WEBDESK: Big studios entered the year betting on familiar names, big budgets, and established fanbases. Instead, these films exposed how creative misfires, audience fatigue, and inflated costs can quickly turn prestige projects into box office disappointments.
1. Disney’s Snow White
The live-action remake of Disney’s 1937 classic crashed and burned. It was directed by Marc Webb and starred Rachel Zegler as Snow White. The film was receiving backlash from Day 1. It had a big budget of $250-270 million due to reshoots, delays and a set fire. The film was just able to gross $205 million.
Many controversies surrounded the movie, which included the use of CGI dwarves. The roles could have gone to actual struggling actors. Secondly, many changes to the storyline were made, which removed the essence of the original film.
Gal Gadot, who played the villain and is famous for giving bad performances, arguably gave her worst one yet.
2. Pixar’s Elio
Elio was an original Pixar animated movie. It was about a boy mistaken for Earth’s ambassadors to aliens. Elio was also cursed from the start. It had a rocky production with director changes. There were cast departures and even script rewrites. The film was budgeted at $150-200 million. When the film was released, it opened at a dismal $20.8 million domestically. This was Pixar’s lowest ever. It limped to $154 million globally.
3. Mickey 17: Big Ideas, Small Impact
Bong Joon-ho returned after Parasite with a cloning dystopia starring Robert Pattinson. Expectations were huge. The budget was not. $118 million. The box office barely crossed $133 million worldwide. Delays drained momentum. The tone felt confused. Satire clashed with blockbuster beats. Book readers felt let down. Casual viewers felt locked out. Pattinson’s star power could not carry it. Critics compared it unfavourably to Bong’s past work. The result was modest financial loss. But a serious prestige setback.
4. Thunderbolts: Superhero Fatigue Sets In*
Marvel’s anti-hero team-up earned strong reviews. An 88% Rotten Tomatoes score. That did not translate into tickets. The film grossed around $382–400 million. The budget was $180 million. Interest felt tired. Audiences sensed leftovers from earlier phases. Post-Endgame closure lingered. Production troubles did not help. It became one of the MCU’s weakest performers. A warning sign for Marvel’s future.
5. Tron: Ares: A Costly Revival
Disney tried to revive Tron. Again. The budget soared past $180 million. Some estimates went higher. The box office stalled at $142 million worldwide. Marketing confused audiences. The franchise remained niche. Jared Leto’s recent track record hurt confidence. Critics questioned the spending. Losses crossed $100 million. Another reboot without demand.
