From animated favorites to holiday classics, these movies are beloved nowadays — but you
wouldn't be able to tell if you just saw how much money they made in theaters.
The bizarrely charming "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory"
wasn't a hit when it came out in 1971. Although it's considered a classic now,
it only earned about $4 million upon its release — which wasn't great, considering its $3 million
budget. This may have happened because it was marketed as a family-friendly film,
even though it had no shortage of moments that could be considered scary for children.
"Don't just stand there, do something!"
"Help. Police. Murder."
Roald Dahl, the author of the 1964 book the film was based on, was outspoken about his
dislike of the film adaptation. He didn't like the songs, the numerous changes to the plot,
or how the focus seemed to be on Willy Wonka rather than Charlie Bucket.
"Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" became much more popular after its re-release in 1996 and
availability on home video. It's now considered one of Gene Wilder's most iconic roles — and
that's saying a lot, considering he has no shortage of unforgettable performances. The film's
popularity led to the 2005 remake "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" starring Johnny Depp and the
prequel "Wonka" starring Timothée Chalamet, which is set for release in December 2023.
It may be the movie with the longest-ever theatrical run, but "The Rocky Horror Picture
Show" most definitely bombed during its initial release. Even though it was based on a popular
stage musical, the film adaptation only earned $21,245 in its opening weekend. Disappointed with
the premiere, 20th Century Fox pulled the movie from several other locations around the country.
For most films, that would have been the end of the story. But one advertising executive had a
brilliant idea: start showing "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" at one of the popular "midnight
shows" at the Waverly Theatre in New York City. When they did, it proved an instant hit.
After several months of late-night showings with a party-like atmosphere, one of Waverly's "Rocky
Horror" regulars — mild-mannered kindergarten teacher Louis Farese — started to shout improvised
lines back at the screen. The midnight showings soon spread to other theaters around the country,
along with the habit of shouted audience "call-backs." Eventually, dedicated fans
began to form "shadow-cast" performance troupes — acting out the film in costume on stage as the
movie plays on the big screen behind them. Within a year, "Rocky Horror" went from a
box-office bomb to a cult sensation that's still going strong more than 40 years later.
It's hard to believe that "The Wizard of Oz," one of the most beloved and influential films
of all time, bombed at the box office — but it's true. When the 1939 classic was released,
it made a mere $3 million against a production and distribution budget of over $4 million. People
just weren't rushing to the theaters to see a farm girl explore an alternate world with a lion,
a scarecrow, and a tin man. On the bright side, it mostly earned positive reviews and went on to
win two Academy Awards: one for best original song and the other for best original score.
"You ungrateful creatures! Think yourselves lucky that I'm giving you audience tomorrow,
instead of twenty years from now!"
The film started making profits after it was re-released in 1949, thanks in part to Judy
Garland's elevated stardom. It earned even more money after it was re-released again in 1955,
aired on TV beginning in 1956, and came out on home video in 1980. Nowadays,
it's an undeniable classic and has made around $25.6 million overall — not bad,
considering its original budget. The film has also inspired multiple remakes and spin-offs, including
the 2013 film "Oz the Great and Powerful" and the long-running Broadway musical "Wicked."
Many of us grew up watching "Hocus Pocus" every Halloween, so it might come as a surprise that
the cult classic wasn't an instant hit upon its 1993 release. The film grossed about $45 million,
so it managed to recoup its $28 million budget — but not by much when compared
to Disney's other holiday films. For instance, Disney had released "The
Santa Clause" the following year, which made almost $200 million on a $22 million budget.
"Hocus Pocus" should've been released around Halloween, but it was released
in July instead — a decision that essentially set it up to fail. Disney had thought a summer release
would be better for the movie, as kids would be out of school. From a practical standpoint,
a July release would mean that it wouldn't compete with their other spooky film set
to come out that year: "The Nightmare Before Christmas." While Tim Burton's holiday mashup
had nearly quadrupled its budget by the time it left theaters, "Hocus Pocus" wasn't so lucky.
Despite its underwhelming premiere, "Hocus Pocus" eventually put a spell
on viewers. It started airing on TV every Halloween in the late '90s,
and it gained even more fans after its 2002 DVD release. The sequel "Hocus Pocus
2" came out in 2022, starring the original trio of actors as the Sanderson sisters.
Ridley Scott's sci-fi epic "Blade Runner" left a huge impact on cinema and is considered nowadays
to be a science fiction masterpiece. Despite its current reputation, though,
it only grossed about $26 million in the summer of 1982 on a $28 million budget. To
make matters worse, many people who saw the movie didn't have great things to say about it.
Some viewers thought the pacing was slow and others didn't like how grim the story was.
"I've had people walk out on me before, but not when I was being so charming."
Many commercially successful films have simple plots and tons of action,
but Scott was more interested in making an artistic film with thought-provoking themes.
"Blade Runner" also had stiff competition when it was released: "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,"
"Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan," and "Conan the Barbarian" all came out around the same time.
As time went on, "Blade Runner" gained a sizable following and was recut multiple
times, ending up with about $39.5 million. Its popularity inspired
the 2017 sequel "Blade Runner: 2049," the 2021 animated series "Blade Runner:
Black Lotus," and the upcoming live-action series "Blade Runner 2099."
"Children of Men" has powerful themes about the resilience of the human spirit that are
just as relevant now as they were when the film came out in 2006. Unfortunately,
Alfonso Cuarón's masterpiece wasn't able to recoup the cost of its production,
earning around $70.5 million on a $76 million budget.
One reason for this was the film's limited theatrical release,
which meant many people couldn't see it even if they wanted to. On top of that,
Universal Pictures didn't market the movie successfully. They weren't sure
what demographic wanted to see a bleak dystopian sci-fi movie devoid of flashy laser guns and
flying spaceships, and their promotional campaign reflected their uncertainty.
On the plus side, "Children of Men" has since gotten the recognition it
deserves. The film was met with glowing reviews upon its release,
and it has an impressive critic score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. It won multiple awards as well,
including best science fiction film at the Saturn Awards and best cinematography at the BAFTAs.
"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" is one of those movies that people either love or hate.
Unfortunately for director Terry Gilliam and the hundreds of people who worked on the film,
most people hated it when it came out in 1998. It earned a mere $13.7 million in theaters,
failing to break even on its $18.5 million budget. The movie's style of
storytelling isn't for everyone; it's chaotic, trippy, and downright confusing at times,
meant to mimic the altered state of mind that the characters are in due to their constant drug
usage. Regardless of the intent, some audiences find it more overwhelming than entertaining.
"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" gained a cult following after it was released
on DVD. Johnny Depp, who starred as Raoul Duke, had since skyrocketed in popularity
after portraying Captain Jack Sparrow in 2003's "Pirates of the Caribbean" — and as
the Black Pearl sailed into movie history, "Fear and Loathing" followed in its wake.
Additionally, movies using the altered stream-of-consciousness style had become
more mainstream in the past years, so it wasn't as jarring for viewers anymore. This
allowed audiences to admire the film for its unique style and themes of self-indulgence,
disillusionment, and the constant search for the American dream.
"I mean, if a thing's worth doing, it's worth
doing right. This is the American dream in action."
When Paul Verhoeven's "Starship Troopers" came out in 1997, its marketing made it seem as though it
would be a goofy science-fiction adventure rather than a satire of the military-industrial complex.
Thanks in part to this bait-and-switch, poor word of mouth led to the movie earning a mere
$54.8 million during its domestic release — slightly over half of its $105 million budget.
"Starship Troopers" didn't have a star-studded cast to draw audiences in: the lead actors were
Casper Van Dien and Denise Richards, who weren't big names at the time. The film was also quite
different from the 1959 novel by Robert Heinlein that it was based on, which definitely threw some
people off. The book depicted military life in a positive light, and audiences may have assumed the
film would do the same — nothing could be further from the truth. What really put the nail in the
coffin, though, was the movie's release date: it came out the same year as "The Lost World:
Jurassic Park" and a month before "Titanic," so it had a tough time gaining notoriety.
Although "Starship Troopers" was vastly misunderstood upon its release,
it eventually gained popularity among a niche audience. It eventually went
on to reach a final gross of $121 million overall thanks to international screenings.
The animated family film "The Iron Giant" has gained an impressive audience since its release
in 1999, but it was initially a huge commercial failure. Brad Bird's beloved tearjerker only
made about $31.3 million against a $50 million budget due to poor marketing from Warner Bros.
They had recently released the film "Quest for Camelot" which had bombed at the box office,
so they weren't willing to spend a lot of money promoting another animated movie. As a result,
hardly anyone seemed to notice when "The Iron Giant" was finally released.
Despite all of that, the movie was adored by those who did go to see it. Fans and
critics alike praised the film for its beautiful animation, likable characters,
and balance of funny and heart-wrenching moments. By the time it was released on DVD, it had already
established a following — but being available on home video helped it reach an even wider audience.
"You're a good guy. Like Superman."
"Superman."
"Treasure Planet" was packed with adventure, quirky characters,
and beautifully animated scenes, so it should've been a box office hit — but
that wasn't the case. The film cost a whopping $140 million to make and
grossed about $110 million, costing Disney a pretty penny after its 2002 release.
Unfortunately, this movie was doomed to fail: it was set for release around the same time as "Harry
Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," "The Santa Clause 2," and "Die Another Day." Disney also
didn't market the film very well, and its target audience was unclear. Despite being promoted as a
family film, the plot is a bit too complicated for children, the main character is a moody teenager,
and there are no princesses or musical numbers to be found. At the same time,
its perceived status as a kids' movie kept the older crowd from flocking to theaters to see it.
Although "Treasure Planet" garnered mixed reviews and tanked at the box office, people started
recognizing its unique charm after it came out on DVD. They came to love the film's mature themes,
relatable characters, and stunning animation style that mixes hand-drawn frames with CGI.
Countless films have faded into obscurity over the years, but "Citizen Kane" has
remained highly renowned for decades. It wasn't always so popular, though,
as it earned about $1.6 million against its $800,000 budget when
it came out in 1941. That made Orson Welles' masterpiece not much of a financial success,
despite the many positive reviews it received for its outstanding performances and cinematography.
"I did lose a million dollars last year,
I expect to lose a million dollars this year. I expect to lose a million dollars next year!"
The main reason for the disappointing turnout was the controversy surrounding the film prior
to its release. Powerful publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst was offended by
his similarity to the movie's troubled main character, Charles Foster Kane — so
he did everything he could to stop the film from being released. As a result,
it had a delayed and limited rollout, which severely impacted its box office
performance. It did, however, win best original screenplay at the Academy Awards.
"Citizen Kane" gained a lot more praise after it was re-released in the 1950s and
began airing on TV. As the years went on, it became considered one of the best of the best,
influencing countless other films and earning its place in cinematic history.
When it comes to Christmas movies, "It's a Wonderful Life" is a go-to
for many families year after year. When the movie came out in 1946,
though, it was such a failure that it led to director Frank Capra's production company
shutting down. The future holiday classic originally had a budget of about $2 million,
but multiple script rewrites and changes to the crew nearly doubled the cost of production.
It earned a measly $3.3 million upon its 1946 release and garnered mixed reviews.
"It's a Wonderful Life" was released a few years after World War II had ended,
which contributed to its unimpressive box office numbers. American audiences were not necessarily
in the mood for a supposedly inspirational holiday movie that eventually has a happy ending,
but also features more than a few shockingly dark moments. The film also came out around
the same time as "The Best Years of Our Lives," which blew it out of the water.
"It's a Wonderful Life" didn't become popular until decades later. Its copyright ended in 1974,
so TV channels started airing it every Christmas because they didn't have to pay any royalties
for it. People began realizing how good of a film it truly is, and the rest is history.