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This entry is trivia, which is cool and all, but not a trope. On a work, it goes on the Trivia tab.

Box Office Bomb

A Box Office Bomb, or a flop, is a movie for which production and marketing cost greatly exceeds its gross revenue. It doesn't mean, however, that it merely made studios lose money — gross revenue doesn't equal studio profit.^note It means it lost a truly spectacular amount of money. On the other hand, most but not all box office bombs cost their studios money: gross revenue often doesn't include revenue from DVDs and whatnot (justified because the revenue from theaters is much easier to count), or (often) revenue from the world outside America;^note justified, because other countries don't actually exist. (Well, this can be justified since a movie has to be successful in your home turf first rather than overseas). Of note that most films since the late 1990s tend to at least break even after DVD sales are taken into account.

This is not to be confused with Hollywood Accounting, where the movie is not actually a flop but the real revenue is hidden either for tax evasion or as part of a Springtime for Hitler scheme.

Commonly cited possible reasons for box office failures:

Bad word-of-mouth: The movie just happened to be so bad that people avoided it. Those who enjoy cheesy fun usually buy it on VHS/DVD, or simply pirate it later.
Competition: This is particularly often in effect with summer blockbusters. People have a limited amount of brainless action they would watch, and if there's a lot of that available, some titles may be neglected. They also tend to be high-budget, and as such if the movie flops, it costs a lot. There is, however, often a principle similar to Award Snub in nature: several good movies (with similar target audiences) are released simultaneously, thus one of them performs truly spectacularly, another one flops, but both are considered great in hindsight (the hit E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and the flop Blade Runner, for example).
Poor marketing: Many a bomb became so despite (or due to) being an excellent movie in general. Incorrect or misleading information about them (or just plain lack of marketing) makes audiences rely exclusively on word-of-mouth, which is generally not enough for a movie to successfully perform. The internet has made this situation a bit better, but not that much. These movies almost always achieve cult status and can later become profitable on DVD.
Other circumstances: Sometimes movies flop due to something that's not directly related to the movie itself or the movie industry as a whole. Funny Aneurysm Moments and Too Soon, for example, tend to hit disaster movies' sales very hard when bad timing happens (the attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York City and Arlington, Virginia, for example, killed a lot of those even though they were obviously filmed prior to the catastrophe). The same effect involves comedies lampooning airports, airlines and the security process, which all brought down Big Trouble, which was bumped to the Dump Months from its original position ten days after the 11th. Another example of unfortunate timing is if a movie's genre is killed prior to release.

Note that the figures provided here for budgets and box office returns don't usually tell the whole story. A studio usually only sees about half to a little more than half of a film's box office take, with the rest going to theaters and (often) the actors, director, etc. involved with the production. The budgetary figures provided by the studios, meanwhile, only cover the production costs; distribution and marketing, especially for summer blockbusters, also eat up substantial amounts of studio money. Unless noted otherwise, it's safe to assume that a film on this list cost a lot more than the studio said it did. Plus, remember to take inflation into account when looking at films made decades in the past; Cleopatra's $44-million budget in the early '60s would be equivalent to $325.6 million in 2012 dollars. Finally, an independent film or studio is less able to absorb huge losses than a major studio, so the threshold for a bomb is lower for them. The lower figures (both budget and box-office) for older films and indie films can be deceptive.

Flops tend to become Franchise Killers, Genre Killers, and Creator Killers, or "spawn" a Stillborn Franchise.

Critical Dissonance is often at full force here if critics liked it. Vindicated by Video often helps (especially with Better on DVD thrown in), as does Vindicated by Cable. For when the critics and the audience love the movie, yet it still fails commercially, see Acclaimed Flop.

Rules of thumb in bombing

Almost all films directed by Orson Welles were bombs (yes, even the critically-acclaimed Citizen Kane), except The Stranger, a thriller Welles made simply to prove that he could work successfully inside the studio system if he wanted to.
Most pirate movies made in the past few decades were flops. Cutthroat Island is one of the most notorious cases, standing as the biggest box-office bomb in history after inflation. Pirates Of The Caribbean finally broke this trend.
Disney's Pinocchio, Fantasia, The Reluctant Dragon, Bambi, Alice in Wonderland and Sleeping Beauty were all box office flops when they were first released. However, in re-releases they eventually managed to recoup their costs; The Black Cauldron however is widely considered to be the biggest flop Disney ever suffered at the box office, losing out to The Care Bears Movie.
- Indeed, most non-Disney animated movies during Disney's Renaissance era, from the late 1980s through the '90s. This includes Don Bluth's films in the 1990s, besides Anastasia. The trend was finally broken by Dream Works Animation.
Most movie musicals for a decade or so after The Sound Of Music.
Most movies about rock music, School Of Rock being an exception.
Many movies based on video games.
Nearly everything produced by the now-defunct Franchise Pictures, with the notable exception of The Whole Nine Yards.
Everything made by Uwe Boll.
Any movie produced by the shortlived Gladden Entertainment not called The Fabulous Baker Boys or Mannequin.

Standalone bombs

The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen (1988) — Budget, $46,630,000. Box office, $8,083,123.
The Adventures Of Pluto Nash (2002) — Budget, $100-120 million. Box office, $7,103,973. Sat on the shelf for ages because everyone knew it was a catastrophe. Eddie Murphy himself disowned it.
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000) — Budget, $76 million (not counting marketing costs), $98.6 million (counting them). Box office, $35,134,820.
The Alamo (2004) — Budget, $145 million. Box office, $25,819,961.
Alexander (2004) — Budget, $155 million (not counting marketing costs), $201.2 million (counting them). Box office, $167,298,192.
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1998) — Budget, $10 million. Box office (get ready to faint), $52,850. Winning six Razzies, it spelt the end of the use of the "Alan Smithee" pseudonym. It also killed Arthur Hiller's direction career (he knew the movie was so bad, he asked the crew to be credited as Smithee).
Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) — Budget, $5 million. Box office, $500,000.
An American Carol (2008) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $7,013,191.
Around the World in 80 Days (2004) — Budget, $110 million. Box office, $72,178,895.
Astro Boy (2009) — Budget, $65 million, Box office, $39,886,986. The losses of the film sucked producer Imagi Studios into a black hole of debt.
At Long Last Love (1975) — Budget, $6 million. Box office, $1.5 million.
The Avengers (1998) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $23,384,939.
Babys Day Out (1994) — Budget, $48 million. Box office, $16,827,402.
Bait (2000) — Budget, $51 million. Box office, $15.4 million. It nearly ended Jamie Foxx's leading career, as he wouldn't lead again in a theatrical film for four years, but his later resurgence thankfully saved him.
Ballistic Ecks Vs Sever (2002) — Budget, $70-90 million. Box office, $19,924,033.
Bandslam (2009) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $12,225,023. A definite case of Misaimed Marketing.
Barney's Great Adventure (1998) — Budget, $15 million. Box office, $12 million. This film, along with an earlier string of box office failures, led PolyGram to sell out their film division, and eventually themselves, to Seagram, who placed the PolyGram name under Universal a year later.
Basic Instinct 2 (2006) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $38,629,478. It began the derailment of star Sharon Stone's career and ended Michael Caton-Jones' directing career. It was even dubbed by the Razzies in the 2007 Razzie Awards ceremony as "Basically, It Stinks, Too".
Battlefield Earth (2000) — Budget, $75 million (declared), $44 million (actual). Box office, $29,725,663. The egregious case of Hollywood Accounting involved in the production led to Franchise Pictures being sued into bankruptcy.
Battleship (2012) — Budget, $209 million. Box office, $65 million (domestically), $302.8 million (worldwide). While it was a hit globally, that didn't prevent the US media from pairing up this film with John Carter as one of the big bombs of summer 2012 after it grossed a weak $25.5 million on its opening weekend.
The Beautician and the Beast (1997) — Budget, $16 million. Box office, $11.4 million. Fran Drescher's first and only theatrical lead role, and her last theatrical appearance overall.
Beautiful Creatures (2013) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $19,452,138 (domestically), $60,052,138 (worldwide).
Beloved (1998) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $22,852,487.
Betsy's Wedding (1990) — Budget, $36 million. Box office, $19.7 million. Arguably the end of Molly Ringwald's stardom, as afterwards she wouldn't do another theatrical film role for six years.
Big Bully (1996) — Budget, $15 million. Box office, $2 million. One of the career halting films with Tom Arnold released that year and was also the last theatrical live-action movie that Rick Moranis would star in (though it was less to do with this movie and more to do with his wife's passing).
Big Miracle (2012) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $24.7 million.
Big Trouble (2002) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $8,493,890.
The Big Year (2011) — Budget, $41 million. Box office, $7.4 million. The film's failure might be why Steve Martin isn't currently planned for any theatrical projects in the near future.
Big Wednesday (1978) — Budget, $11 million. Box office, $4.5 million. Though it had a good reception in Japan.
Billy Bathgate (1991) — Budget, $48 million. Box office, $15,565,363.
The Black Dahlia (2006) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $49.3 million. Director Brian De Palma hasn't helmed a major theatrical film since.
Boat Trip (2002) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $15 million.
Body of Evidence (1992) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $13.2 million.
Bogus (1996) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $4.3 million.
The Bonfire Of The Vanities (1990) — Budget, $47 million. Box office, $15,691,192.
Boys And Girls (2000) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $25.8 million. After the huge success of She's All That, director Robert Iscove worked once again with Freddie Prinze Jr. on this movie. Iscove never really had a theatrical hit again, and this movie was part of a rut that Prinze was stuck in during the early '00s.
Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star (2011) — Budget, just under $10 million. Box office, $2,529,395. It was taken out of theaters after only two weeks, and quickly derailed Nick Swardson's film career before it could even get started (the Misaimed Marketing didn't seem to help either).
Canadian Bacon (1995) — Budget, $11 million. Box office, $178,104. Little wonder this is Michael Moore's only theatrical foray outside the documentary genre to date (admittedly, he has done more than almost anyone to make nonfiction films profitable).
Cats Dont Dance (1997) — Budget, $32 million. Box office, $3,566,637. It fell through the cracks after Warner Bros. bought Turner just before the movie was released, and proceeded to not promote it at all.
The Cat In The Hat (2003) — Budget, $109 million. Box office, $133,960,541 (worldwide), $101,149,285 (domestic). Although it was a success worldwide, it couldn't recoup the budget domestically due to losing audience very quickly. It began the career derailment of Mike Myers (whose career was further damaged with The Love Guru^note), and was widely panned by fans and critics for the huge amount of crap that went by. The Seuss estate responded by banning any further live-action adaptations of his works.
Catwoman (2004) — Budget, $100 million. Box office, $82,102,379. Halle Berry quit the X-Men franchise to be in this film; rumor has it she crawled back to the producers for a part in X-Men 3 for a substantially lower paycheck.
Chain Reaction (1996) — Budget, $55 million. Box office, $21,226,204 (domestically), $60,209,334 worldwide. Morgan Freeman would not get another award-winning role until Million Dollar Baby in 2004.
Chill Factor (1999) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $11,263,966.
Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992) — Budget, $45 million. Box office, $8.2 million. The Creator Breakdown behind the scenes led to the split of the Salkind directing duo, who never did a film together again.
Cleopatra (1963) — Budget, $44 million. Box office, $57,777,778. However, 20th Century Fox only got roughly half the film's box office take (the rest went to the theaters), and since $44 million was an exorbitant price tag in 1963's dollars (equivalent to $325.6 million today), they nearly went bankrupt and had to sell off parts of its huge backlot (which turned the remnants of the sold parts to what became known as Century City). Cleopatra�s Troubled Production and ultimate failure were among the decisive moments in the Fall of the Studio System, and the film was considered the example of failure for decades afterwards, only turning a profit for the studio in the '90s thanks to VHS and DVD sales. It only took 30 years!
Cloud Atlas (2012) — Budget, $102 million. Box office, $27,108,272 (domestically), $129,787,143 (worldwide). It didn't help that it received criticism from Asians and Halle Berry for the decision to have some of the actors, Berry included, play in Yellowface.
Color Of Night (1994) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $19,726,050.
Conan the Barbarian (2011) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $48,795,021.
Cool as Ice (1991) — Budget, $6 million. Box office, $1.1 million. Was seen as one of the factors of Vanilla Ice's popularity downfall.
The Cotton Club (1984) — Budget, $58 million. Box office, $25,928,721. Suffered an epically Troubled Production, including the gangland-style execution of a would-be backer and a budget-skyrocketing war of egos between producer Robert Evans and director Francis Ford Coppola, both of whose careers were already in trouble from other box office disappointments.
Cowboys and Aliens (2011) — Budget, $163 million. Box office, $100,240,551 (domestically), $174,822,325 (worldwide).
Creature (2011) — Budget, $3 million. Box office, $300,000. It was promptly jettisoned from theaters a week later.
Cry Baby (1990) — Budget, $12 million. Box office, $8.2 million. Was almost an end to John Waters' directing career.
Cutthroat Island (1995) — Budget, $98 million. Box office, $18,517,322. This film bankrupted Carolco Pictures, derailed Geena Davis' career, her marriage with director Renny Harlin (whose career was also badly damaged), and destroyed the entire swashbuckling adventure genre (and it seems that any pirate movie without the Pirates Of The Caribbean name will be destined to fail).
Daylight (1996) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $33,023,469 (domestically), $159,212,469 (worldwide).
Death To Smoochy (2002) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $8,382,938.
Delgo (2008) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $915,840. (No, that's not a typo.) It had one of the worst openings ever for a film playing in over 2,000 theaters, earning just $511,920 at 2,160 sites.
The Devils Own (1997) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $42,868,348 (domestically), $140,807,547 (worldwide). This served as the final film for director Alan J. Pakula, as he was killed in a car accident the next year after its release.
The Dilemma (2011) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $69,721,966.
Doctor Dolittle (1967) — Budget, $17 million. Box office, $6.2 million.
Dudley Do Right (1999) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $9,974,410.
Dungeons & Dragons (2000) — Budget, $45 million. Box office, $33 million.
Evan Almighty (2007) — Budget, $175 million. Box office, $173,418,781.
Excess Baggage (1997) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $14.5 million. Was supposed to be the first in a line of movies produced by Alicia Silverstone, the movie's poor box office made it the only theatrical film she ever produced.
Fair Game (1995) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $11,534,477. Was such a bomb that some of the crew (including director Andrew Sipes) never worked on another movie again.
The Fall of The Roman Empire (1964) — Budget, $19 million. Box office, $4.75 million. Comparisons with contemporary Roman epic Cleopatra are inevitable, although Fall had a substantially less Troubled Production and was much more well-received by critics. Audiences, however, had lost interest in sword and sandal epics following Cleopatra (and, unlike Cleopatra, Fall has largely faded into obscurity since its initial release in 1964).
The Fantasticks (2000) — Budget, $10 million. Box office, $49,666. Originally finished five years earlier but shelved, it got rushed out to a limited theater run years later due to legal obligations.
Fathers Day (1997) — Budget, $85 million. Box office, $35,681,080.
Femme Fatale (2002) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $16.8 million.
Final Fantasy The Spirits Within (2001) — Budget, $135-167 million. Box office, $85,131,830. This film's failure led to the collapse of Square Pictures and delayed the merger of Squaresoft with Enix; the latter company was hesitant at merging with a company that had just lost a large amount of money in a high-profile manner.
Flight Of The Intruder (1991) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $14,587,732.
For the Boys (1991) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $23,202,444. It didn't help that the whole world was waiting in line to see Beauty and the Beast that same day.
For Love Of The Game (1999) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $46.1 million.
1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992) — Budget, $47 million. Box office, $11,089,907. Was nearly a Creator Killer for director Ridley Scott, who didn't direct another movie for four years.
From Justin to Kelly (2003) — Budget, $12 million. Box office, $4.9 million. Aside from just about killing Justin Guarini's reputation, the film's failure made it certain that American Idol movies wouldn't happen again.
Fun Size (2012) — Budget, $14 million. Box office, $10.9 million. The lowest-grossing movie released by Nickelodeon so far.
The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $1,576,615. Parental protests over the film's Refuge in Vulgarity led to it being pulled from theaters within weeks of its release.
Getting Even with Dad (1994) — $30 million, $18,869,594. Releasing the same weekend as The Lion King didn't help either.
Gigli (2003) — Budget, $54-74 million. Box office, $7,266,209. Suffered from Executive Meddling that shifted the focus from the crime-comedy elements to the "Bennifer" romance.
Glitter (2001) — Budget, $22 million. Box office, $5,271,666. This film's failure, along with that of the accompanying soundtrack album, sent Mariah Carey's career into recession for several years. Being released the weekend after the September 11th attacks (in what was already a traditionally poor month) couldn't have helped either.
The Golden Compass (2007) — Budget, $180 million. Box office, $70 million (domestically), $372,234,864 (internationally). Unfortunately, New Line Cinema had sold off the international distribution rights in order to raise enough money for the film's production, meaning that they only got the domestic gross, and never saw a penny of the international box office. As a result, New Line was absorbed into Warner Bros. soon after.
Gone Fishin (1997) — Budget, $53 million. Box office, $19,736,932. A tremendously Troubled Production, the movie suffered various delays, confused marketing (Disney couldn't entirely figure out whether to market it to older kids or adults), and a stuntwoman's death during filming. Disney sent it out to die against The Lost World: Jurassic Park, and director Christopher Cain didn't work on another theatrical film for ten years.
Grease 2 (1982) — Budget, $11.3 million. Box office, $15.1 million. The film's failure killed off plans for a third movie.
The Great Raid (2005) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $10,769,311.
Green Lantern (2011) — Budget, $225 million (plus another $100 million for marketing). Box office, $219,851,172. Warner Bros. wanted this to be their big new superhero trilogy, but combined with generally negative reviews and poor box office numbers, this appears to be a Stillborn Franchise (though there are still plans to have Green Lantern in the Justice League film, when and if it ever gets made).
Grindhouse (2007) — Budget, $67 million. Box office, $25,422,088. A rare film in that it was outperformed by its spinoffs.
Gulliver's Travels (2010) — Budget, $112 million. Box office, $42,779,261 (domestically), $237,382,724 (worldwide) and really put a dent in Jack Black's mainstream career.
Harts War (2002) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $33,076,815.
Havana (1990) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $9,243,140.
Heartbeeps (1981) — Budget, $10 million. Box office, $2.1 million. The film's failure killed any chances of Andy Kaufman doing a Tony Clifton movie.
Heaven's Gate (1980) — Budget, $44 million. Box office, $3,484,331. This film's failure led to the bankruptcy of United Artists, the ruination of director Michael Cimino's career and (along with other flops) the end of the auteur period in Hollywood, and became a byword for box office disasters.
Highlander II The Quickening (1991) — Budget, $30 million (not counting marketing costs), $34 million (counting them). Box office, $15,556,340. A notorious critical and commercial flop, noted especially for its Troubled Production and is a notorious example of Executive Meddling.
Holy Man (1998) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $12,069,719.
Honky Tonk Freeway (1981) — Budget, $24 million. Box office, $2,004,742.
Hot Rod (2007) — Budget, $25.3 million. Box office, $14.3 million.
Howard the Duck (1986) — Budget, $37 million. Box office, $37,962,774. Allegedly, two Universal executives got into a fistfight while arguing over who was to blame for greenlighting the film; both of them deny this. One of the few productions George Lucas has ever admitted regret over.
How Do You Know (2010) — Budget, $120 million. Box office, $48,668,907.
Hounddog — Budget, $5 million. Box office, $131,961. The film was intended to be a break into more adult material for star Dakota Fanning; its failure delayed this by a couple of years. Most notable for the controversy over a rape scene involving Fanning's character, and the subsequent dismissal by critics of said scene as being pure Narm.
Hudson Hawk (1991) — Budget, $65 million. Box office, $17,218,080. Numerous reports on the film's Troubled Production place the blame on Bruce Willis letting his ego run rampant, causing multiple reshoots and editing wars.
The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $2,816,518.
Hugo (2011) — Budget, $156 million (not counting marketing costs), $190 million (counting them). Box office, $185,770,160.
Idiocracy (2006) — Budget, $25 million. Box office, $495,303. It has been widely speculated that 20th Century Fox deliberately sabotaged the film's release and marketing (giving it a limited release and no advertising), partly because of all the Take Thats the film gives to its parent company's news division, and partly to avoid angering all the companies that had Product Placement in this movie.
Ill Do Anything (1994) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $10,424,645.
Inchon (1982) — Budget, $46 million. Box office, $5,200,986. In 1995, it made the Guinness Book of World Records as "the biggest money-loser in history," later to be surpassed by the aforementioned Cutthroat Island.
Instinct (1999) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $34,105,207.
Intersection (1994) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $21.3 million. Director Mark Rydell wouldn't direct another theatrical film for twelve years.
The Iron Giant (1999) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $31,333,917.
Ishtar (1987) — Budget, $55 million. Box office, $14,375,181. Its failure led to Coca-Cola leaving the film business, selling off Columbia Pictures to Sony.
The Island (1980) — Budget, $22 million. Box office, $15.7 million.
The Island (2005) — Budget, $126 million. Box office, $35,818,913 (domestically), $162,949,164 (worldwide).
Jade (1995) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $9,851,610.
Jack The Giant Slayer (2013) — Budget, $195 million (production alone), $295 million (marketing included). Box office, $65,039,498 (domestically), $197,539,498 (worldwide). This movie did horribly enough that Hollywood is reconsidering its trend of Darker and Edgier Fairy Tale Remakes.
Jaws The Revenge (1987) — Budget, $20 million (not counting marketing costs), $23 million (counting them). Box office, $20,763,013 (domestically), $51,881,013 (worldwide). The film's overwhelming Hatedom finally convinced executives that the Jaws hype from the seventies has long come to an end (the film was made purely of Executive Meddling).
John Carter (2012) — Budget, $250 million (not counting marketing costs), $350 million (counting them). Box office, $263,704,913. Once the movie's dismal American box office numbers came in, Disney anticipated that it would take a $200-million wash on the film; even after the international box office helped to at least partially salvage it, it still went down as one of the biggest flops in history.
Jonah Hex (2010) — Budget, $47 million. Box office, $10,547,117. Too many people just thought "It's Short, so It Sucks ," and coming out the same weekend as Toy Story 3 didn't do it any favors either.
Josie and the Pussycats (2001) — Budget, $39 million. Box office, $14.8 million. Ended up being a huge blow to Rachael Leigh Cook's leading career.
Judge Dredd (1995) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $34,693,481 (domestically), $113,493,481 (worldwide).
Judgment Night (1993) — Budget, $21 million. Box office, $12 million.
Just Visiting (2001) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $16,176,732. Its failure led to Disney shutting down Hollywood Pictures, though they would continue to use the brand for their home video releases. They later reopened the studio five years later.
K19: The Widowmaker (2002) — Budget, $100 million (not counting marketing costs), $135 million (counting them). Box office, $65,716,126.
The King And I (1999) — Budget, $25 million. Box office, $11,993,021. The film's negative reception and failure prompted the estates of Rodgers And Hammerstein to permanently mandate that animated adaptations of their works are to be completely forbidden.
Krull (1983) — Budget, $45-50 million. Box office, $16,519,460.
Ladyhawke (1985) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $18.43 million.
Land of the Lost (2009) — Budget, $142 million. Box office, $69,548,641.
The Last Castle (2001) — Budget, $72 million. Box office, $27,642,707.
Last Man Standing (1996) — Budget, $67 million. Box office, $47,267,001.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) — Budget, $78 million. Box office, $66,465,204 (domestic), $179,265,204 (worldwide). Derailed Sean Connery's mainstream career, as he effectively retired after his work here. Heck, this movie pretty much derailed everybody's careers.
The Legend Of The Lone Ranger (1981) — Budget, $18 million. Box office, $12.6 million. The bad reputation of the film's Troubled Production and legal issues put a dent in any possible success. Was supposed to be the big debut of leading actor Klinton Spilsbury, yet it ended up being his only film appearance.
Leonard Part 6 (1987) — Budget, $24 million. Box office, $4,615,255. At least, to Bill Cosby's credit, his television appearances concerning this movie were not to promote it, but to implore people to avoid it.
Life Stinks (1991) — Budget, $13 million. Box office, $4,102,526. The film's enormous critical and commercial flop was bad news for star, director, producer, and writer Mel Brooks, whose career took a downturn after this.
Little Nicky (2000) — Budget, $85 million. Box office, $58,292,295.
A Little Princess (1995) — Budget, $17 million. Box office, $10 million. Despite critical acclaim, Warner Bros. barely promoted the movie, and it floundered out during a very competitive month.
Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $68,514,844. The movie's financial failure led the WB to think the Looney Tunes don't have the lasting appeal that they hoped, canceling the planned Looney Tunes shorts in production. In light of this fiasco, the Looney Tunes will probably never get another theatrical film release in the foreseeable future (ironic, as it actually got decent critical reception).
Loser (2000) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $18.4 million. After this film's disappointing results, director Amy Heckerling took a break from movies until 2007's I Could Never Be Your Woman.
Lost Horizon (1973) — Budget, $12 million. Box office, $3 million.
Love Affair (1994) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $18,272,894.
Lucky Numbers (2000) — Budget, $63 million. Box office, $10,890,222.
The Majestic (2001) — Budget, $72 million. Box office, $37,317,558.
Mallrats (1995) — Budget, $6.1 million. Box office, $2,454,447. This and the aforementioned Canadian Bacon led to threats by Universal and PolyGram higher-ups to shut down Gramercy Pictures; it soldiered on until 2000.
Man Trouble (1992) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $4 million. Director Bob Rafelson's career never fully recovered after this.
The Man With The Iron Fists (2012) — Budget, $15 million (not counting marketing costs), $20 million (counting them). Box office, $18,416,465. It lost its audience due to its competition, and Universal, who quickly lost confidence with the film, gave it no promotion upon the release date.
Mars Needs Moms (2011) — Budget, $150 million. Box office, $39,549,758. Its failure caused Disney to shut down ImageMovers Digital, the production company it had formed with Robert Zemeckis (the film's producer) and the production of a Yellow Submarine remake; he would later reopen the studio at Universal.
Mary Reilly (1996) — Budget, $47 million. Box office, $12,379,402.
The Master (2012) — Budget, $32 million. Box office, $16,258,724 (domestic), $26,248,232 (worldwide). Protests from the Church of Scientology may have had a part in this film's failure (the main character is an Expy of L. Ron Hubbard).
Maximum Overdrive (1986) — Budget, $10 million. Box office, $7.4 million. Stephen King vowed to never direct another theatrical film again.
Meet Joe Black (1998) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $44,619,100 (domestically), $142,940,100 (worldwide).
Meet the Deedles (1997) — Budget, $24 million. Box office, $4.3 million.
Megaforce (1982) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $5,675,599.
The Meteor Man (1993) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $8,023,147. Compare this to director Robert Townsend's directorial debut, Hollywood Shuffle, which was made on a $700K budget and pulled in nearly $6 million, a huge success in terms of profit.
Mixed Nuts (1994) — Budget, $15 million. Box office, $6.8 million.
The Mod Squad (1999) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $13,263,993.
Monkeybone (2001) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $7.6 million (roughly). The film was significantly changed from its source material, and the resulting film was blasted by critics.
Motherhood (2009) — Budget $10 million. Box office $726,354. Easily the biggest bomb of Uma Thurman's career. Particularly notable for its British release, where it's the second-biggest flop of all time. It was shown in only one UK cinema and took �88 on its opening weekend. On its opening night it took �9. That's one ticket.
Mr. Bug Goes to Town (1941) — Budget, $713,511. Box office, $214,000. The film received almost no promotion from Paramount in either its 1941 release, nor its 1946 re-release as "Hoppity Goes To Town".
Mr Magoo (1997) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $21.4 million. Disney was forced to pull the movie shortly after release due to pressure from blindness advocates. It was a huge blow to director Stanley Tong as well, possibly one of the reasons why he never directed another American film again.
Multiplicity (1996) — Budget, $45 million. Box office, $21 million.
Nine (2009) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $53,998,806.
North (1994) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $7,182,747. Rob Reiner's career has never recovered.
Not Fade Away (2012) — Budget, $20 million. Box office, $427,000. Paramount basically gave this one the Invisible Advertising treatment as it was dumped onto the market with almost no trailers, TV or Internet spots or posters.
Nothing But Trouble (1991) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $8,479,793. This served as star Dan Aykroyd's only directorial effort behind the camera.
The Nutcracker in 3D (2010) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $14,678,086, nearly all of which came from the Russian market.
On Deadly Ground (1994) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $38.5 million. Considered by some to be the beginning of the end of Steven Seagal's popularity at the time.
One For The Money (2012) — Budget, $40 million, Box office, $36 million.
One From The Heart (1982) — Budget, $26 million. Box office, $636,796. This film bankrupted Francis Ford Coppola, with most of his work for the next two decades being done to pay off the debts he accrued from making it. Like Heaven's Gate, it also heavily contributed to the end of the New Hollywood era.
The Oogieloves In The Big Balloon Adventure (2012) — Budget, $20 million ($60 million when marketing is factored in). Box office, $1,065,907. The triple-G-rated film produced by Kenn Viselman (who was instrumental in importing Teletubbies to the United States) has become infamous for its absolutely dismal theatrical run. Notably, it underperformed Delgo in its opening weekend, becoming the new worst opening weekend for a film playing in around 2,000 theaters. Despite this, they are still going to make sequels.
Osmosis Jones (2001) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $14,026,418.
Outlander (2008) — Budget, $47 million. Box office, $7,033,683, nearly all of which came from overseas.
The Pebble And The Penguin (1995) — Budget, $28 million. Box office, $3,983,912. Became victim of constant Executive Meddling, with many of the voices getting rerecorded and characters heavily edited. It was the last production of Don Bluth's studio before he and co-director Gary Goldman moved to Fox. Bluth was so embarrassed with the film's final results that he had his name removed from the credits.
Peter Pan (2003) — Budget, $100 million. Box office, $48,462,608 (domestically), $121,975,011 (worldwide). The film's failure, thanks to a much bigger adventure film released the same month, resulted in Universal's parent company, Vivendi, to sell off 80 percent of its stake to NBC's parent, General Electric, which formed a partnership that later became NBC Universal.
Poseidon (2006) — Budget, $160 million. Box office, $60,674,817 (domestically), $181,674,817 (worldwide). This marked the derailment of director Wolfgang Petersen's career, as he hasn't helmed another feature since.
The Postman (1997) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $17,626,234. What Waterworld failed to do (since it actually turned a paper profit), The Postman succeeded in ending Kevin Costner's A-list status and his run as producer-director of his own movies. He would continue finding work as an actor (and even direct again), to relative success.
The Quick And The Dead (1995) — Budget, $32 million. Box office, $18.6 million. Started a slump of dismal performing Sam Raimi movies for the next several years.
Radio Flyer (1992) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $4,651,977. This could have been Richard Donner's last movie had it not been for Lethal Weapon 3 just three months later.
Red Planet (2000) — Budget, $80-100 million. Box office, $33,463,969.
Redacted (2007) — Budget was a modest $5 million. Box office was a very modest $65,000. That's sixty-five thousand dollars. International revenues added another... $700,000.
Reindeer Games (2000) — Budget, $42 million. Box office, $32.1 million.
The Rescuers Down Under (1990) — Budget, $37,931,000. Box office, $27,931,461 (domestically), $47,431,461 (worldwide). This is unsurprising, given what it was up against. However, thanks to worldwide gross, it luckily didn't hamper Disney's then-fledgling Renaissance. It did however prompt Disney to make all its future sequels Direct-to-Video. It's remembered fondly, however, for being popular with critics and for performing well in the VHS market.
Revolution (1985) — Budget, $28 million. Box office, $358,574.
Rhinestone (1984) — Budget, $28 million. Box office, $21 million. Possibly a Creator Killer for director Bob Clark, whose theatrical career turned low-key from then on after this film.
Ride With The Devil (1999) — Budget, $38 million. Box office, $635,096.
The Road To El Dorado (2000) — Budget, $95 million. Box office, $76,432,727. Plans for sequels were cancelled due to its lackluster take.
Robot Jox (1990) — Budget, $10 million. Box office, $1.2 million.
Rock A Doodle (1991) — Budget, $18 million. Box office, $11,657,385. This film sank Don Bluth's studio into bankruptcy, though it would survive to make three more critical and commercial busts (Thumbelina, A Troll In Central Park, and The Pebble And The Penguin), and turned star Glen Campbell into a laughingstock.
Rock And Rule (1983) — Budget, $8 million. Box office, $30,379. Yes, only thirty thousand bucks. The film received no promotion from MGM in either its original American release, nor its home video release.
Rock Of Ages (2012) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $59,418,613.
Rollerball (2002) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $25,852,764. It promptly ended Chris Klein's mainstream career.
Sahara (2005) — Budget, $241.1 million.^note Box office, $119,269,486. After a lawsuit put several documents relating to the film's production into the public domain, the Los Angeles Times did a report using the film as a case study in Hollywood Accounting and production costs run amok.
The Scarlet Letter (1995) — Budget, $46 million. Box office, $10,382,407.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010) — Budget, $85-90 million ($60 million after tax rebates). Box office, $47,664,559.
September Dawn (2007) — Budget, $11 million. Box office, $1 million. The controversial film lasted in theaters for two weeks before being pulled. It's the last theatrical release that Christopher Cain has directed so far.
Shadow Conspiracy (1997) — Budget, $45 million. Box office, $2,312,463.
Shanghai Surprise (1986) — Budget, $17 million. Box office, $2,315,683. Derailed Madonna's film career, but Sean Penn's mainstream career managed to recover (though their relationship did not). Director Jim Goddard, however, wasn't very lucky.
Shining Through (1992) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $43.8 million.
Showgirls (1995) — Budget, $45 million. Box office, $20,350,754. Derailed the Hollywood career of star Elizabeth Berkely, and the viability of NC-17 rated films in general.
A Simple Wish (1997) — Budget, $28 million. Box office, $8.3 million.
Sing (1989) — Budget, $11.5 million. Box office, $2.2 million.
Slither (2006) — Budget, $15 million (not counting marketing costs), $29.5 million (counting them). Box office, $12,834,936.
Soldier (1998) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $15 million.
Son of the Mask (2005) — Budget, $84 million. Box office, $57.5 million. Nearly every major cast and crew member who worked on this movie never recovered from it.
Sorcerer (1977) — Budget, $22 million. Box office, $12 million. (It didn't help that everyone on Earth was standing in line to watch Star Wars that year.)
A Sound Of Thunder (2005) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $11,665,465.
Speed 2 Cruise Control (1997) — Budget, $160 million. Box office, $48,608,066 (domestically), $164,508,066 (worldwide).
Speed Racer (2008) — Budget, $120 million (not counting marketing costs), $200 million (counting them). Box office, $93,945,766. Damaged the careers and reputation of the Wachowskis (though their fall was actually signaled much earlier, with The Matrix Revolutions).
Sphere (1998) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $37,020,277.
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $67.3 million. This ended up putting a temporary halt on any other Star Trek movies up until the reboot seven years later.
Stealth (2005) — Budget, $135 million. Box office, $76,932,872.
Stop-Loss (2008) — Budget, $25 million. Box office, $11 million.
Strange Days (1995) — Budget, $42 million. Box office, $7,959,291.
Stuart Saves His Family (1995) — Budget, $6.3 million. Box office, $912,082. This movie's failure put a temporary halt on the previously successful Saturday Night Live films until Night at the Roxbury three years later.
Sucker Punch (2011) — Budget, $82 million. Box office, $36,392,502 (domestic), $89,792,502 (worldwide).
Sugar & Spice (2001) — Budget, $27 million. Box office, $16.9 million. Was director Francine McDougall's theatrical debut; since its failure she has yet to do another one, mainly sticking to television features now.
The Super (1991) — Budget, $22 million. Box office, $11 million.
Super Mario Bros. (1993) — Budget, $42 million (not counting marketing costs), $48 million (counting them). Box office, $20,915,465.
Supercross (2005) — Budget, $9 million. Box office, $3 million (domestic). Apparently fared a little better outside America.
Supergirl (1984) — Budget, $35 million. Box office, $14.2 million. The film's failure was possibly a reason why superheroine movies were a wasteland for decades.
Supernova (2000) — Budget, $90 million. Box office, $14,828,081.
Swept Away (2002) — Budget, $10 million. Box office, $598,645. Madonna was so dismayed by the reception that she hasn't appeared in a starring live-action role since.
Switching Channels (1988) — Budget, $19 million. Box office, $9.1 million.
Take Me Home Tonight (2011) — Budget, $19 million. Box office, $6.9 million.
Tank Girl (1995) — Budget, $25 million. Box office, $4,064,495.
Tempest (1982) — Budget, $13 million. Box office, $5 million.
Terminal Velocity (1994) — Budget, $50 million. Box office, $16,487,349.
Texas Rangers (2001) — Budget, $38 million. Box office, $763,740. Sat on a shelf for two years before being shoved out to theaters. Director Steve Miner wouldn't direct another theatrical film for nine years.
Thats My Boy (2012) — Budget, $70 million. Box office, $57,719,093.
The Thief And The Cobbler (1993) — Budget, $28 million. Box office, $669,276 (No, we didn't mistype it). What Could Have Been perhaps a milestone in animation turned into one of the biggest flops of all time. The film sat on the shelf for decades because Richard Williams tried to completely finance it independently (a technique he was noted for in many of his projects) and failed to complete it on the deadline the studio set for him. It was then taken from him and then turned into a saccharine musical. He refuses to acknowledge any part of it and regrets having completion insurance for it.
The 13th Warrior (1999) — Budget, $85 million (not counting marketing costs), $160 million (counting them). Box office, $61,698,899.
A Thousand Words (2012) — Budget, $40 million. Box office, $20.5 million. Filmed in 2008, But was shelved for 4 years due to Dreamworks breaking away from Paramount.
Timeline (2003) — Budget, $80 million. Box office, $43,935,763.
Titan AE (2000) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $36,754,634. The film's failure, caused by lack of promotion due to 20th Century Fox's lack of confidence, led to the closure of Fox Animation Studios, the company Fox formed with the film's directors Don Bluth and Gary Goldman. Fox later returned to the animation industry by appointing Blue Sky Studios as their animation division beginning with Ice Age (which was initially going to be a 2D animated feature, until Titan A.E. bombed). It is both Bluth and Goldman's last major film project to date. It also was a major factor to ending The Renaissance Age of Animation (with the failures of the aforementioned Treasure Planet and Home on the Range serving as the final blows), as the film's failure convinced the major animation studios (Disney and DreamWorks to be more specific) that the traditional animation industry was no longer being classified as relevant thanks to the ever-growing popularity of computer animation (though there still are hopes for yet another renaissance).
Total Recall (2012) — Budget, $125 million. Box office, $58,877,969 (domestic), $198,467,168 (worldwide).
Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987) — Budget, $5 million. Box office, $858,250. Ryan O'Neal's infamous acting in this film ("OH GOD, OH MAN!") ended up denting what was a promising leading career for him. His acting career never fully recovered.
Town & Country (2001) — Budget, $90-105 million. Box office, $10,372,291. Warren Beatty's last role to date.
Treasure Planet (2002) — Budget, $140 million, Box office, $109,578,115. This and the failure of Home on the Range led Disney to (temporarily) abandon the traditional animation format.
A Troll In Central Park (1994) — Budget, $23 million. Box office, $71,368. You read that right, the film grossed less than one third of 1% of its budget, making it one of the biggest (maybe the biggest) box office flops in the history of animated films. Warner Bros. deliberately gave the film no promotion due to them having no confidence in it doing well.
Troop Beverly Hills (1989) — Budget, $18 million. Box office, $8.5 million. Though it did become a bit of a cult classic.
True Identity (1991) — Budget, $15 million. Box office, $4.6 million. British comedian Lenny Henry's foray into the American public, the film's bombing put a halt to his plans, and since then his only movie roles have been voiceovers.
Turbulence (1997) — Budget, $55 million. Box office, $11,538,235.
Turk 182 (1985) — Budget, $15 million. Box office, $3.5 million. It put Robert Urich's theatrical career to a screeching halt.
Under the Cherry Moon (1986) — Budget, $12 million. Box office, $10 million.
V.I. Warshawski (1991) — Budget, $24 million. Box office, $11.1 million. Arguably a Star Derailing Role for star Kathleen Turner.
Virus (1999) — Budget, $75 million. Box office, $30.6 million.
Wanderlust (2012) — Budget, $32 million. Box office, $24 million.
Waterworld (1995) — Budget, $175 million (with marketing: approximately $235 million). Box office, $264,218,220. Although the estimate gives the assumption that it broke even, studios often split the grosses with the theaters, generally 50/50. Thus, this infamous Troubled Production did, indeed, lose money at the box office.
The Watch (2012) — Budget, $68 million. Box office, $68,267,862. Its marketing campaign received controversy for allegedly being connected (in a way) to the Trayvon Martin case.
White Dog (1982) — Budget, $7 million (estimated). Box office, $46,509 (No, you didn't read it wrong). Noted for its especially Troubled Production, suffering from Executive Meddling from Paramount because of its racist characterizations (the film centered around a white dog terrorizing and maiming African-Americans), and destroyed Samuel Fuller's mainstream career. The general public has repeatedly criticized Paramount for not allowing a wide release of the film, given that the film gives an important lesson of the African-Americans' Dark and Troubled Past.
Wild Bill (1995) — Budget, $30 million. Box office, $2 million.
Wild Wild West (1999) — Budget, $170 million. Box office, $113,804,681 (domestic), $222,104,681 (worldwide).
Windtalkers (2002) — Budget, $115 million. Box office, $77,628,265.
Wyatt Earp (1994) — Budget, $63 million. Box office, $25,052,000.
XXX: State of the Union (2005) — Budget, $87-113 million. Box office, $71,022,683.
Year One (2009) — Budget, $60 million. Box office, $43,337,279 (domestic), $62,357,900 (worldwide). This film killed Harold Ramis' direction career, and also tarnished the star power of Jack Black and Michael Cera. It didn't help that audiences accused both actors of Typecasting.
Yes Giorgio (1982) — Budget, $19 million. Box office, $2,279,543.
Zyzzyx Road (2006) — Budget: $2 million. Box office: $30. Yes, thirty bucks, or six tickets (two sold to actors who appeared in the film; the director returned their money, so the film had a net box office of $20). To be fair, the film received only a one-week domestic release (playing one screen in Dallas) to comply with Screen Actors Guild rules. The producer had no intention otherwise of opening it in the U.S. until after it had foreign distribution. (Foreign gross to date: $368,000.)