"The Great Gatsby" had all the makings of a flop. Warner Bros. delayed the movie's release because it wanted to reshoot certain scenes. Its new date landed the film between "Iron Man 3" and "Star Trek Into Darkness," two movies that were hits before the cameras started rolling.
The week "Gatsby" did open, critics were not enamored of Baz Luhrmann's lavish spin on the iconic novel, least of all TheWrap’s Alonso Duralde.
Also read: 'The Great Gatsby': What That Extra $10M at the Box Office Really Means
Yet those are all reasons Hollywood didn’t think it would work. Audiences showed up in droves, and still are.
Here’s why: