Flop Like A Fish
Movies cost a lot of money—and that means they can lose a lot of money.
Here are the biggest flops in movie history, rounded up to the highest estimate, adjusted for inflation. It's more fun that way!
John Carter, Disney, 2012 - Lost $250 Million
If you don't remember John Carter, well, then you're part of the problem! Disney thought John Carter was going to be the start of a big new franchise. Instead it's...well, the biggest bomb in history.
Walt Disney, John Carter (2012)
The Lone Ranger, Disney, 2013 - Lost $239 Million
Gore Verbinkski's The Lone Ranger flopped before anyone had heard anything about Johnny Depp or Armie Hammer, so it can't even blame them!
Walt Disney, The Lone Ranger (2013)
The Marvels, Disney, 2023 - Lost $237 Million
2019’s Captain Marvel made over a billion dollars for Disney, so a sequel was a no-brainer. But, uh, some things changed between 2019 and 2023.
The follow-up, The Marvels, lost over $200 million.
Walt Disney Pictures, The Marvels (2023)
The 13th Warrior, Touchstone (Disney), 1999 - Lost $227 Million
Another Disney debacle, the studio was so sure that audiences wanted to see a Muslim adventurer among Vikings that they shelled out $160 million to make The 13th Warrior in 1999. Audiences did not want to see that, and the movie made it to third on our list.
Touchstone Pictures, The 13th Warrior (1999)
Mortal Engines, Universal, 2018 - Lost $204 Million
Cities on wheels is a great pitch—but it wasn't enough to make Universal Studios' adaptation of Philip Reeve's young adult novel successful. The movie cost as much as $150 million to make and...did not make that much.
Universal, Mortal Engines (2018)
Cutthroat Island, MGM, 1995 - Lost $202 Million
Geena Davis and Matthew Modine couldn't make the Reny Harland-directed swashbuckler a hit after the chaos of rewrites, reshoots, and recasts. We blame MGM, the studio—but you can blame whoever you want!
Canal+, Cutthroat Island (1995)
Joker: Folie A Deux, Warner Brothers, 2024 - Estimated To Lose $125–200 Million
Director Todd Phillips brought in Lady Gaga for the sequel to his 2019 billion-dollar-grosser Joker—and yet he still managed to churn out a picture that audiences hated, critics hated, AND is on track to be one of the biggest flops in the history of Hollywood.
Warner Bros., Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)
Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas, Dreamworks, 2003 - Lost $199 Million
In 2003, Finding Nemo was the future—and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas was the past. Finding Nemo made nearly a billion dollars. Sinbad nearly bankrupted Dreamworks.
DreamWorks, Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas (2003)
Strange World, Disney, 2022 - Lost $199 Million
Look, any movie on this list that was released between 2020 and 2022 deserves a BIG pass.
Walt Disney, Strange World (2022)
Battleship, Universal, 2012 - Lost $191 Million
Did you know Rihanna was in Battleship? Pretty cool. Didn't get people to go see it, though.
Mars Needs Moms, Disney, 2011 - Lost $187 Million
It would seem that Earth did not need Mars Needs Moms.
Walt Disney, Mars Needs Moms (2011)
Pan, Warner Bros, 2015 - Lost $185 Million
The Peter Pan prequel with Garrett Hedlund as a hunky, young Hook and Rooney Mara as the Native American princess, Tiger Lily. Surprisingly, it wasn't a smash hit.
Tomorrowland, Disney, 2015 - Lost $185 Million
Disney has turned theme park attractions into successful movie franchises before—but Tomorrowland was a swing and a miss.
Warner Bros., Tomorrowland (2015)
King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword, Warner Bros, 2017 - Lost $183 Million
Guy Ritchie directing a gritty, rough-and-tumble King Arthur story? Sounds great, right? Well, people in 2017 didn't think so.
Warner Bros., King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword (2017)
Titan A.E., 20th Century Fox, 2000 - Lost $170 Million
There used to be two big names in animation: Disney and Don Bluth. If you don't know Don Bluth today, well...that's probably because of Titan A.E.
20th Century, Titan A.E. (2000)
Turning Red, Disney, 2022 - Lost $167 Million
Another 2020-2022 doomed movie, moving on. At least you can see it on streaming!
Warner Bros., Turning Red (2022)
Jungle Cruise, Disney, 2021 - Lost $162 Million
This technically deserves the 2020-2022 pass, but I'm giving it out begrudgingly.
Walt Disney., Jungle Cruise (2021)
Mulan, Disney, 2020 - Lost $159 Million
Oof, Disney sure had a lot of stuff coming out in 2020-2022. I wonder if they made any money in 2019...
The Adventures Of Pluto Nash, Warner Bros, 2002 - Lost $156 Million
Ahh, finally a good old-fashioned, non-pandemic related flop! Eddie Murphy was once maybe the biggest star in the world. Surely nothing with him in it could fail, right? Welp, people weren't saying that after 2002.
Warner Bros., The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002)
Dark Phoenix, 20th Century Fox, 2019 - Lost $155 Million
Look, there was definitely lots of money to be made with superheroes in 2019—but Dark Phoenix wasn't it.
20th Century, Dark Phoenix (2019)
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, Sony, 2001 - Lost $155 Million
It took a long time before any movie studio figured out how to successfully make a video game adaptation. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, with its PS2-era graphics was one attempt, but it didn't quite work out...
Sony, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)
Wonder Woman 1984, Warner Bros, 2020 - Lost $155 Million
2020, obvious pass for Wonder Woman 1984. Some of the later DC movies? Not so much of a pass.
Warner Bros., Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
The Flash, Warner Brothers, 2023 - Lost $155 Million
They had Ezra Miller as the Flash, how did it go wrong?
Warner Bros., The Flash (2023)
A Wrinkle In Time, Disney, 2018 - Lost $152 Million
Disney must have thought their adaptation of the classic children's novel was a sure thing with Oprah Winfrey in a rare starring role. They would have been wrong, though.
Walt Disney, A Wrinkle In Time (2018)
Terminator: Dark Fate, 20th Century Fox, 2019 - Lost $152 Million
After T2, Terminator sequels have never worked—so paying almost $200 million for one in 2019 maybe wasn't the best bet.
20th Century, Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
Monster Trucks, Paramount, 2016 - Lost $150 Million
Guys, it's a monster. Trucks! The trucks...are monsters! That's the movie! Yeah, it didn't work then either. Poor Creech never stood a chance.
Paramount, Monster Trucks (2016)
Jupiter Ascending, Warner Bros, 2015 - Lost $148 Million
Yours truly is one of the world's premiere Jupiter Ascending defenders and will be taking no more questions at this time.
Warner Bros., Jupiter Ascending (2015)
Onward, Disney, 2020 - Lost $147 Million
Another pandemic pass. Did you know this movie stars Tom Holland and Chris Pratt? It's good, too.
The Alamo, Touchstone (Disney), 2004 - Lost $146 Million
Remember The Alamo? If not, that's alright. No one went to see it.
Ben Hur, Paramount/MGM, 2016 - Lost $146 Million
They used to make big, epic historical movies like Ben Hur back in the 50s. They do it less today—in part because of movies like the 2016 Ben Hur remake.
Stealth, Sony, 2005 - Lost $144 Million
Hyper-advanced robot plane vs scrappy fighter pilots? They fumbled the ball with this in 2005—someone remake this STAT!
Heaven's Gate, United Artists, 1980 - Lost $144 Million
After his success with The Deer Hunter, Michael Cimino wasn't going to take feedback from anyone. The result was Heaven's Gate, one of the greatest debacles in Hollywood history.
How bad was it? The budget ballooned to $44 million by the time it was finished. Its final gross? $3.5 million.
United Artists, Heaven's Gate (1980)
How Do You Know, Sony, 2010 - Lost $140 Million
Back in the 80s, James L Brooks made some of Hollywood's most beloved comedy-dramas. Did he still have the juice in 2010? Audiences say: "Nope!"
Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny, Disney, 2023 - Lost $134 Million
Raiders of the Lost Ark cost $20 million and made almost $400 million. The Dial of Destiny reportedly cost almost $400 million. It made more than $20 million—but still lost $134 million when all was said and done.
Walt Disney, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny (2023)
Moonfall, Lionsgate, 2022 - Lost $138 Million
A movie about a moon crashing into the Earth, I know, sounds like a slam dunk. I don’t know who screwed up, but it ended up losing over $100 million.
Wish, Disney, 2023 - Lost $131 Million
With a budget at upwards of $200 million, Disney bet big on Wish—and it didn’t pay off. It lost over $100 million at the box office.
But don’t worry, I’m sure it’s only been watched 100 billion times on Disney+.
The Matrix: Resurrections, Warner Bros, 2023 - Lost $130 Million
The Matrix is the greatest film of all time. If the Wachowskis want to make another sequel, you’re going to give them the money.
Unfortunately, you just might not get it back.
Warner Bros., The Matrix Resurrections (2021)
The Suicide Squad, Warner Bros, 2021 - Lost $135 Million
2021 was a weird time. James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad loses Warner Bros and DC over $100 million, and what do they do?
Give him the reins to their entire franchise.
Warner Bros., The Suicide Squad (2021)
Haunted Mansion, Disney, 2023 - Lost $117 Million
Even if Haunted Mansion was a quarter as successful as Disney’s other “Ride-Turned-Movie,” it was going to be worth the investment!
It wasn’t worth the investment.
Walt Disney, Haunted Mansion (2023)
Cats, Universal, 2019 - Lost $70-$100 Million
It’s good that Cats lost nearly $100 million, because if not, I would have had to start a $100 million class-action lawsuit against Universal on behalf of everyone who saw Cats.
Deepwater Horizon, Lionsgate, 2016 - Lost $60-$100 Million
Do you remember the movie Deepwater Horizon? Do you even remember what the Deepwater Horizon was?
Well, Lionsgate bet big on this real-life disaster story that cost over $100 million. Bad move.
Lionsgate, Deepwater Horizon (2016)
Chaos Walking, Lionsgate, 2021 - Lost $112 Million
I bet you didn’t even know that Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley were in a $125 million movie called Chaos Walking in 2019. That’s probably a big part of how it lost $112 million.
Lionsgate, Chaos Walking (2021)
Gemini Man, Paramount, 2019 - Lost $111 Million
Ang Lee and Will Smith bet big on High Frame Rate being the next big thing in the movies. Well, there’s a reason you don’t hear much about high frame rate today…probably because their big showcase movie, Gemini Man, lost over $100 million.
Space Jam: A New Legacy, Warner Bros, 2021 - Lost $111 Million
Perhaps one of the worst pieces of popular entertainment ever created.
Warner Bros., Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021)
Amsterdam, 20th Century Studios, 2022 - Lost $108 Million
It’s one thing to lose $100 million on some big, bombastic swing. Losing it on a David O’Russell period crime caper? Shame on you!
Twentieth Century, Amsterdam (2022)
Lightyear, Disney, 2022 - Lost $106 Million
And just to be clear, it was the film about Buzz Lightyear, the character that the toy was based on, that lost $106 million.
West Side Story, 20th Century Studios, 2021 - Lost $104 Million
Proof that even great movies can bomb.
Twentieth Century, West Side Story (2021)
Jack The Giant Slayer, Warner Bros, 2013 - Lost $103 Million
Warner Bros bet that Jack and the Beanstalk was just the kind of hot IP that they’d been looking for. They gave it the edgier title Jack The Giant Slayer…and proceeded to lose $100 mil.
Warner Bros., Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)
Black Adam, Warner Bros, 2022 - Lost $50-100 Million
Dwayne Johnson promised that the balance of power in the DC Universe would change after the release of Black Adam, and he was definitely right.
When the movie flopped, DC scrapped the entire thing and started from scratch.
Warner Bros., Black Adam (2022)
A Christmas Carol, Disney, 2009 - Lost $50-$100 Million
Only Robert Zemeckis could take Charles Dickens’s classic story A Christmas Carol and turn it into an uncanny debacle that loses the studio upwards of $100 million.
