7 Superhero Movie Flops That Lost Millions at the Box Office

Among the 19 top-grossing films globally at the box office, eight are superhero movies. These blockbusters have consistently appealed to a wide range of cinema-goers worldwide, with blockbusters such as “Avengers: Endgame” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home” becoming so popular they’ve joined an exclusive group of films that have earned over $1.9 billion globally. Given the success of superhero movies at the box office, it seems like creating a superhero film is almost equivalent to printing money for major studios. After all, isn’t a superhero movie the closest thing a studio can get to making money effortlessly?

It’s common knowledge that not every superhero movie reaches the level of success as “Black Panther”. Over time, numerous superhero films have ended up losing significant amounts of money for their investors and production studios. These massive failures, particularly the seven largest in history, demonstrate that even large sums of money or well-known brand names can’t rescue a movie idea if people simply aren’t interested. Arranged from smallest to greatest losses, these seven monumental flops showcase how a supposedly “invincible” subgenre continues to bleed millions, despite being backed by Marvel or DC.

Fantastic Four (2015)

The final line in Josh Trank’s Fantastic Four film was supposed to convey a sense of amazement, but the reaction from 20th Century Fox executives was far from that when they saw the movie’s earnings at the box office. Instead of launching a new franchise and keeping the Fantastic Four property away from Marvel Studios, this film flopped, earning only $167.9 million globally. In North America alone, it managed to gather just $56.1 million over its entire lifetime, which is similar to the opening weekends of the two previous Tim Story Fantastic Four movies. Later reports revealed that the movie lost around $100 million, a humiliating outcome.

Black Adam

As a movie reviewer, I must confess that my initial expectations for “Black Adam” were sky-high, considering its potential to reshape the power dynamics within the DC Universe. Regrettably, it seems general audiences met this film with a collective shrug rather than the thunderous applause I had hoped for.

Although the worldwide box office earnings of $393.3 million may not be disastrous in absolute terms, they fell short of the grandeur that such an ambitious production deserved. The movie’s budget was an eye-watering $200 million, and when you factor in marketing costs, it becomes clear that “Black Adam” was a pricey proposition for Warner Bros.

Reports from Variety later suggested that the film could end up losing as much as $100 million. While Dwayne Johnson has since disputed these figures, there’s no denying that Black Adam left Warner Bros. counting some pretty hefty losses. It’s not surprising then, that the DC Universe opted for a radical change in direction post “Black Adam.

The Suicide Squad

Similar to Wonder Woman 1984, The Suicide Squad is a superhero film that had a disappointing performance at the box office, but with an important caveat: it was released on HBO Max simultaneously with its theater debut. The initial Suicide Squad was met with harsh criticism (and let’s not forget the five-year gap between installments), which likely didn’t help generate a positive response from viewers. It’s no surprise then that this movie, made at a cost of $185 million, only managed to gross $167.4 million worldwide, resulting in approximately $119.5 million in losses.

Dark Phoenix

In days gone by, films from 20th Century Fox’s X-Men series consistently earned over $400 million at the box office. As late as 2017, Logan managed to pull in more than $700 million globally. However, Dark Phoenix, which marked the end of this era of mutant cinema, was met with widespread criticism and only grossed a disappointing $252.4 million worldwide against a budget of $200 million. This resulted in an estimated loss of $133 million, a stark contrast to the substantial profits seen in previous X-Men movies.

Wonder Woman 1984

Initially, there was much excitement for the movie “Wonder Woman 1984” due to its follow-up role to the successful 2017 box office hit. However, since its release in December 2020, the film has gained widespread criticism and become a frequent joke. The poor box office earnings haven’t helped its image. Released on both cinemas and HBO Max on Christmas Day 2020, “Wonder Woman 1984” had a smaller theatrical presence compared to its predecessor despite having a larger $200-million budget. This unconventional release method resulted in the film earning only $166.5 million globally and reportedly losing $136.5 million.

The Flash

Prior to its premiere, “The Flash” was highly anticipated by film industry insiders and artists as one of the best superhero movies ever produced. However, when it finally hit theaters, it didn’t create the history anyone at Warner Bros. hoped for or envisioned. Instead, “The Flash” became the most expensive flop in the history of superhero films, with a global gross of only $271.3 million against a production budget that could reach as high as $220 million. This meant a loss of $155 million for Warner Bros. Pictures, demonstrating just how far “The Flash” fell short of its pre-release predictions.

The Marvels

It’s likely that those involved with The Flash felt a sense of relief when the earnings for The Marvels started to be revealed, given that this sequel to Captain Marvel brought in just $274.8 million worldwide – an amount which fell short by over $1 billion compared to the original Captain Marvel. To add insult to injury, its domestic earnings of $84.5 million made it the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film not to reach the $100 million mark in the U.S. In the end, The Marvels cost Disney and Marvel Studios a staggering $237 million at the box office, making it one of the rarest titles in cinema history to lose over $200 million during its run. In essence, The Marvels was a significant flop at the box office, demonstrating just how precarious the superhero genre can be financially.

The Marvels is now streaming on Disney+.

2025-01-21 04:09