Horrorfans and critics can usually predict when a movie is going to bomb at the box office. Even with a star-studded cast, likeScream 4,some horror movies are doomed from the beginning. Most of the time, movies that tank at the box office are unwanted sequels or movies that are only loved by niche horror audiences.
Horror sequels and remakesalready tend to be risky movies at the box office because not all audiences resonate with their originals or only enjoyed the movie subsequently.Some box office bombslater became fan favorites in the eyes of horror fans.House of Waxgrossed over $32 million domestically with a $40 million budget but is considered a campy, classic horror movie. It can take some time for horror movies to resonate with audiences, but some horror movies were doomed from the beginning.
Gremlins 2: The New Batch
Cast
Gremlins 2: The New Batch follows young couple Billy and Kate as they start anew in New York City and reunite with the lovable creature Gizmo. Chaos ensues when new Gremlins emerge, invade a secret laboratory, and gain genetically enhanced abilities, escalating the threat and havoc they cause.
It’s hard to compete with the firstGremlins,which became an instant hit with audiences and is known as one of the bestChristmas horror movies.Gremlins 2: The New Batchcontinues Gizmo’s storyline and follows him as the new gremlins wreak havoc in New York City. There are a number of reasons why the sequel tanked at the box office, including the timing of the release. It was released six years after the success of the first movie and audience interest started to fade.
Gremlins 3 Gets A Reassuring Update Despite Being In Development For 8 Years
Gremlins 3 receives a reassuring update despite being in development for eight years, when the original writer was attached to the sequel.
Additionally, it was tonally different from the first Gremlins. It included satire, pop culture references, and had less of a “small town” feel as it was set in a large city.Domestically, the movie made just over $41 million with a budget of $50 million. In comparison, the firstGremlinsgrossed over $159 million, and the budget was only $11 million. While the monstrous creatures were once loved by audiences, they didn’t show up to watch them create chaos all over again.
9The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)
Directed by Katt Shea
Released 22 years afterCarrie,The Rage: Carrie 2is about a teenage girl with telekinesis who takes revenge into her own hands after discovering her friend committed suicide and her classmates are responsible.The first movie had such an impact with fansthat audiences didn’t want another version of the sameteen horror movie. WhileCarrieis uniquely dark and different from other horror movies,The Rage: Carrie 2further addresses bullying and toxic high school culture, it’s overshadowed by the fact that it’s under the same title.
WhileCarrieis uniquely dark and different from other horror movies,The Rage: Carrie 2further addresses bullying and toxic high school culture, it’s overshadowed by the fact that it’s under the same title.
With a $21 million budget and only grossing $17 million at the box office,The Rage: Carrie 2is considered a box office bomb. The movie was written by the horror master himself, Stephen King, along with Rafael Moreu. King’s name wasn’t enough to draw in audiences. It was released the same year asSleepy Hollow, Blair Witch, andStir of Echoes, and audiences seemed to crave new horror and turn away from sequels and franchises. EvenCandyman 3, released the same year, proved that audiences wanted something fresh, sinceCandyman 3is the most disliked in the franchise.
Jaws: The Revenge
Written by Michael de Guzman and directed by Joseph Sargent, Jaws: The Revenge is the fourth and final film in the original Horror franchise and was released in 1987. The film is considered by critics to be the worst in the series and is the lowest grossing, with a similar plot to the others which sees a Great White shark terrorizing humans.
The fourth movie in the franchise,Jaws: The Revengewas released twelve years after the firstJaws. The plot centers around a shark stalking a family. Audiences picked up on the cheesy plot point of a stalker sharkwith a grudge and decided not to purchase a movie ticket. Horror fans were already feeling shark fatigue, and the box office numbers showcased this.
Going up against other sequels and franchises the same year, withEvil Dead IIandA Nightmare on Elm Street 3, the shark movie didn’t stand a chance.
With a budget of $23 million and only grossing $20 million domestically and $51 million worldwide, it was considered a box office bomb among the otherJawsmovies. Going up against other sequels and franchises the same year, withEvil Dead IIandA Nightmare on Elm Street 3, the shark movie didn’t stand a chance.Whileshark movies will always be popularamong horror fans,Jaws: The Revengeflopped.
Children of the Corn
Children of the Corn is a 2020 reboot of the long-running horror franchise that began in 1977 with Stephen King’s short story of the same name. This is the eleventh installment in the franchise and only the third to be released theatrically. Like most films in the franchise, 2020’s Children of the Corn was critically panned upon release.
The 2020 movie is the 11th film in theChildren of the Cornfranchise. Originally based on theStephen King book,the plot is centered around a group of murderous childrenin Nebraska who murder all the adults in their town. While the original 1984 movie is considered a cult classic, it wasn’t exactly a fan favorite at first and received mixed reviews from audiences, but it eventually found its way into horror lovers' hearts.
Children of the Cornonly grossed over $575,179 worldwide with an estimated budget of $10 million. Just like its 1984 version, audiences were still unsure about the movie’s direction, and the movie was released whennew, exciting horror movies were taking over. It was released the same year asThe Invisible ManandA Quiet Place Part 2.While it’s not the most belovedStephen King adaptation,Children of the Cornfranchise is still loved among horror fans because of the violence and moral messages from the story.
Suspiria
Suspiria follows young American dancer Susie Bannion as she joins the prestigious Helena Markos Dance Company in 1970s Berlin. As she ascends to lead dancer, unsettling accusations of witchcraft surface against the female directors, prompting an investigation into the studio’s dark and mysterious underground.
A remake from the 1977 movie,Suspiriafollows a young woman who trains at a dance academy run by witches. The 1977 version was directed and written by Dario Argento and is considered his most celebrated movie. While most horror fans loved the firstSuspiria, the 2018 version wasn’t the remake audiences wanted. Even though it was just as disturbing, it couldn’t draw in audiences.
Suspiria(2018) was set in Berlin in 1977, the same year the originalSuspiriawas released.
The movie had a budget of $20 million and only grossed $7 million globally.Suspiriahad a limited release initially and received mixed reviews from critics, praising the horror movie and others criticizing its lack of scares. Released the same year asThe Nun,Halloween,andInsidious: The Last Key, audiences were looking for darker, scarier storiesmore than stylish, fever-dream horror movies.
Event Horizon
Paul W. S. Anderson steps further into the world of sci-fi horror with Event Horizon, a movie set in the future following a crew of Astronauts attempting to locate a missing ship known as the Event Horizon. When the crew finds the ship floating near Neptune, the distress signal relayed is haunting, followed by the discovery what awaits the rescue team isn’t the crew of the missing ship but something far more sinister.
In this space horror film, a spaceship crew is tasked with investigating the reappearance of another ship that was deemed lost. Event Horizon had a stellar cast with Sam Neil, Laurence Fishburne, and Jason Isaacs. However, audiences were tired of the space fiction storyline and once they learned about the over-the-top gore in the movie, it failed to draw in audiences.
Event Horizononly grossed $27 million on a budget of $60 million, making it a huge box office flop.
Event Horizononly grossed $27 million on a budget of $60 million, making it a huge box office flop.Event Horizonis a sci-fi movie audiences appreciated laterwhen it was released on home video. The 90s saw a huge wave of sci-fi horror, includingtheAlienfranchise, dominating the big screen. With other big blockbusters released the same year, likeMen in BlackandThe Lost World: Jurassic Park, Event Horizondidn’t stand out.
Black Christmas
Black Christmas, directed by Sophia Takal, follows a group of sorority pledges who are stalked by a stranger during their Christmas break. The young women uncover that their assailant is connected to an underground conspiracy on their college campus.
Black Christmasis the second remake from the1970s original horror movie,Black Christmas. It’s about a group of young women in a sorority who are being stalked and killed during the holidays. A slasher movie about college girls is a narrative that audiences have seen before, and they weren’t interested in another movie with the same narrative. While the 2019Black Christmastakes a different approach to the movie and adds supernatural elements, it wasn’t enough to resonate with audiences.
Audiences didn’t want a Christmas horror movie with a PG-13 ratingand a movie centering around toxic masculinity. The 2006Black Christmasremake was also a box office bomb. The 2006 version had a budget of $9 million and only made $21 million worldwide.The 2019 movie made $18 million and had a smaller budget of $5 million, earning even less than the older version. Horror movies likeMidsommarandHappy Death Day 2Uwere audience favorites this year.
The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man is a horror thriller directed by Neil LaBute, starring Nicolas Cage as Edward Woodward, a police officer who travels to a remote island to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. As he delves deeper into the mystery, he uncovers a sinister plot involving a pagan cult.
Based on the original 1973 movie,The Wicker Manis about a sheriff who is investigating the disappearance of a young girl on an island overrun by a woman’s cult. Starring Nicolas Cage,The Wicker Manwas met with negative reviews early on and noted as a darker take from the original. Even though violent horror movies were winning over audiences during 2006, this movie just didn’t connect with audiences.
The Wicker Man (1973): 10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Cult Movie
The original The Wicker Man is one of the best cult classics ever made, and fans of this cult hit need to learn more about how it was made.
The originalThe Wicker Manalso bombed at the box office, only earning $528,514 worldwide.The 2006 movie earned $38 million worldwide with a $40 million budget. Other franchises and notable horror movies were taking over the box office, such asThe Grudge 2,The Hills Have Eyes,The Omen, andSilent Hill. Horror movies were dominating the big screen, andThe Wicker Manfaded into the background.
The Invasion
As a mysterious alien fungus infects humans, altering their behavior during REM sleep, CDC director Tucker Kaufman, among the first infected, triggers a global epidemic. Psychiatrist Carol Bennell, noticing unusual changes in people, races to find a cure with biologist Ben Driscoll and discovers that their son, Oliver, holds the key to immunity. As chaos ensues, Carol and Ben fight to save Oliver and humanity.
In thesci-fi horror movie, an alien parasitic infection takes over the population by controlling their minds and bodies, while a psychiatrist tries to figure out a way to stop the infection from spreading. Starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig,The Invasionhas the same premise asInvasion of the Body Snatchers,where aliens take over human bodies. Early reviews deemed the movie as problematic and compared it toInvasion of the Body Snatchers, leavingThe Invasionto be critiqued unfairly.
Alien vs. Predator: Requiemwas also released the same year and grossed over $130 million worldwide, proving audiences still favored a different type of alien invasion movie.
The Invasionmade around $40 million worldwide with an estimated budget of more than $80 million, and it was a huge box office bomb. Released the same year as30 Days of NightandParanormal Activity, alien movies seemed to be falling out of touch if they weren’t attached to the popularAlienfranchise.Alien vs. Predator: Requiemwas also released the same year and grossed over $130 million worldwide, proving audiences still favored a different type of alien invasion movie.
Scream 4
Scream 4 marks the return of Sidney Prescott to Woodsboro a decade after the original murders. Having rebuilt her life as an author, her homecoming coincides with a new series of attacks by the Ghostface Killer, challenging both new and old characters within the familiar slasher franchise.
InScream 4, the Ghostface killer returns to haunt Sydney 10 years after her first encounter with the original Ghostface.The firstScreammoviewas released in 1996, and its sequels proved to be huge box office successes. However, the money-making horror franchise slowed down withScream 4as audiences wanted a different type of scary movie.
Scream 7: Release Date, Cast, Story & Everything We Know
Despite a slew of behind-the-scenes issue, Scream 7 is on the way with Neve Campbell returning to her familiar role as Sydney Prescott.
Scream 4was a box office bomb and made less than otherScreammovie in thehorrorfranchise. With a budget of over $40 million, the movie grossed over $90 million worldwide. The number may seem significant, but it made the least out of any otherScreammovie. Movies likeInsidiousand theParanormal Activityfranchise were rising in popularity,leaving older franchises to be removed from the spotlight.
