10 of 2023 Box Office Flops That Frankly Deserved It
It was not a very good year…
It's no secret that 2023 was a rough year for the movie industry. With Barbie and Oppenheimer being the biggest hits that made a lot of money and were critically acclaimed, there were a number of releases that turned out to be total disappointments.
Here are the movies that were doomed from the start.
1. Ruby Gillman
This animated movie ended up being DreamWorks Animation's biggest flops. Although it was rated as “fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie with a teenage kraken as a main character still was a commercial failure. With a budget of $70 million, it barely made half of it at the box office. The fans are sure that the main reason for that is poor marketing.
2. The Expendables 4
The fourth installment of the franchise was a waste of time for the audience and a waste of money for the creators. The budget for the action movie starring Sylvester Stallone and Jason Statham was around $100 million, and that's not counting the money spent on marketing. To break even, the movie needed to gross over $200 million, but it barely made $150 million.
3. Strays
The R-rated comedy with talking dogs as main characters was a questionable choice for a release, but it seems like the creators of the movie never thought that way. However, they probably have changed their minds after a $46 million budget movie grossed $9.5 million…
4. The Flash
Another disaster was The Flash starring Ezra Miller in the titular role. There are no specific reasons why this happened; the film's box office struggles are the result of a mixture of bad luck, bad decisions, and trends. With a $220 million budget, it only brought in $139 million worldwide.
5. The Creator
Gareth Edwards’ project cost $80 million to be produced, however made only almost $30 million worldwide.
“The hype around it was basically people wanting to support original sci-fi rather than the actual movie itself. Even the positive reviews were basically backhanded compliments,” Redditor Hot-Marketer-27 said.
6. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
One of this year's Disney disasters is the failure of the latest Indiana Jones movie. In fact, many fans of the franchise were surprised that the company would continue the franchise after the not-so-successful previous installment and cast the aging legend Harrison Ford to reprise his iconic role. The film had a huge budget of around $300 million and made close to the same amount worldwide.
7. Blue Beetle
Blue Beetle ended up being the lowest grossing movie in the entire DCEU, earning only about $25 million on a budget of $104 million. It's obvious that no one at Warner Bros. expected this, nor did the executives at DC. However, there are many reasons why the movie failed commercially: bad release date, poor marketing, and a story that was clearly not enough to lure people to cinemas.
8. Haunted Mansion
Another Disney failure is Haunted Mansion, released this summer. The family-friendly horror flick failed to find an international audience, grossing just under $23 million overseas on a budget of $115 million. Maybe rebooting a movie that flopped 20 years ago wasn't the best idea?
9. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
The film ended up getting great reviews, but still turned out to be a commercial failure. With a budget of $150 million, it only made nearly $60 million more than it cost to make. The main reason for this was probably the fact that the movie was intended for a niche audience.
10. Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre
The movie, starring A-listers like Aubrey Plaza, Jason Statham, and Hugh Grant, was surprisingly a huge financial disappointment. Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre made $27.5 million on a $50 million budget. And even the complex plot and the excellent casting didn't help.