planet deep in the grip of a universe-spanning evil, Meg Murry works with her highly intelligent younger brother, her classmate, and three astral travelers to save him.
$ 145 Million
Heaven ’s Gate ( 1980 )
$ 3.5 Million
$ 144 Million
Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny ( 2023 )
$ 384 Million
$ 143 Million
How Do You have a go at it ( 2010 )
$ 48.7 Million
Wonder Woman 1984, set during the Cold War, follows Diana Prince as she faces a formidable opponent. When a heist exposes a perilous ancient artifact, Wonder Woman is drawn into a global conflict that endangers her extraordinary abilities and challenges her resolve to save the world.
$ 140 Million
25How Do You Know (2010)
Loss: $140 Million
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Cast
How Do You Know is a amatory clowning that follows Lisa Jorgenson ( Reese Witherspoon ) , a professional softball player caught in a dear trigon with a corporate executive ( Paul Rudd ) and a major league baseball pitcher ( Owen Wilson ) . point by James L. Brooks , the film explores themes of love , career crossroads , and personal dilemmas , featuring an ensemble cast that includes Jack Nicholson in a supporting role .
Many box billet turkey are will to mislaid ambitiousness , but 2010’sHow Do You Knowis an exception to this rule . A mild romantic comedy , How Do You Knowsomehow be $ 120 million to produce . The remuneration of the star - studded casting give to the high damage tag , with Reese Witherspoon ( $ 15 million ) , Owen Wilson ( $ 10 million ) , and Jack Nicholson ( $ 12 million ) do a flock for their work .
Along with the tidy salaries for the gifted cast , another outlet with the flick ’s budget stemmed from author - director James L. Brooks ' filmmaking panache . He go at a meticulous footstep and the metre that everything take up only added to the pricetag . Ultimately though , nothing aboutHow Do You Know ’s conversant story justified this sky - high cost .
How Do You Knowis a rom - com that sees Witherspoon ’s softball musician struggling to choose between Wilson ’s wizard baseball participant and Paul Rudd ’s livid - collar felon . Viewers chose neither , resulting in a $ 140 million loss . While the careers of the movie;s stars were not noticeably harm , the underperforming pic led to Brooks not making another picture show until 2025’sElla McCay .
24Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny (2023)
Loss: $143 Million
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is the fifth entry in the Indiana Jones franchise , directed by James Mangold and starring Harrison Ford in his final portraiture of the nominal character . The picture show will see Jones in 1969 on an adventure with his goddaughter , Helena Shaw , as they find themselves in the eye of an awkward space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union , with the former enlist the help of former Nazis with ulterior need .
Even the greatest directors of all clip have been known to produce the occasional regretful pic , and these washout can expose a lot about their makers .
The reception toDial of Destinywas moderately mixed though more positive than the premature movie . However , Indiana Jones 5became the lowest - grossing installing in the serial publication , make under $ 175 million at the box office . irrespective of the quality of the movie , it was an unfortunate elbow room to end the series with its loss of $ 143 million .
23Heaven’s Gate (1980)
Loss: $144 Million
Sheriff James Averill tries to protect immigrant farmers from affluent cattle business leader in 1890s Wyoming . Conflict intensifies as Averill and a soldier of fortune , Nathan Champion , both vie for the affection of Ella Watson , a local dame . The escalating tensions climax in a brutal battle that questions their roles and the coarse realities of the American frontier.
Michael Cimono’sHeaven ’s Gateis often see as the moving picture that ended the auteur - driven mindset of Hollywood . A wildly ambitious epic Western , Heaven ’s Gatecost$44 million and garner back less than $ 4 million .
A on-key tragedy of aspiration , Heaven ’s Gatetakes shoes alongside Damien Chazelle’sBabylonand director Richard Kelly ’s underrate sci - fi flopSouthland Talesas a quintessential typeface of a visionary managing director whose bill of fare blanch chance proved to be a financial disaster . The movie is an epic that flux romanticism and war with the story of a sheriff who fight to protect immigrant farmers in 1890 ’s Wyoming . Like those aforementioned films , Heaven ’s Gatehas many defenders .
The 2020 release of Mulan is a live-action adaptation of the 1998 animated film that focuses more on the original Chinese tale, Ballad of Mulan. In the film, war comes to china from Mongol armies, with the Emperor of China requiring each family must send one man to join the army. To protect her father from returning to the war, she dons his armor and masquerades as a man to fight for her country and bring honor to her family.
Lush , immersive , and astonishingly affect , Heaven ’s Gateis still undeniably as overlong and meandering as critics claimed . adjust for inflation , Cimino ’s Western lost $ 144 million . Despite having directed the Best Picture winner , The Deer Hunter , this movie all but end Cimino ’s life history .
22Mars Needs Moms (2011)
Loss: $145 Million
Mars Needs Moms is an animated sci - fi movie found on a book by Berkeley Breathed . Known for being a box seat spot dud , the 2011 Disney film follows a untried boy named Milo who go on a charge to rescue his female parent from Martians who have kidnapped her to enkindle their own children .
Disney was known for producing some of thebest animated movies of all timeand that reputation was further solidified with the succeeder of Pixar . However , when the studio would come out with a lesser animated oblation , the drop in quality was quite noticeable . Mars Needs Momswas one such undertaking , a freakish space adventure that lacked the heart and telling invigoration that Disney was have it away for . Part of the intellect was that the movie proceed Disney ’s experiment with gesture - capture animation .
The living style had previously been seen in the likes ofThe Polar ExpressandA Christmas Carol , but the reaction to the " uncanny valley " of the characters was offputting to many audiences . The production troupe ImageMovers was to a great extent mired with the making of these animated motion-picture show , butfollowing the dismal $ 39 million gross and $ 145 million departure ofMars Needs Moms , ImageMovers never made an animated motion picture again .
The team faces internal and external challenges in X-Men: Dark Phoenix, as Jean Grey transforms after absorbing a cosmic force during a space rescue mission. This newfound power tests her stability, prompting the X-Men to confront both Jean’s volatile state and alien forces seeking to exploit her abilities.
21The Flash (2023)
Loss: $150 Million
The Flash is a DC Extended Universe film star Ezra Miller as Barry Allen , A.K.A. The Flash . wish well for a globe where his mother still lives , Barry Allen manage to find a way to journey through time to hold open her . However , Barry ends up in an alternate universe where metahumans are n’t present , meaning a survive General Zod get to conquer the planet . To keep open this world and bring back dwelling house , Barry will assay the help of two alternate realism Hero , Batman ( Michael Keaton ) and Supergirl ( Sasha Calle ) .
2023 was the class that superhero movie fatigue formally define in , with a routine of gamey - profile labor falling short . One of the most notorious failures of the genre was DC ’s long - awaited standalone movieThe Flash . Not only was the movie set to be Barry Allen ’s first solo moving-picture show , but it was to feature cameos from other DCEU cast members like Batman ( Ben Affleck ) and Wonder Woman ( Gal Gadot ) . On top of it all , the movie was a multiverse story in which Barry feel himself in the timeline of Michael Keaton ’s Batman .
As exciting as the movie seemed on paper , The Flashwas marred by issues for twelvemonth . The movie was in development for a number of twelvemonth with multiple directors come and going . The multiverse angle , which once seemed like an exciting mind , was being pick clear from the MCU.The incoming DCU rebootalso put into motion how much this movie weigh . Finally , the on-going legal emergence with champion Ezra Miller throw away a swarm over the film . This all precede toThe Flashfailing to bust $ 300 million at the worldwide box office staff and digest a $ 150 million personnel casualty .
20A Wrinkle In Time (2018)
Loss: $152 Million
found on the book of the same name by Madeline L’Engle , A Wrinkle In Time is a classic skill - phantasy tale . After learning her astrophysicist father is being held imprisoned on a removed planet late in the grip of a universe - spanning evil , Meg Murry works with her highly intelligent younger brother , her classmate , and three astral travelers to save him .
Director Ava DuVernay ’s version of the famous young adult novelA Wrinkle in Timeassembled an telling cast , including Reese Witherspoon , Mindy Kaling , and Oprah Winfrey . The motion-picture show stars Storm Reid as a immature young lady whose scientist father goes missing , move her on a journeying alongside her protagonist to travel across time and blank to retrieve him .
The story is a dear one and there was certainly a lot of talent involved . However , this was not enough to saveA Wrinkle In Timefrom a fateful corner post public presentation upon its release in 2018 . With a budget of $ 130 million , A Wrinkle In Timeearned a little less than that number at the box part . While this may not vocalize too bad , the film’smarketing and promotional budget means that the movie lost somewhere in the land of $ 152 million .
19Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
Loss: $155 Million
Wonder Woman 1984 , set during the Cold War , watch Diana Prince as she faces a formidable antagonist . When a heist exposes a precarious ancient artifact , Wonder Woman is draw into a global dispute that expose her extraordinary abilities and challenge her resolution to save the world .
With 2020’sWonder Woman 1984 , there is the slippery doubtfulness of theCOVID-19 pandemic and its box business office impact . Most of the bombs from the epoch were affected by theater closures triggered by the pandemic , and it is unacceptable to know whether these movies might have performed better if released later on . This is peculiarly true as the studio apartment made the unprecedented decision to also release the cinema for at - home streaming during its theatrical tally .
However , the only version ofWonder Woman 1984 ’s boxwood role performance that viewers can habituate to guess is the one that happened . Released in December 2020 , theWonder Womansequel earn around $ 46 million in the U.S. and around $ 123 million worldwide . Thisresulted inWonder Woman 1984losing somewhere around $ 155 million .
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a 2001 animated science fiction film directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi and Motonori Sakakibara. The film centers on Dr. Aki Ross and her team as they seek to save Earth from mysterious alien entities known as Phantoms. Notably, it features a blend of realism and computer-generated imagery, bridged by voice talent from actors such as Ming-Na Wen and Alec Baldwin.
Despite start out as one of the DCU ’s most successful properties , Wonder Woman 3was canceledafter this movie . While the pandemic change the direction audiences could see the movie and surely define its box role potential , a smaller constituent could have also been the critical and audience reception , which was decidedly more mixed than the acclaimed first installment .
18Mulan (2020)
Loss: $159 Million
The 2020 exit of Mulan is a live - action adaptation of the 1998 animize motion picture that focuses more on the original Taiwanese tale , Ballad of Mulan . In the film , war come to china from Mongol armies , with the Emperor of China require each family must send one human to join the US Army . To protect her father from returning to the war , she put on his armor and masquerades as a man to fight for her country and bring award to her kinsperson .
Another movie whose box part underperformance is inexorably tied to the COVID-19 pandemic , Mulan’slive - activeness Disney remaking , was released in theaters in September 2020.Like the beloved revive original , Mulantells the history of the nominal heroine , a untried woman in Imperial China who is being pushed down one path in animation as a dutiful wife , but take exception tradition when she poses as a male soldier and takes her father ’s place in the army .
Earning lukewarm critical write - ups and significant critique from non - westerly reader , 2020’sMulanhad a calamitous showing at the box agency . Costing around $ 200 million , the film make a mere $ 70 million . Mulan ’s losses totaled around $ 159 million , a far cry from the 1998 original .
In stark dividing line with its hot - action re - imagining , that animated classic be $ 90 million and earned over $ 300 million . However , likeWonder Woman 1984,Mulanwas only released in countries in which the movie theaters had reopen amid the pandemic . In the United States and many other countries , the film was released on Disney+ .
17X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019)
The squad face interior and external challenges in X - Men : Dark Phoenix , as Jean Grey transform after engulf a cosmic force during a space rescue commission . This newfound power quiz her stableness , prompting the ecstasy - Men to confront both Jean ’s fickle state and alien forces search to tap her power .
Dark Phoenixwas intended to be a whizz vehicle forGame of Thronesheroine Sophie Turner , who played the ungovernable , tragical anti - villain Phoenix in this 10thX - Menmovie . The account saw Jean Grey contend with her new and extreme powers while being torn between her X - Men friends and a race of stranger attempt to use her as the ultimate artillery . It is an adjustment of a beloved comic book plot line that many fans experience was poorly done in 2006’sX - homo : The Last Stand .
An overstuffed cast , convoluted plot , and precipitous re - shoots all contribute to the failure .
However , the response toDark Phoenixwas even worse than the 2006 version , with it being called a mussy , misjudged tale that indicate the 10 - Men dealership reaching the death of its run . An overstuffed plaster bandage , tangled plot , and precipitate re - shoots all give to the bankruptcy of film director Simon Kinberg’sDark Phoenix , which clear $ 252 million worldwide on a budget of $ 200 million . Thanks to selling , this meant a $ 155 million loss for the studio apartment at the end of the day .
As an Z - level sport , Jean Grey boasts a mighty array of superpowers that have been showcased throughout her cinematic appearance .
The movie was release in the consequence of the stack strike by Fox and Disney that would mean the MCU regained the rights to the ten - Men characters . This suggested the X - Men Fox dealership was over , and the audience might have already been moving on , looking in front to the MCU ’s take on these character . The movie ’s many time lag probably did n’t help matters , withDark Phoenixoriginally schedule for a capitulation 2018 release .
16Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)
last Fantasy : The sprightliness Within is a 2001 repair scientific discipline fiction film directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi and Motonori Sakakibara . The film centers on Dr. Aki Ross and her team as they seek to hold open Earth from mysterious exotic entities roll in the hay as Phantoms . Notably , it have a blending of naive realism and figurer - mother imagery , bridge over by part natural endowment from actor such as Ming - Na Wen and Alec Baldwin .
In the early 2000s , video recording biz adaptations seemed like a major moneymaking opportunity for Hollywood studio . While the critical failure of 1993’sSuper Mario Brosand 1995’sMortal Kombatshould have given executives pause , there was too much turmoil and too much money to be made in this unexampled medium for anyone to regard moderation . As a result , viewers get a headliner - studded adjustment of the incredibly popularFinal Fantasyfranchise in 2001’sFinal Fantasy : The Spirits Within .
The movie detail humanity ’s fight against alien fantasm who have take control of Earth , with a scientist pushing back against the armed forces ’s approach and seek a non - destructive way to win the war . A " photo - naturalistic " animated endeavour , Final Fantasy : The Spirits Withinlost $ 155 millionand was mostly responsible for the death of the studio creditworthy for the flop . The photographic film was the most expensive television plot adaptation at the time , but ironically alienated fans of the franchise due to its take autonomy with the story .
