The 2020s have been a decade of blockbuster movies, with the cinema remaining as popular as ever despite the rise of streaming services. This year has already seen the biggest film so far smash past the $1 billion mark worldwide, while other films have raked in hundreds of millions of dollars. But for every film that's made a fortune, there are those which haven't fared quite so well.
So let's put down the popcorn for a moment and spare a thought for those films which had such high hopes, but which ultimately shed millions after failing to find an audience. One such film is Strange World, a big-budget Disney animation which arrived in cinemas in time for Thanksgiving 2022. The film boasts an impressive voice cast, including Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid, Lucy Liu, and Gabrielle Union, and a 72% Rotten Tomatoes rating. However, audiences stayed away, and the movie made just $73 million against a reported production budget of $180 million.
Another film which had high hopes but ultimately failed to deliver is Amsterdam, a drama inspired by the true story of the Business Plot, a 1933 political conspiracy in the US. The film boasts a star-studded cast, including Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, and David Washington, but received negative reviews, with a 32% Rotten Tomatoes rating. The film grossed just $29.4 million, resulting in a reported loss of around $108 million.
The Marvels, the sequel to 2019's Captain Marvel, is another film which failed to meet expectations. Despite a middling 63% Rotten Tomatoes rating, the film took just $206 million worldwide, resulting in a loss of $237 million, including marketing costs. The film's enormous budget, combined with the SAG-Aftra strike at the time, have been cited as possible factors for its failure.
Joker: Folie A Deux, the sequel to Todd Phillips' 2019 hit Joker, also failed to meet expectations. Despite premiering at the 2024 Venice Film Festival in a blaze of publicity, the film received negative reviews, with a 31% Rotten Tomatoes rating. The film made $227 million worldwide, resulting in a loss of $144.3 million, including marketing costs.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the final outing of Harrison Ford's beloved character, also failed to meet expectations. Despite a decent 71% Rotten Tomatoes rating, the film took just $384 million worldwide, resulting in a loss of $134 million, including marketing costs. The film's estimated budget of $295 million, combined with the previous outing in the series grossing more than twice as much, have been cited as possible factors for its failure.
Finally, Lightyear, a 2022 origin story based on the Toy Story character Buzz Lightyear, failed to find an audience, despite an estimated budget of $200 million. The film received a decent 74% Rotten Tomatoes rating, but struggled to make the impact of the Toy Story flicks, grossing just $226 million worldwide. The film's estimated loss of over $100 million has left many in the industry scratching their heads as to what went wrong.
