2014 Had Plenty of Flops, But No Real Box-Office Megabombs (Updated)

The 2014 box office is down about four percent from last year and it has hit some historic lows along the way, but there haven’t been any megabombs.

“The Expendables 3,” the most recent installment in Sly Stallone’s bad-ass geezer action series from Avi Lerner‘s Millennium Films and Nu Image, came close. It had a $90 million production budget but opened to just $15.8 million in August, after a hacked version of the film was leaked online weeks before it opened. It limped to $39 million domestically for distributor Lionsgate, but did better overseas with $167 million.

This year stands in stark contrast to 2013, which was the biggest box-office year in history but still saw several very pricey would-be blockbusters take major belly flops. Disney’s “The Lone Ranger,” Sony’s “After Earth” and “White House Down” and Universal’s “R.I.P.D.” all cost well over $100 million and didn’t get close to the black theatrically.

Also read: From 'The Giver' to 'Winter's Tale': Biggest Box-Office Duds and Disappointments in 2014 (Photos)

“Nobody sets out to make a bomb,” said Rentrak Senior Analyst Paul Dergarabedian. “When studios devote that much money and energy, all the intentions are good, and they’re trying to create the biggest cinematic experience. But the reality is, to win big you’ve got to bet big, and you’re going to have some misses.”

Though this year has seen none of those huge-budget bombs, there have been plenty of tankers.

Johnny Depp‘s sci-fi film “Transcendence,” which cost $100 million, opened to less than $11 million and topped out at $23 million domestically for Alcon Entertainment and Warner Bros.

Paul W.S. Anderson‘s volcano saga “Pompeii” also had a $100 million, production budget and opened to just $10 million on its way to a tepid $23 million domestic haul for Sony’s TriStar.

Also read: How High Can 'Hunger Games: Mockingjay' Fly at Box Office?

Lionsgate’s sword-and-sandals epic “The Legend of Hercules” had a production budget of $70 million and it finished with $61 million worldwide after opening to an anemic $8.8 million in January. Two weeks later, the studio opened the $65 million Aaron Eckhart horror film “I, Frankenstein” and it lurched to an $8.6 million opening and finished with $71 million worldwide.

In February, the Akiva Goldsman romance “Winter’s Tale” became star Colin Farrell’s third consecutive flop. Its production budget was $60 million and it opened to less than $10 million over the four-day Presidents Day weekend for Warner Bros. and mustered just $30 million domestically.

Those were box-office bummers, but none were bad enough to cause $160 million writedowns, as “The Lone Ranger” did for Disney, or cost executives their jobs, as “After Earth” and “White House Down” did at Sony.

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Some of it is because there weren’t as many expensive movies released. There have been 22 films with production budgets higher than $100 million released widely so far this year, compared to 33 at the same point in 2013, according to Box Office Mojo.

“You don’t always have to spend big to win big, though some genres by nature require you to spend more,” Dergarabedian said. “I don’t think anyone really wants to see a $20 million superhero movie or space epic.”

He noted that the studios largely held the line on spending on comedies in particular, which makes getting into the black easier and can cut losses if things go south. The Cameron Diaz-Jason Segel comedy “Sex Tape” for example disappointed with just $38 million domestically, but because of its relatively modest $40 million budget, it wasn’t a financial disaster for Sony.

Also read: Why Hollywood Is Making Bank on Cut-Rate Comedies

And all of the year’s most expensive films delivered at the box office, including “Transformers: Age of Extinction” ($225 million production budget), “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” ($225 million), “X-Men: Days of Future Past” ($200 million) and “Maleficent” ($180 million).

The next tier of blockbusters, which cost $170 million and included “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and “Guardians of the Galaxy, all scored as well.

Box office records are great, but a positive bottom line is even better for the studios, and at least partially defusing some major bombs by holding the line on spending is a part of the equation.

“Profit margins may not seem as sexy as the box office, but are more important at the end of the day,” said Dergarbedian. “And dealing with some of the misses is reality of this business.”

For the record: A previous version of this story attributed an incorrect production budget to “Expendables 3.” TheWrap regrets the error.

19 Biggest Box-Office Bombs and Bummers in 2014: From 'The Giver' to 'Winter's Tale' (Photos)

Kellan Lutz starred in the first of this year's two movies starring the Greek hero, "The Legend of Hercules." The $8.8 million January opening weekend for the $70 million sword-and-sandals epic was no toga party. It finished with $61 million worldwide, well under the $243 million that Paramount's "Hercules," starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, managed months later for Paramount.
Lionsgate
Even Aaron Eckhart's world-class abs couldn't bring the action horror film "I, Frankenstein" to life. It cost $65 million to make but opened to $8.6 million in January and couldn't crack $20 million domestically for Lionsgate.
Lionsgate
Colin Farrell and his horse never got out of the gate in the Akiva Goldsmith romance "Winter's Tale." Its production budget was $60 million and it opened to less than $10 million over the four-day Presidents Day weekend for Warner Bros. and mustered just $30 million domestically.
Warner Bros.
"They Suck at School" was the tagline for "Vampire Academy," the Mark Winters-directed adaptation of Richelle Mead's young adult fantasy novel. Ditto the box office: Its $3.9 million February debut for the Weinstein Company was the 11th-worst ever for a release on more than 2,500 screens, and it ended with $15.3 million worldwide.
The Weinstein Company
Paul W.S. Anderson's volcano saga "Pompeii" blew in February, and Kiefer Sutherland, Kit Harrington and Emily Browning couldn't save it. It had a $100 million production budget and opened to just $10 million on its way to a tepid $23 million domestic haul for Sony's TriStar.
TriStar
Maybe Madea would have helped? “Tyler Perry‘s The Single Moms Club,” the mogul's swan song with distributor Lionsgate, opened in March with $8.3 million, the worst debut of the prolific directing career of Perry, who is getting out of the movie biz for now to focus on his TV work at the OWN Network.
Lionsgate
The $5.2 million March debut of Open Road's action thriller "Sabotage" was star Arnold Schwarzenegger's worst opening in nearly three decades.
Open Road
"Haunted House 2" opened in April to $8.8 million and topped out at $17.3 million domestically -- less than the original film made in its first weekend for Open Road.
Open Road
The British horror film "The Quiet Ones" scared up just $8.5 million in its April opening for Lionsgate, on its way to a feeble $17.8 million global total.
Lionsgate
"Mom's Night Out," a faith-based comedy starring Patricia Heaton, couldn't cash in on the boom for Christian movies and topped out with $10 million in May for Sony TriStar.
TriStar
The James Brown biopic "Get On Up" had good reviews and a strong lead performance from Chadwick Boseman, but couldn't hit the high notes at the box office and finished with just $31 million for Universal.
Universal
A leaked version of a hacked copy of "Expendables 3" hitting the Internet weeks before its opening didn't help, but Sly Stallone's over-the-hill gang may have been hurt as much by franchise fatigue. The $190 million action sequel shot blanks in its $15.8 million August opening, and couldn't crack $40 million domestically.
Lionsgate
Seth MacFarlane's comedy Western "A Million Ways to Die in the West" got bucked at the box office, debuting with $16.7 million in May and topping out with $86 million worldwide for Universal. "Ted 2" anyone?
Universal
"The Giver" brought in an $45 million domestically in August for the Weinstein Company and another $22 million abroad, but those numbers were disappointing given the popularity of Lois Lowry's young adult bestseller.
Weinstein Company
Liam Neeson's "A Walk Among Tombstones" came out in one week before Denzel Washington's "The Equalizer," another R-rated action tale, and it was no contest at the box office. "Tombstones" topped out with $53 million worldwide in September, while Sony's "The Equalizer" is headed for $200 million.
Universal
After a heavenly start to the year, the market for faith-based movies went to hell. Freestyle Releasing's "The Identical," which starred Ray Liotta and Ashley Judd, delivered a dismal $1.5 million in its September debut and was out of theaters two weeks later.
Freestyle Releasing
The Nicholas Sparks adaptation "The Best of Me" has brought in just $25 million since opening in October for Relativity Media, making it by far the lowest-grossing film adaptation of the famed romance novelist's books.
Relativity Media
Audiences failed to connect with Paramount's "Men, Women & Children," writer-director Jason Reitman's take on technology affecting our lives. It opened to an embarrassing $306,367 from 617 theaters in October and grossed just $705,908 before being yanked from theaters.
Paramount
The sci-fi tale "Transcendence" marked the fourth box-office bomb in a row for Johnny Depp, on the heels of "The Lone Ranger," "Dark Shadows" and "Rum Diaries." "Transcendence" opened to $10.8 million in April and topped out at $23 million domestically for Warner Bros., not enough given its $100 million production budget.
Warner Bros.

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Cameron Diaz, Johnny Depp, Seth MacFarlane and Sly Stallone all had movies that missed the mark at the multiplexes

Kellan Lutz starred in the first of this year's two movies starring the Greek hero, "The Legend of Hercules." The $8.8 million January opening weekend for the $70 million sword-and-sandals epic was no toga party. It finished with $61 million worldwide, well under the $243 million that Paramount's "Hercules," starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, managed months later for Paramount.

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19 Biggest Box-Office Bombs and Bummers in 2014: From 'The Giver' to 'Winter's Tale' (Photos)

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