There are an ᴀssortment of reasons leading up to a film’s release that make it obvious to audiences it’s destined to fail at the box office. Many of the biggest box office flops in the previous year were from celebrated directors and featured a stacked cast full of beloved actors, and yet, it wasn’t much of a surprise to see their box office numbers were less than ideal. Films like Megalopolis and Joker: Folie à Deux were once highly anticipated by critics and audiences as a director’s pᴀssion project and promising sequel, respectively.

However, the closer it came to the films being released, the more obvious it became that they wouldn’t be well-received. Many of the other box office failures that were no surprise were surrounded by discouraging conversations detailing messy productions and constantly delayed release dates. Early reviews of such films were also mostly negative and were a telltale sign that much wouldn’t change once they were made available for the general public to see.

10

Fly Me To The Moon (2024)

An Underwhelming Story That Didn’t Catch Audiences’ Attention

Loosely based on the Apollo 11 mission, Fly Me to the Moon follows a marketing specialist (Scarlett Johansson) teaming up with a NASA launch director (Channing Tatum) to orchestrate a fake moon landing in case the real mission winds up failing. Fly Me to the Moon was initially set to be released on Apple TV+, but positive test screenings prompted it to have a theatrical release instead.

Unlike other recent box office flops, the reviews of Fly Me to the Moon weren’t entirely negative. Many complimented Johansson and Tatum’s chemistry and comedic abilities. However, the film’s rough blend of a historical drama and a romantic comedy led to an underwhelming story that audiences simply weren’t interested in watching in theaters. With a production budget of $100 million, Fly Me to the Moon earned $42 million.

9

Harold And The Purple Crayon (2024)

It Was Reviewed Negatively And In Compeтιтion With Anticipated Films

Based on the 1955 children’s book of the same name, Harold and the Purple Crayon follows its тιтular child into adulthood (Zachary Levi). The film was released toward the end of summer, following the success of other family movies like Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4. The success of such films continued for months after their initial release, showing early signs that Harold and the Purple Crayon would likely struggle at the box office.

In addition to fighting against films targeted at a similar audience, Harold and the Purple Crayon was also in compeтιтion with anticipated films like ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine and Trap. Against a $40 million budget, the film grossed $32 million and earned largely negative reviews from critics. The poor reviews and tough compeтιтion at the box office, combined with audiences’ general lack of interest in the older IP resulted in a less-than-surprising performance at the box office.

8

Here (2024)

A Creative But Isolating Premise Had General Audiences Disinterested

The premise of Robert Zemeckis’ Here is ambitious and had many people excited to see the director reunite with the film’s stars, Tom Hanks and Robin Wright, decades after the release of Forrest Gump. The setup of the film, which depicts the events of a single spot of land over multiple decades, was enough to intrigue audiences looking for fresh ideas and innovation following the release of big franchises and IP movies.

However, Zemeckis’ unique ideas failed to draw in a substantial crowd, which led to the film performing poorly at the box office— earning just over $13 million on a roughly $45 million budget. The simplicity and restrictions of the filmmaking choices in Here weren’t appealing to general audiences. On Rotten Tomatoes, Here‘s audience score of 59% isn’t terrible, but it means the film’s quick drop from the top 10 theatrical releases in the first few weeks of its release isn’t shocking.

7

Argylle (2024)

Audiences Weren’t Interested After Learning About Its Mediocrity

Acting as a standalone spin-off in the Kingsman franchise, Argylle had the potential to be an entertaining film that mixed comedy with espionage and drew audiences to the theaters for a fun time. Argylle has a stacked cast with actors like Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Henry Cavill, and Bryan Cranston. In the film, a writer (Howard) finds herself caught up in the world of espionage after discovering the events in her book mirror those in the real world.

Argylle is, without a doubt, entertaining, especially in the first half of the film. It’s humorous and energetic but loses steam due to its unnecessarily lengthy runtime. Argylle is overstuffed with plot twists, creating a plot that quickly becomes confusing and exhausting. This combination of negative takeaways was made apparent early on in the film’s theatrical run, leaving many unsurprisingly disinterested.

6

Borderlands (2024)

A Video Game Adaptation Pᴀssionate Fans Didn’t Appreciate

Video game adaptations are tricky to pull off, as any sort of deviation from the source material must be beneficial to the whole product. Unfortunately for Borderlands, the changes from the original game series resulted in an abysmal box office performance. With a budget of roughly $120 million, Borderlands grossed $33 million. Additionally, the film, which sits at a 10% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, earned largely negative reviews.

Among the overwhelmingly negative reception to Borderlands, some reviews did praise Cate Blanchett’s performance as the outlaw Lillith. Still, Blanchett, or the rest of the film’s big names, wasn’t enough to draw audiences to the theaters. Despite the film’s failures, a positive outcome of its release was the increase in sales of the Borderlands games. On Steam, Borderlands 3 players doubled to about 12,000 following the release of Eli Roth’s film (via Sports Illustrated).

5

Kraven The Hunter (2024)

The End Of The SSU Was Received As Poorly As Recent Installments

Kraven the Hunter‘s box office numbers aren’t surprising considering the film’s multiple delays and the lack of success Sony’s had with their Spider-Man Universe films. When it was announced that Kraven the Hunter would be the last installment in the series of films, many took this as a sign that the franchise wouldn’t be going out on a bang. Still, there was hope when taking into account the film’s gripping, dark story and Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s promising ability to lead as the тιтular character.

However, it quickly became apparent Kraven the Hunter would be yet another disappointing superhero release. With a budget of over $100 million, the film barely grossed over $59 million. The response from audiences on sites like Rotten Tomatoes isn’t stellar, but it does suggest the film has enough going for it to be entertaining despite its flaws. Critical reception hasn’t been as kind, with many finding fault in the film’s technical aspects, including its visual effects and defective use of ADR.

4

Megalopolis (2024)

Production Troubles Weren’t A Promising Sign

Francis Ford Coppola’s return to the big screen was highly anticipated by fans of his work. The story of Megalopolis was conceptualized in the ’80s and after Coppola’s had been turned down time and time again by studios, the director took matters into his own hands and provided the funds for a majority of the film’s budget. The decades-long stall increased the excitement and intrigue surrounding Megalopolis for some, but was an early sign of disaster for others.

Critical response to the film was mixed, with some calling it an utter failure and others labeling it as a masterpiece that’ll likely be better appreciated down the road. Still, positive reviews of the film weren’t enough to save it at the box office as Megalopolis earned $13 million against an estimated $136 million budget.

3

The Crow (2024)

Rebooted A Film That Was Better Left Untouched

From the moment it was announced that Alex Proyas’ film The Crow would be rebooted, audiences were highly skeptical of its success. Though reboots of beloved films do find success, it’s not always expected, especially those with a style as distinct as the original 1994 film. The film, remembered most for its ᴀssociation with a heartbreaking real-life tragedy, features an incomparable performance by Brandon Lee and is visually delightful without sacrificing a compelling story.

Due to these factors, many fans of the original were doubtful about the reboot led by Bill Skarsgård, with some being opposed to the idea entirely. The film grossed $24 million against a $50 million budget and earned negative reviews from critics. As expected, The Crow was strongly compared to the original and, unfortunately, did not live up to its success. The Crow‘s mediocre execution and negative reception weren’t surprising to those who didn’t deem it necessary in the first place.

2

Joker: Folie À Deux (2024)

Fans Weren’t Enthusiastic About The Sequel’s Musical Treatment

The success of Joker in 2019 isn’t too much of a surprise, as the тιтular character has been popular with audiences for quite some time. The film took home several awards, including an Oscar for Joaquin Phoenix. The positive response to the first film set plans for a sequel in motion. With Phoenix returning and Lady Gaga co-starring, anticipation for Joker: Folie à Deux was high at one point.

It was then revealed the film would have a musical element, and though it’s not what fans of the first film were anticipating or wanting in the sequel, the hopeful atтιтude of audiences hadn’t completely diminished. However, early reviews of Joker: Folie à Deux weren’t positive, and it was easy to ᴀssume the film wouldn’t do well once it was released to the public either. The lackluster response at the box office and the negative conversations surrounding Joker: Folie à Deux led the film to be a flop.

1

Madame Web (2024)

A Promising Origin Story Didn’t Get The Treatment Fans Wanted

Regarded as the worst superhero movie of 2024, Madame Web‘s unintentional humor and poor storytelling led it to become a box office failure. The film, led by Dakota Johnson, tells the origin story of Cᴀssie Webb, as she gains special abilities and sets out to protect three women from an antagonist hoping to kill them before their inevitable transformation into Spider-Women. The trailer and early clips of Madame Web were highly talked about by superhero fans but for the wrong reasons.

Madame Web features one of the worst decisions in the SSU, sidelining its Spider-Women characters and reserving their action scenes for brief flashforward sequences. The expectation that these characters would play a bigger part came as a result of the film’s deceiving trailer. Madame Web‘s accidental campy tone and Johnson’s stiff performance as the тιтular hero predictably turned audiences away from the film soon after its release.