10 time legendary movie directors made huge box office bombs, from Francis Ford Coppola to Steven Spielberg

The grim opening weekend of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis proved that Even the world’s most legendary filmmakers are immune to the occasional box office bomb. Even the promise of a new movie from the director of The godfather And Apocalypse now Is not enough to get the audience to theaters. No movie is guaranteed to find success at the box office. Some of Hollywood’s most iconic, grandfathered-in filmmakers, from Martin Sorceress to Steven Spielberg, have suffered commercial flops (with some of their best movies, no less).

of course, Sometimes a director gets too ambitiousAnd their own vision trumps the need to entertain the audience. This was the case with Oliver Stone AlexanderMichael Cimino S Heaven’s gateAnd indeed Megalopolis. In some cases, a director’s chances at the box office are hurt by the lingering effects of the pandemic, like Christopher Nolan’s. Tenet – which arrived in theaters at the height of lockdown – or Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel. And sometimes, a movie just fails to connect with a wide enough audience to turn a profit.

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Francis Ford Coppola – Megalopolis

Megalopolis earned $4 million against a $120 million budget

The latest movie from a legendary director to bomb at the box office is Francis Ford Coppola’s epic sci-fi drama Megalopolis. Megalopolis is a passion project that Coppola has been dreaming about since the 1970s. Coppola self-financed Megalopolis$120 million budget by selling off a piece of his winery business. Despite its star-studded cast, raft of controversies that provide free publicity, and the director of The godfather trilogy at the helm, Megalopolis Earned $4 million in its opening weekend (via Term).

The writing was on the wall for Megalopolis‘ box office struggles. When Coppola initially screened the film for distributors, no studio wanted to pick it up because they thought it had no chance of making a profit (and they were right). But since Coppola made the movie for the sake of the art itself He could get lost with moneyThis box office bomb is not as financially devastating as it sounds.

9

Martin Scorsese – Hugo

Hugo barely recouped his production costs

Martin Sorcese usually makes low-budget character dramas like Taxi driver And Raging BullWhat do not need to dig a ton of money to make a profit. But in 2011, Scorsese tried his hand at a big-budget blockbuster Hugo, A fantasy adventure set in 1930s Paris. This was his first foray into making a family film (besides his self-referential cameo in Shark part), as well as his first foray into 3D filmmaking. all said, Hugo Cost around $180 million to produce.

When it arrived in theaters, it made back its production budget almost to the penny with a worldwide total of $180,047,784 ( via The numbers). But since the figure does not take into account the marketing costs or the average of the exhibitors, it was considered a box office bomb. Although Hugo Is a great film, it struggled to find an audienceSince it is also family-friendly for Goodfellas Fans and also loud and intellectual for kids.

8

Oliver Stone – Alexander

Alexander earned $167 million on a budget of $155 million

In 2004, Oliver Stone stepped outside his comfort zone to helm a mega-scale three-hour biopic of Alexander the Great. With a budget of $155 million, Alexander was One of the most expensive movies ever made at the time. But its casino receipts didn’t match its ambitions, as it grossed just $167,298,192 worldwide (via Box Office Mojo). Although the film did well in the European markets, it failed to find an audience in America.

At the time, similar swords-and-boots epic like Gladiator And Troy has found box office success. But the difference was that the movies were well-received, whereas Alexander was universally panned by critics. Alexander was compared unfavorably to the movies for being dry and academic, although they were action-packed and entertaining. It has also been criticized for its historical inaccuracies and lack of emotional engagement.

7

Michael Cimino – Heaven’s Gate

Heaven’s Gate was a historic flop

Michael Cimino had perhaps the fastest rise and fall in Hollywood history. In 1978, Cimino’s second directorial feature, The Deer Hunterwas hailed as one of the greatest war movies ever made, winning Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director. Cimino was instantly catapulted to the A-list and given carte blanche for his follow-up movie. then, his next movie, Heaven’s gatewas panned by critics and became one of the biggest box office bombs in film history.

Heaven’s gate Cost $44 million to produce and grossed a paltry $3,484,331 at the box office (via Box Office Mojo). According to Peter Biskind’s book Easy riders, raging bullsThe failure of Heaven’s gate is credited with single-handedly ending the New Hollywood movement. American studios stopped giving authors like Cimino so much artistic control and focused on more commercial projects throughout the 1980s.

6

Christopher Nolan – Tenet

Tene made an admirable $359 million during the pandemic (but still lost money)

yet Inception, InterstellarAnd The Dark Knight trilogy, it seemed as though Christopher Nolan could do no wrong. He is one of the few filmmakers whose name alone can attract blockbuster crowds to movie theaters.

But Even Nolan is not a miracle worker. In the summer of 2020, when big-budget movies like Black Widow And A Quiet Place Part II were sent to streaming or delayed indefinitely, Nolan insisted on giving his spy-fi thriller Tenet a traditional pre-pandemic-style theatrical release.

Considering It arrived in the midst of lockdown When governments around the world advised people to stay in their homes, Tenet Made an impressive haul at the box office. It grossed $359,518,466 (via The numbers), which is more than some of the most expensive films in 2024 have made. But it wasn’t enough to recoup its $205 million budget and the marketing costs on top of that.

5

Orson Welles – Citizen Kane

Before it was a famous classic, Citizen Kane was a box office bomb

Today, Orson Welles Citizen no is a revered masterpiece considered one of the greatest movies ever made. But When it was released in 1941, it was not an immediate hit. Welles based the character of Charles Foster not-so-subtly on media magnate William Randolph Hearst, who was none too pleased that a cinematic critique was produced in his honor.

According to the books Orson Welles, a biography By Barbara Leeming, The RKO Story by Richard B. Jewell and Vernon Harbin, and The Making of Citizen Kane By Robert L. Carringer, Hearst used his widespread influence to bury Citizen no.

A theater chain with more than 500 theaters has the option to screen Citizen noBut refused to show it out of fear of Hearst’s retaliation. As a result of Hearst’s small disruptions, Citizen no Lost $160,000 during its initial theatrical run. It would ultimately turn a profit in re-releases, however It took a while for it to be recognized as a classic.

4

Quentin Tarantino – Death Proof

Death Proof was released as part of a double feature

Like Nolan, Quentin Tarantino is a one-man hit factory whose name alone can turn even the most experimental film—like a blood-soaked, darkly comic spaghetti western about American slavery—into a blockbuster hit. But, like Nolan, Tarantino also had a notable box office bomb to his name. In 2007, Tarantino teamed up with fellow filmmaker Robert Rodriguez to helm the double feature Greenhouse.

Rodriguez directed the first film on the bill, the zombie comedy Planet TerrorWhile Tarantino directed the second, the genre-blending car exploitation slasher Death proof. Although it was a cool idea to recreate an old-school B-movie double feature, Greenhouse was a box office bomb, grossing just $25,422,088 against its $67 million budget (via Box Office Mojo).

if anything, Planet Terror And Death proof Replicated the scratchy, amateur feel of the old exploitation movies a little too well. The audience that shared Tarantino and Rodriguez’s penchant for drive-in double features was quite limited.

3

David Lynch – Dune

The original Dune adaptation was not a blockbuster

Although Denis Villeneuve would eventually turn Don In a blockbuster franchise, David Lynch’s original adaptation was not as successful. Lynch’s films are so weird and transgressive That they never made much of a splash at the box office. However, movies like Makerhead And Blue velvet They are relatively cheap to produce, so this has never been a big problem.

Don Lynch’s first (and last) time making a big-budget tentpole for a major studio. Lynch Don Cost a whopping $40 million to produce (equivalent to about $120 million today) and only grossed $30,928,421 at the box office (via Box Office Mojo).

The movie was hurt by the fact that It tried to squeeze the entire novel into one movie – a mistake that Villeneuve mercifully closed – which did not give the rich themes of Frank Herbert’s opus enough room to breathe. Despite its underperformance at the box office and initial mixed reviews, Lynch’s Don has since been reevaluated as a cult classic.

2

Ridley Scott – The Last Duel

The Last Duel only earned $30 million against its $100 million budget

In the months leading up to its release in 2021, The last duel Seems to have everything going for him. This was Ridley Scott’s return to the historical epic genreAnd it was Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s first screenwriting collaboration since their Oscar-winning work on Good luck hunting. It was based on the fascinating true story of the last official duel in French history, told from three different perspectives in a Rajman-style structure.

But The last duel arrived as one of the biggest box office bombs in history, grossing just $30,080,003 against its $100 million budget (via The numbers). There are a couple of factors involved The Last Duels failure. It was overbudgetedIt deals with the challenging subject of sexual assault (and shows it twice), and it arrived at the end of the pandemic, when audiences are still wary of returning to theaters.

1

Steven Spielberg – West Side Story

Spielberg’s West Side Story suffered from post-pandemic blues

Steven Spielberg, the originator of the summer blockbuster, has finally realized his lifelong ambition to remake West Side Story In 2021. But despite being hailed as One of the best films of the directors of the 21st centurySpielberg’s West Side Story Bomb at the box office. It grossed just $74,826,329 against its $100 million budget (via The numbers).

like The Last Duel, West Side Story Suffered from its post-pandemic release window. But this is not the only reason for West Side Storys underperformance. The musical genre has not been doing well at the box office in recent years. Modern musical movies like in the heights And The color purple have similarly struggled to make their money back. Even though West Side Story is one of Spielberg’s best films, there was no big audience for it.

Source: TermThe Numbers, Box Office Mojo, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, Orson Welles, A Biography, The RKO Story, The Making of Citizen Kane