Since 2020 will have an (at best) abridged summer movie season, and blockbusters typically go hand-in-hand with this time of year, I thought it would be fun to do a list of the biggest bombs in the history of Hollywood’s biggest season. For this list, I will be exposing the biggest money losers released between May and August (the typically-accepted “summer movie season”), and ranking them by how big of a financial bath they took after inflation is taken into account (although the original losses will be noted). There are even some films that lost over a hundred million dollars that weren’t even bad enough to make this list, such as: “Ben-Hur” ($121 million in 2016; $128 million after inflation), “Windtalkers” ($81 million in 2002; $115 million), “Evan Almighty” ($88 million in 2007; $109 million), “Battlefield Earth” ($73 million in 2000; $109 million), and “Fantastic Four” ($100 million in 2015; $108 million).
As with most box office bombs, these films failed because they were over-budgeted and just poor quality, but if you happen to like anything you see here then don’t get offended; I liked “Solo: A Star Wars Story” and that thing sunk like a stone to the tune of $76 million in losses. Each figure listed is the finances from its year of release, with the (inflation figure) also given. Let’s get into it.
10. Stealth (July 2005)
Budget: $135 million ($177 million)
Gross: $79 million ($103 million)
Losses: $96 million ($126 million)
9. Dark Phoenix (June 2019)
Budget: $200 million
Gross: $252 million
Losses: $133 million (N/A)
8. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (July 2001)
Budget: $137 million ($198 million)
Gross: $85 million ($123 million)
Losses: $94 million ($136 million)
7. The Adventures of Pluto Nash (August 2002)
Budget: $100 million ($142 million)
Gross: $7 million ($10 million)
Losses: $96 million ($136 million)
6. Titan A.E. (June 2000)
Budget: $75 million ($111 million)
Gross: $36 million ($53 million)
Losses: $100 million ($148 million)
5. King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (May 2017)
Budget: $175 million ($183 million)
Gross: $148 million ($154 million)
Losses: $153 million ($160 million)
4. Tomorrowland (May 2015)
Budget: $190 million ($205 million)
Gross: $209 million ($226 million)
Losses: $150 million ($162 million)
3. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (July 2003)
Budget: $60 million ($83 million)
Gross: $87 million ($121 million)
Losses: $125 million ($174 million)
2. The 13th Warrior (August 1999)
Budget: $160 million ($246 million)
Gross: $61 million ($93 million)
Losses: $129 million ($198 million)
1. The Lone Ranger (July 2013)
Budget: $250 million ($275 million)
Gross: $260 million ($286 million)
Losses: $190 million ($209 million)
Thanks for giving this a glance! I don’t know about you, but I miss sitting around in the sun reading about the summer box office, much less actually going to the theater. Hopefully “Tenet” and “Mulan” are here soon. Stay safe out there!
*all box office figures provided by Box Office Mojo