The superhero movies of theMCU, theDCU, and beyond sometimes fail at the box office despite no one seeing it coming. The superheromovies of the DCEU, the MCU, and other franchises might have built the genre to unprecedented heights in terms of pop culture relevance and general financial success, but not all films in the genre follow the same path. With budgets and competition running high, superhero movies can sometimes prove to be risky endeavors for studios.
Not all superhero movies are financially successful, and while somesuperhero box office flops surprise no one, others have been significantly less expected. In some cases, early expectations for a movie are incredibly high, only for the reality to fall wildly short of the mark, leading to catastrophic box office results that make a film a financial disaster. With that in mind, here are 10 superhero box office flops that nobody saw coming.
10Shazam! Fury Of The Gods (2023)
Gross Box Office: $134.1 Million
Coming late in the DCEU’s movie timeline,Shazam! Fury of the Godswas once considered the movie capable of saving the franchise. After a run of disappointing releases and announcements,Fury of the Godscame as a highly anticipated follow-up to one of the DCEU’s best movies, 2019’sShazam!. Unfortunately, the movie struggled at the box office, earning only mixed reviews and going down in history as a financial failure.
Will Zachary Levi’s Shazam return in the DCU after James Gunn’s recent canon comments?
Despite the sequel’s mid-credits scene seemingly confirming his future in the new franchise, James Gunn recently confirmed that Shazam! Fury of the Gods' tag of Harcourt and Economos recruiting Zachary Levi’s titular hero for the Justice Society will not be canon in the DC Universe. As such, the question now becomes whether Shazam will actually return for the DCU, or if Gunn will leave him behind. Despite being one of the better reviewed subfranchises of the now-defunct DC Extended Universe, I do think it’s more likely that Levi won’t be back, as his actual plans for the DCU don’t seem to leave much room open for Shazam to appear, unless Gunn greenlights future installments under the Elseworlds label.
Shazam! Fury of the Godsboasted an excellent supporting cast and a continuation of the premise and tone that made the first film such a success. However,dwindling interest in the DCEU due to its impending reboot was at an all-time low, and the movie simply failed to achieve even a modicum of successat the box office. Ahead of its release, it seemed on track to be at least capable of turning a decent profit, butFury of the Gods' failure instead came as something of a surprise.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods
Cast
Shazam! Fury of the Gods continues the adventures of Billy Batson and his foster siblings, who transform into superheroes by uttering “Shazam.” The group faces a new threat in the form of the Daughters of Atlas, who possess a weapon capable of global destruction, prompting the heroes to take action.
Gross Box Office: $168.7 Million
The 2021 follow-up to 2016’sSuicide Squad, James Gunn’sThe Suicide Squad, was promised to be an improvement upon almost every aspect of its predecessor. While the earlier movie earned a respectable sum at the box office, it was not appreciated by critics or audiences. Early reactions to the sequel indicated that it was a huge improvement upon its predecessor, withThe Suicide Squad’s new castboosted by the appearance of several respected actors.
The film’s box office failure couldn’t have been predicted ahead of time, as it was ultimately down to unprecedented global circumstances, unfairly earningThe Suicide Squadthe accolade of being a box office flop despite its quality.
Sadly,The Suicide Squadwas a box office disappointment, despite receiving largely positive reviews.It was released at a time when theatrical releases were struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic, andThe Suicide Squadtook a major financial hit as a result.The film’s box office failure couldn’t have been predicted ahead of time, as it was ultimately down to unprecedented global circumstances, unfairly earningThe Suicide Squadthe accolade of being a box office flop despite its quality.
The Suicide Squad
The Suicide Squad: Released in 2021, The Suicide Squad features supervillains Harley Quinn, Bloodsport, and Peacemaker, among others, as they join Task Force X. The team embarks on a mission on the enemy-held island of Corto Maltese under the direction of Amanda Waller in this entry of the DC Extended Universe.
8Super (2010)
Gross Box Office: $593,933
James Gunn’s career as a filmmaker has seen him achieve several reasonably unexpected successes, but he has also suffered occasional failures, too. 2010’sSupertook an irreverent look at the superhero movie genre, poking fun at the overlooked brutality of superhero stories and putting a more humorous and grounded spin on common tropes.The movie’s modest budget and great cast seemed to make it a sure thing for box office success.
Superwas actually a horrendous box office flop, earning only a little more than 20% of its budget back. This was unexpected, as it featured Rainn Wilson - at the height ofThe Office’s run, no less – a young Elliot Page, alongside Kevin Bacon and Liv Tyler, and was made on a budget of just $2.5 million. Even so, mixed reviews led to a poor box office take, andSuperwent down in superhero movie history as a major financial disappointment.
Super
Super is a 2010 film directed by James Gunn, featuring Rainn Wilson as Frank Darbo. After his wife, played by Liv Tyler, succumbs to the influence of a drug dealer, Frank transforms into the Crimson Bolt, a well-intentioned but unskilled superhero, seeking to rescue her and fight crime.
7Green Lantern (2011)
Gross Box Office: $237.2 Million
As one of theworst DC moviesever made, looking back onGreen Lanternmakes it box office failure seem an inevitability. However, ahead of its release, this wasn’t at all the case. Ryan Reynolds was one of Hollywood’s most exciting new leading men, and Green Lantern was a beloved hero making his live-action debut in the modern era of superhero blockbusters, meaning that the movie seemed destined for huge success.
I Still Can’t Get Over The Way The DCU Just Broke Green Lantern’s 13-Year-Long Movie Hiatus
I’m still surprised by how the DCU ended the Green Lantern’s cinematic absence, but it has made me even more excited for Superman and Lanterns.
Upon release,Green Lanternactually turned out to be a disaster. The movie tanked with critics and audiences, and thoroughly bombed at the box office, withits total losses being estimated at around $180 million. Considering all the factors that should have seemingly contributed toGreen Lantern’s success, its failure was initially incredibly surprising, even in light of the movie’s poor reviews, although its reputation as a truly terrible comic book movie has since come to precede it.
6Dark Phoenix (2019)
Gross Box Office: $252.4 Million
ThoughFox’s X-Men movie franchisenever quite earned itself a reputation for critical success, its movies rarely struggled at the box office. In fact, after 2011 saw the franchise reboot to introduce younger iterations of its heroes, it underwent something of a surge in popularity, with interest in its live-action X-Men stories renewed. 2019’sDark Phoenixseemingly promised to right the wrongs ofX-Men: The Last Standby offering a more robust adaptation of the Marvel Comics’ storyline of the same name.
BothX-Men: The Last StandandX-Men:Dark Phoenixadapted “The Dark Phoenix Saga,” which first debuted inX-Men #129(January 1980).
Adapting such a popular narrative madeDark Phoenixseem a certainty for financial success, particularly after the franchise’s other box office takes even with its worst movies. However,Dark Phoenixbombed at the box office, with its projected losses being in excess of $130 million.Though it would have initially seemed unlikely to happen,Dark Phoenixwent down as one of the most unexpected failures in the history of the X-Men franchise.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix
The team faces internal and external challenges in X-Men: Dark Phoenix, as Jean Grey transforms after absorbing a cosmic force during a space rescue mission. This newfound power tests her stability, prompting the X-Men to confront both Jean’s volatile state and alien forces seeking to exploit her abilities.
5Supergirl (1984)
Gross Box Office: $14.3 Million
1984 saw the release ofSupergirl, a spin-off of the successful Superman movies starring Christopher Reeve. Released and set shortly afterSuperman III,Supergirlseemed likely to achieve at least reasonable box office success, especially as 1980’sSuperman IIhad proven every bit as wildly popular as its 1976 predecessor. ThoughSuperman IIIwas a marked downgrade, it was still assumed thatSupergirlwould earn a respectable sum.
Supergirl’s failure at the box office was beyond catastrophic, though.Against a budget of around $35 million,Supergirlis estimated to have lost $56 million, as it needed to clear the $70 million mark to be considered a success. Instead, it earned just $14 million, and was widely panned by critics before being largely forgotten. Considering its projected losses exceeded the movie’s actual budget, it’s safe to say thatSupergirl’s failure was unique.
Supergirl
Supergirl is a 1984 DC movie starring Helen Slater as the titular character. The movie acted as a spinoff of Christopher Reeve’s Superman movies, which ran from 1978 to 1987. Reeve decided not to appear in this spinoff, and Supergirl was unfortunately critically panned upon release. The plot revolves around Kara Zor-El coming to Earth to collect a powerful orb but ending up in a battle against a wicked witch.
4Justice League (2017)
Gross Box Office: $661.3 Million
When considering all angles, it would appear that the DCEU’s first major team-up movie would be guaranteed success on several fronts. Firstly, being the team’s first full live-action appearance afforded it a certain novelty, and secondly, the MCU’s counterpart, 2012’sThe Avengers, broke records with its financial success. Add to that the addition of iconic heroes to the franchise in the movie, and expectations forJustice Leaguewere high.
DC Is Already Setting Up The Next Justice League Movie Badly
The Justice League has yet to step up in the DCU, but they have already had several key developments that make them appear incredibly disappointing.
The movie’s ultimate box office take upon release proved to be incredibly disappointing.Justice Leaguetook $661.3 million at the box office, which, when judged against its assumed break-even point of $750 million, means thatits estimated losses were calculated at around $60 million.Behind-the-scenes issues were assigned much of the blame, though the simple fact remains that 2017’sJustice Leagueis one of DC’s most unexpected box office failures.
Justice League
2017’s Justice League brings together iconic DC heroes under the direction of Zack Snyder. In the aftermath of Superman’s sacrifice, Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince recruit metahumans Barry Allen, Arthur Curry, and Victor Stone to combat the dire threat posed by Steppenwolf and his Parademons.
3Dredd (2012)
Gross Box Office: $41.5 Million
ThoughDreddhas since earned a considerable cult following, the 2012 movie is well-known to have been a box office flop. However, at one time, this was actually quite the surprise, as it was expected to be able to turn a considerable profit. Due toDredd’s relatively low budget of between $30 – 45 million and the character’s continued popularity and significance in pop culture, the movie was seemingly given a low financial bar to clear.
Sadly,Dreddwas unable to meet its targets, despite receiving mostly positive reviews. The film’s marketing and distribution received much of the blame, andDredd’s box office failure saw plans for a franchise all but scrapped. As the movie didn’t need to make a huge amount to break even,its status as a box office flop proved shocking, especially when weighed up against the cult following it has amassedsince its release.
Dredd
Based on the comic character created by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra, Dredd is a sci-fi action movie that stars Karl Urban as Judge Dredd, a law enforcement officer who can commute sentences as quickly as he issues them. Set in a dystopian New York-like city called Mega-City One, Dredd is tasked with hunting down a drug lord who controls a massive 200-story apartment complex named Ma-Ma, pushing a new addictive drug called “Slo-Mo” that has become widely used in the slums.
2Fantastic Four (2015)
Gross Box Office: $167.9 Million
Though 2005’sFantastic Fourand its 2007 sequel,Rise of the Silver Surfer, did not receive critical praise, they were both financially successful. The announcement of a 2015 reboot helmed by Josh Trank was met with significant interest, particularly as the director had recently found success withChronicle, a found-footage superhero movie. The track record of both the characters and the director were encouraging signs for 2015’sFantastic Fourat the box office.
The film tanked upon release, receiving scathing reviews from critics and failing to capture the imagination of its audience.This led toFantastic Fourbeing a huge financial flop, with estimated losses of around $60 millionafter it earned $167 million worldwide. When weighed up against the many other factors such as the financial success of other superhero movies at the time and the previous experience of Josh Trank,Fantastic Four’s failure was all the more surprising.
Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four is a 2015 superhero film centered on four young outsiders who gain startling abilities after teleporting to a treacherous universe. As their lives are transformed, the team must harness their new powers to protect Earth from a former friend who becomes their adversary.
1Superman Returns (2006)
Gross Box Office: $391.1 Million
2006 was tipped to be a big year for the Man of Steel, asSuperman Returnspromised to bring the titular hero back to the big screen. Brandon Routh was cast as Superman, with a solid supporting cast announced featuring several high-profile names.Superman Returnswas established as a continuation of Richard Donner’s first twoSupermanmovies, intending to pick up where they left off with a new cast using modern filmmaking technology.
How Superman Returns Connects to Christopher Reeve’s Movies
Superman Returns ties to the Reeve era with Routh, Williams’ theme, Brando’s Jor-El, and nods to classic films!
Despite significant buzz aroundSuperman Returns, the movie proved to a box office disappointment. It earned $391 million, but this led to estimated losses of around $73 million against the film’s projected break-even point of $464 million.Superman Returnsearned reasonably positive reviews and a respectable box office sum, but unfairly went down in history as another superhero box office flop from the movies of theMCU, theDCU, and beyond.
Superman Returns
Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns follows the events surrounding the hero’s return to Earth after a five-year absence. When Superman (Brandon Routh) arrives back on Earth, he discovers that Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) has developed a plan to use kryptonite crystals to establish a new landmass that he intends to sell off to the highest bidder. With Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) now married with a child, Superman must come to terms with everything he left behind in order to stop Luthor’s villainous scheme.
