A movie is deemed a box office bomb (or box office flop) in the film and media industries if it fails to make money for the distributor, studio, and/or production firm that invested in it by a sizable margin after being released in theaters. The statistics of losses are typically at best estimations due to the secrecy surrounding expenditures and profit margins in the film industry, and there are sometimes disagreements about how much a film has lost. Where this is the case, the losses are provided as ranges to account for this uncertainty, and the list is arranged alphabetically in the absence of a clear hierarchy. Losses are adjusted for inflation using the United States Consumer Price Index to enable comparison at equivalent purchasing power because currency inflation is a significant impact given that the films on the list were released over a significant period of time.
List Of Top 10 Biggest Box Office Failures In 2022
1. Strange World
On November 23, Disney released their most recent computer-animated movie, which centers on an alien planet-exploring family. Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid, Jaboukie Young-White, Gabrielle Union, and Alan Tudyk all provide their voices to Strange World. The film’s superb animation, environmentalist overtones, and inclusion of a main character who is openly gay all contributed to its generally favorable reviews. Strange World, however, had a miserable box office performance. Although it still has a long way to go at the box office, its $130–185 million budget has only been met with a total take of $42.3 million. According to estimates, Disney will end up losing more than $140 million on the movie. Disney released its animated films on streaming services rather than in cinemas recently, which may have encouraged viewers to hold out and watch the movie at home on Disney+, contributing to the flop.
2. Moonfall
A gang of astronauts and conspiracy theorists seek to preserve Earth in the sci-fi movie Moonfall, which had its world debut on February 4. The movie had a sizable $138–146 million budget, impressive visual effects, and an all-star ensemble that included Halle Berry and Michael Pea. Moonfall, however, was panned by critics who criticized the plot and screenplay for being unbelievable, absurd, and confused as well as being extremely dull and lacking in meaning. In the end, Moonfall barely made it with $67.3 million in total box office receipts, costing Lionsgate roughly $140 million, partly as a result of the criticism and a weak premise.
3. Lightyear
The fifth entry in the Toy Story series, Lightyear made its debut on June 17. Chris Evans voices the movie version of Buzz Lightyear in Lightyear, a spinoff of the Toy Story franchise that chronicles the story of the movie that served as the inspiration for the Buzz Lightyear toy. Critics gave it mixed to excellent reviews, praising the animation, voice acting, and humor but criticizing the plot. Lightyear was a failure despite the two most recent Toy Story movies collecting over $1 billion at the box office. In contrast to its $200 million budget, it made a total of $226,4 million. Lightyear cost Pixar over $100 million after accounting for significant marketing and advertising expenses and the fact that studios can only keep a certain percentage of the proceeds from the box office. This is possibly because the film had to compete with Jurassic World Dominion and Top Gun: Maverick and was unrelated to the Toy Story series.
4. Amsterdam
On October 7, Amsterdam made its debut, and like The 355, it had a stellar cast. Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Anya Taylor-Joy, Zoe Saldana, and many more can be found in this one. David O. Russell tried to make a bizarre, hilarious, and complex movie that explores the Business Plan political plot of 1933, but he failed miserably. Critics commended portions of the acting and the spectacle but panned the movie for being dull, awkward, and pointless. Russell, meantime, has faced multiple charges of abuse and violence over the years, which have surrounded him in scandal. It is not surprise that Amsterdam underperformed, earning $31 million at the box office against a large $80 million budget, given the negative reviews and a filmmaker that many people wished they had avoided.
5. The 355
With a cast that included Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Fan Bingbing, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyong’o, and Sebastian Stan, The 355 made its debut on January 7. Despite having a stellar ensemble, the movie only managed to achieve a pitiful 25% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics who were critical of the formulaic, unoriginal action plot that wasted the abilities of the cast. The 355 performed poorly at the movie office, grossing $27.8 million against an anticipated $40–75 million budget due to its unimpressive premise and negative reviews.
6. Cyrano
Based on Edmond Rostand’s 1897 drama Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano had its world debut on February 25. Peter Dinklage plays the title character in the movie, while Roxanne, played by Haley Bennett, is his love interest. Most of the reviews for Cyrano were favorable, and it was nominated for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. However, the movie had a disastrous box office performance when it opened in theaters, earning only $6.4 million globally against a $30 million budget. Cyrano was only shown in roughly 790 theaters in the United States, it should be mentioned. It was also made available a week before The Batman. The figures aren’t shocking because it wasn’t showing in many cinemas and was overshadowed by The Batman. Despite the fact that it received favorable reviews, it is still unclear why it had such a small release.
7. Bros
Bros, one of the only LGBTQ+ rom-coms produced by a major studio and with a predominately LGBTQ+ cast, made history when it debuted on September 30. When compared to its $22 million budget, Bros underperformed at the box office despite getting praise for its humor and representation. Billy Eichner, the star of Bros, blamed homophobia and the lack of support from straight people for the movie’s failure. While this is a contributing factor, there are other possible explanations, including the fact that comedy films in general have lower box office appeal and that Bros struggled to attract audiences due to a lack of star power.
8. The Bob’s Burgers Movie
The hit cartoon series Bob’s Burgers served as the inspiration for the May 27 release of The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Because it occurs between the 12th and 13th seasons of the show, the movie connects to it. Although it actually merely presented more of what we’ve seen in the series, it earned generally favorable reviews. Despite spending $38 million, the Bob’s Burgers Movie only made $34.2 million at the movie office. Its failure is hardly unexpected given that it competed with the box office titans Jurassic World Dominion and Top Gun: Maverick. Additionally, it was targeted towards a certain audience because most of its viewers were Bob’s Burgers fans.
9. The Northman
The Northman, which debuted on April 22, 2022, also included the acting prowess of Anya Taylor-Joy and Alexander Skarsgrd and delivered a horrific, gruesome, and epic Viking revenge story. The Northman earned overwhelmingly excellent reviews for its stunning cinematography, Norse mythology, and sense of retribution. But it also did poorly at the box office. The exact budget hasn’t been confirmed, so it’s unclear how much money was lost, but it was supposedly in the $70-$90 million area. The Northman, meanwhile, ended up making $69.6 million at the box office. Due to their simultaneous release dates and comparable target audiences, The Northman and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent might have both fallen short of their box office goals.
10. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
On April 22, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent made its debut, and the Nicolas Cage and Pedro Pascal bromance it featured pleased viewers. The movie failed to make money at the box office despite receiving mostly favorable reviews. Against a $30 million budget, it made $29.1 million globally. Its failure is uncertain, but comedies as a whole frequently have trouble at the box office. Comedy rarely promises a great visual spectacle, and more people may choose to see comedies at home rather than in a theater in the era of streaming.
