5 Recent Box Office Flops Everyone Saw Coming

Image via Warner Bros. Pictures Published Aug 17, 2026, 5:53 PM EDT Liam Gaughan is a film and TV writer at Collider. He has been writing film reviews and news coverage for ten years. Between relentlessly adding new titles to his watchlist and attending as many screenings as he can, Liam is always watching new movies and television shows. In addition to reviewing, writing, and commentating on both new and old releases, Liam has interviewed talent such as Mark Wahlberg, Jesse Plemons, Sam Mendes, Billy Eichner, Dylan O'Brien, Luke Wilson, and B.J. Novak. Liam aims to get his spec scripts produced and currently writes short films and stage plays. He lives in Allentown, PA. Sign in to your Collider account The box office is incredibly fungible and difficult to predict, but there are some decisions that were easy to see falling flat. There’s nothing that links box office performance and quality, as there are many all-time great films that were financial flops when they were first released. With that being said, a truly great film that fills a void within the cinematic marketplace can often lead to great results, and this year alone has seen the benefit of offering worthwhile experiences to audiences. The Odyssey was always going to do well based on the track record of Christopher Nolan, but the overwhelmingly positive response to his creative take on Homer helped the film become a phenomenon that is likely to beat Deadpool & Wolverine to become the highest grossing R-Rated film of all-time. There was no signs of “comic book fatigue” when it came to Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which surged past $2 billion after being heralded as the best take on the webslinger since Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 back in 2004. Studios need to be conscious of the decisions that they make because financial disappointments can lead to a loss of opportunities for other filmmakers. There’s more than enough evidence to suggest that funding a larger amount of mid-budget or independent films would be more profitable than sinking all of a studio’s resources into a blockbuster, but it’s too often that conglomerates are trying to make the next Avatar instead of finding the next Obsession. In the post-pandemic world, audiences have been even more clear about what they’re willing to support, and what deserves to be left in the past. Making bad films doesn’t do anyone any good, as the industry could stand to make more original features that don’t share any connections to established properties and franchises. 5 ‘The Bride!’ (2026) Image via Warner Bros. Pictures The Bride! showed signs of doom since last year, when it was pushed out of award season to avoid competition with Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which was a major Oscar contender that walked away with several trophies. Del Toro clearly had a love and understanding of the original novel, whereas Maggie Gyllenhaal created a punk rock, Bonnie & Clyde-style romantic dramedy that was only barely connected to the Frankenstein mythology. It’s pretty disappointing, considering how strong Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut The Lost Daughter was, but there’s a point in the ambition of The Bride! surpasses its capabilities. Between a scene that blatantly rips off Young Frankenstein to a baffling appearance by Jessie Buckley as both “The Bride of Frankenstein” and Mary Shelley, it is a complete mess. There’s been proof to suggest that the most successful modern monster films are those that are thoughtful and aesthetically unique; The Invisible Man worked because it was a radically different take on the material, and Nosferatu succeeded because of Robert Eggers’ masterful production design and the strong performances by Lily Rose-Depp and Bill Skarsgard. The Bride! is just garish and tonally inconsistent, and is trying too hard to stuff unnecessary elements into Frankenstein lore. 4 ‘Masters of the Universe’ (2026) Image via Amazon MGM Masters of the Universe is a much better film than it had any right to be, given that director Travis Knight actually has a very unique visual style and benefits from taking a cheeky approach to the material. Although it’s about the best that a Masters of the Universe could be, the franchise itself is one that has limited appeal, and did not make much effort to win over new fans. Unlike the Marvel and DC characters, which have been reinvented for different generations, Masters of the Universe has still catered towards those that grew up with the cartoon. None of the film’s marketing seemed to suggest that it was actually an entertaining adventure comedy, and it fell into the same trap that ensnared Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, another surprisingly fun film, just a few years ago. The marketing department failed Masters of the Universe by not emphasizing the charismatic performances, and the film’s high budget was ultimately too high of an ask for something that was never going to seriously contend to be one of the summer’s biggest hits. Perhaps Masters of the Universe would have done well had it been released during a slower period of the year, but coming out in the midst of the packed summer season doomed it to bomb. 3 ‘Supergirl’ (2026) Image via Warner Bros. Pictures Supergirl was a rough second step for the DC Universe, which seems to already be dealing with the same issues that plagued the DCEU of the prior regime at Warner Bros. While last year’s Superman was the right step for the new cinematic universe because it took a more optimistic approach to a beloved character and didn’t offer up the same tired origin story, Supergirl is based on a much more obscure character that doesn’t have the same name recognition. Supergirl would have been more likely to succeed if the DC Universe had already proved itself to be consistent, as it took the Marvel Cinematic Universe several years of adapting beloved characters before it got to weirder comics like Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man. Despite James Gunn’s claims that Supergirl had one of the best scripts that he has ever read, the biggest issue with the film was that it lacked narrative clarity, thematic depth, memorable dialogue, or anything else that would distinguish it from other galactic superhero stories. The industry has passed the point in which comic book films will automatically succeed, as viewers have become more discerning, and won’t seek out something simply because it is part of an ongoing franchise. Superman, while a hit domestically, slightly underperformed overseas, which signified distress for a film of a similar budget that was based on a less popular character; it made far more sense to invest in Clayface, a mid-budget film that seems directly geared towards fans of the horror genre. Subsequent reports about the use of AI within the film and the tumultuous post-production process, which involved two competing cuts, indicate that Supergirl was a mess that could have serious ramifications for the future of the DC Universe. Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you'd actually make it out of alive. 💊The Matrix 🔥Mad Max 🌧️Blade Runner 🏜️Dune 🚀Star Wars TEST YOUR SURVIVAL → 01 You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one. APull on every thread until I understand the system — then figure out how to break it. BStop asking questions and start stockpiling — food, fuel, weapons. Questions don't keep you alive. CKeep my head down, observe carefully, and trust no one until I know who's pulling the strings. DStudy the patterns. Every system has a rhythm — learn it, and you learn how to survive it. EFind the people fighting back and join them. You can't fix a broken galaxy alone. NEXT QUESTION → 02 In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires. AKnowledge. If you understand the system, you don't need resources — you can generate them. BFuel. Everything else — movement, power, escape — runs on it. CTrust. In a world of fakes and informants, a truly reliable ally is rarer than any commodity. DWater. And after water, information — the two things empires are truly built on. EShips and credits. The galaxy is big — you survive it by being able to move through it freely. NEXT QUESTION → 03 What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of. AThat reality itself is a lie — that everything I experience has been constructed to keep me compliant. BA raid. No warning, no mercy — just the roar of engines and then nothing left. CBeing identified. Once someone with power decides you're a problem, you're already out of time. DBeing outmanoeuvred — losing a political game I didn't even know I was playing. EThe Empire tightening its grip until there's nowhere left to run. NEXT QUESTION → 04 How do you deal with authority you don't trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything. ASubvert it from the inside — learn its rules well enough to weaponise them against it. BIgnore it and stay out of its reach. The further from any power structure, the better. CAppear to comply while doing exactly what I need to do. Visibility is the enemy. DManoeuvre within it carefully. You can't beat a system you refuse to understand. EResist openly when I have to. Some things are worth the risk of being seen. NEXT QUESTION → 05 Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn't just tactical — it's physical, psychological, and very much about where you are. AUnderground bunkers and server rooms — cramped, artificial, but with access to everything that matters. BOpen wasteland — brutal sun, no shelter, constant movement. At least the threat is honest. CA dense, rain-soaked city where you can disappear into the crowd and nobody asks questions. DMerciless desert — extreme heat, no water, and something enormous living beneath the sand. EThe fringe — backwater planets and busy spaceports where the Empire's attention rarely reaches. NEXT QUESTION → 06 Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are. AA tight crew of believers who've seen behind the curtain and have nothing left to lose. BOne or two people I'd trust with my life. Any more than that and someone talks. CNobody, ideally. Alliances are liabilities. I work alone unless I have no choice. DA community bound by shared hardship and mutual survival — people who need each other to last. EA ragtag team with wildly different skills and total commitment when it counts. NEXT QUESTION → 07 Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they're actually made of. AI won't harm the innocent — even the ones who'd report me without hesitation. BI do what I have to to protect the people I've chosen. Everything else is negotiable. CThe line shifts depending on who's asking and what's at stake. DI draw a long-term line — nothing that compromises my people's future, even if it'd help now. ESome lines, once crossed, can't be uncrossed. I know which ones they are. NEXT QUESTION → 08 What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another. AWaking others up — dismantling the illusion so no one else has to live inside it. BFinding somewhere — or someone — worth protecting. A reason to keep moving. CAnswers. Understanding what I am, what any of this means, before time runs out. DLegacy — shaping the future in a way that outlasts me by generations. EFreedom — for myself, for others, for every world still living under someone else's boot. REVEAL MY WORLD → Your Fate Has Been Calculated You'd Survive In…Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for. The MatrixYou took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You're a systems thinker who can't help but notice the seams in things. You're drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it. You'd find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines' worst nightmare. You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it. The Matrix built an airtight prison. You'd be the one probing the walls for the door. Mad MaxThe wasteland doesn't reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That's you. You don't need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon. You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you're good at all three. You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider. In the wasteland, that distinction is everything. Blade RunnerYou'd survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely. You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer. In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional. You're not a hero. But you're not lost, either. In Blade Runner's world, that distinction is everything. DuneArrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards. Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they're survival tools. You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory. Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You'd learn its logic and earn its respect. In time, you wouldn't just survive Arrakis — you'd begin to reshape it. Star WarsThe galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn't have it any other way. You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion. You'd gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire's grip can be broken. You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn't something you're capable of. In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 2 ‘Mercy’ (2026) Image via Amazon MGM Studios Mercy is a film that bombed because it was terrible, as there’s only so much that can be done to salvage and market something that scrapes the bottom of the barrel. Audiences are smart enough to recognize that the film has a premise that was done much better in Minority Report or Robocop, and they could also recognize the unusual treatment of AI. Mercy makes attempts to “humanize” AI and suggests that it should be forgiven for its mistakes, which makes for a questionable message, especially coming from a studio like Amazon. It doesn’t help that the “screen life” gimmick has been overdone, and doesn’t tend to work in a non-horror film, as there are few things more boring than watching a character sit in a chair for 100 minutes. Mercy marks another misfire for Chris Pratt, who has struggled to lead films of his own outside of the Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic World franchises. While Pratt is obviously a very charismatic actor who has a great sense-of-humor, he seems to keep picking very serious roles that don’t offer him the chance to show the same levity that he did with Peter Quill. It’s also a case in which an actor’s success on streaming doesn’t mean that they will have an equal amount of support on the big screen; even if Pratt drew in massive viewership for The Terminal List and The Electric State, there’s a big difference between passively streaming something at home and venturing out to see in theaters. 1 ‘The Death of Robin Hood’ (2026) Image via A24 The Death of Robin Hood might finally teach Hollywood that there’s no point in making more Robin Hood films, as it's a character that has not worked on the big screen in 35 years. The 2018 film starring Taron Egerton was a box office bomb, as was the 2010 gritty origin story from Ridley Scott. The success of 1991’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves can be explained by the unique box office power of Kevin Costner, the incredible soundtrack, the amazing performance by Alan Rickman, and a less crowded summer box office in which “blockbusters” had a greater opportunity to find success. In some ways, Mel Brooks’ parody Robin Hood: Men in Tights was such a discerning spoof that it ruined the opportunity to do a more “serious” approach to the mythology. The Death of Robin Hood is another example of how the “dark and gritty” approach is no longer viable, as there’s a point in which being a “deconstructionist” take on the character is less impactful than remembering why they were beloved in the first place. Hugh Jackman has also been an actor that seems to succeed at the box office when he is either playing Wolverine or starring in a music-themed film (such as The Greatest Showman or Song Sung Blue), but has not found much success with sci-fi/fantasy projects like Reminiscence, Pan, Chappie, and Van Helsing. The Death of Robin Hood Release Date June 19, 2026 Runtime 123 Minutes Director Michael Sarnoski Writers Michael Sarnoski Cast Bill Skarsgård Little John Faith Delaney Little Margaret