Unsuccessful films that failed so badly at the box office that they bankrupted their studios (10 photos)
Even the most disastrous film will always have a defender who will valiantly argue with pompous critics and stupid onlookers who did not realize the coolness of the film. Take, for example, “The Golden Compass” of 2007. Oscar winner in the category “Best Visual Effects”, great cast (Nicole Kidman, Eva Green, Daniel Craig, Ian McKellen), the plot is quite interesting. Someone will say that this is a completely suitable fairy tale for family viewing, no worse than your “Chronicles of Narnia”. But at the same time, the film failed and bankrupted the cult studio New Line Cinema, which was later bought by Warner Bros Entertainment. One way or another, let’s not touch on “taste,” because every creative product has its own fan base. The film business is a cruel thing. As they say, nothing personal... So, here are the films that bankrupted their studios due to a resounding failure at the box office.
Cutthroat Island (1995) 
Bankrupted the Carolco Pictures studio.
With a budget of almost $100 million, this cape and sword movie only grossed $10 million! Add to this the not so catastrophic, but still failure of Showgirls, and now the studio that gave us three parts of Rambo, the second Terminator, Total Recall, Universal Soldier and Basic Instinct went bankrupt and ceased to exist.
The Golden Compass (2007) 
Bankrupted the New Line Cinema studio.
With a budget of $180 million, the film grossed only 372 - a box office failure. Its consequences were that the film adaptation of Philip Pullman's books, which was supposed to become a trilogy, was never completed, despite the amazing cast and the fact that The Golden Compass ended with an obvious ellipsis and the viewer was obliged to get a sequel.
And besides, the studio New Line Cinema, which produced the films “The Mask”, “A Nightmare on Elm Street”, “Final Destination” and, most importantly, the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, went bankrupt and was absorbed by Warner Bros.
Heaven's Gate (1980) 
Bankrupted the United Artists studio.
The film grossed only $3.5 million with a budget of $44 million. Such a collapse did not allow the studio, created by Charlie Chaplin, among others, to continue to exist, even despite the success of the first two Rocky films.
By the way, in 2012, “The Gates of Heaven” was still waiting for the restoration of its reputation - at the Venice Festival they showed the director’s version of the film from Michael Cimino, which was met with applause.
The Mystery of the Red Planet (2011) 
Bankrupted the company ImageMovers Digital.
It was the second and final animated film from ImageMovers Digital. The cartoon, made with the fashionable motion capture technology at the turn of the decade, was a categorical failure, grossing $39 million against a budget of (now this will hurt) $150 million!
The cartoon was criticized for its “uncanny valley” effect, but the budget/gross ratio looks even more ominous.
Battlefield: Earth (2000) 
Franchise Pictures went bankrupt.
The famous failure in the career of John Travolta and the winner of a record number of Golden Raspberries at that time. But the icy reception and insignificant fees (only $21 million) were blocked by a trial involving the FBI. Law enforcement authorities suspected the Franchise Pictures studio of inflating the declared budget amount ($73 million instead of the real $44 million) and the court sentenced it to pay a fine of 121 million, which largely forced the company to declare bankruptcy.
The Lady Vanishes (1979) 
Hammer Film Productions went bankrupt.
Not only does the lady disappear, but also the studio. The remake of Alfred Hitchcock's comedy thriller, with a budget of 2-2.5 million dollars, grossed less than one hundred THOUSAND dollars at the box office. But Hammer Film Productions gave the world many classic horror films starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing about Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy and Jekyll and Hyde.
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) 
Square Pictures went bankrupt.
"Final Fantasy" is the perfect title for thisoh, to end someone's existence. The Japanese company Square, which produces computer games, made an animated film based on one of them. But the creators didn’t hit anyone: fans of the game complained that it had little in common with it, cartoon fans complained about the too serious sci-fi tone, and fans of Japanese anime complained about the typical plot. As a result, with a budget of $137 million, the cartoon collected only 85, bankrupting the studio, which had just wanted to merge with Enix. We had to postpone the merger for a couple of years.
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) 
Bankruptcy of Cannon Films.
The last Superman movie starring the iconic Christopher Reeve was a disaster, starting with production. The studio was already in serious trouble, and the budget for “Superman” was cut in half (from $36 million to $17 million, which, by the way, was very noticeable on the screen). Despite this, the superhero movie was unable to recoup its box office costs, collecting just that 36 million.
The failure was so painful that the world saw the next film about Superman only 18 years later, in 2006!
Titan: After the Death of the Earth (2000) 
Bankrupted Fox Animation Studios.
Another animated sci-fi from the early 2000s that failed (budget/gross ratio: $75 million/$36 million). The cartoon was the last not only for the studio, but also for Don Bluth, the director of such hits as “The Land Before Time,” “All Dogs Go to Heaven” and “Anastasia” - after the failure of “Titan,” he never directed a feature-length project.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946) 
Liberty Films went bankrupt.
Well, it would seem - a real Hollywood classic! And yet, with a budget of $3 million, this New Year's tragicomedy grossed about the same amount at the box office, thereby bankrupting director Frank Capra's production company. However, in the mid-1970s, the film became a real television hit, turning from an underrated picture into an American "Twist of Fate", and retains this status to this day.
