DC Universe is in big trouble right now as after delivering 6 back to back box office bombs, Blue Beetle is all set to be the 7th one. Although WB already made a bold move by entirely discontinuing the DCEU and handing its reign to James Gunn and Peter Safran last year, bad time isn’t over for the studio yet. In fact after Blue Beetle, Aquaman 2 is also projected to be a huge box office bomb. Only with the release of James Gunn’s DCU’s first film Superman: Legacy, can we expect things to start falling in place for DC. So, here’s a ranking of all these 7 flops according to estimated losses they cost to the studio, with some of them failing to even cover the production budget, let alone the marketing and theatrical run cost.
7. Birds of Prey
Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn was a decent entry to the franchise with a mixed critical reception. And though the film underperformed at the box office, it cannot be classified as a big flop. The film was made on a reported budget of $82M and went on to earn $84M domestically and
$201M worldwide. Although Variety suggested that it needed to make around $250M to break even, the film earned more than 2.3x it’s production budget hence, it cannot be considered a big flop but at the same time, it wasn’t a hit either.
6. Black Adam
There were a lot of memes regarding how Black Adam flopped at the box office and how Dwayne Johnson failed to change the DCEU power hierarchy. But the truth is that Black Adam is DCEU’s highest grossing film since 2020. Black Adam was made on production budget of $200M and went to earn $168M domestically and $391M worldwide. It made almost twice its budget but adding all the marketing and theatrical run cost, it failed to break even. If some reports are to be believed, then it has an estimated loss of over $127M, and it’s this low on this list only because of the fact that it is the highest grosser among all these films.
5. Blue Beetle
Although, it hasn’t even been a month since its release, Blue Beetle is already shaping up to be DCEU’s 7th flop in a row. Made on a budget of $120M, Blue Beetle reportedly needs to earn nearly $208M to break even. As of now, the film has grossed $63M domestically and $114M worldwide and suffered DC’s lowest opening in almost 20 years. Although, the film in currently in the top 5 earners at US, it is impossible for it to break even but it just might be able cover its production budget in the coming weeks.
4. The Flash
Its safe to say that there was a lot riding on Ezra Miller starrer, but The Flash failed to perform both critically and commercially. Having received mixed reviews, the film tanked at the box office and only managed to gross $108M domestically and $268M worldwide. Although, it did manage to earn more than its reported production budget of $200M, some sources claim that it needed to make at least $400M just to break even. If this is to be believed, then would rank even higher on this list as one of the biggest box office bombs in Hollywood, losing studio a ton of money.
3. Shazam: Fury of Gods
Not only was Shazam: Fury of Gods roasted by critics and fans alike, it is also the lowest grossing DCEU film so far earning just $57M domestically and $132M worldwide. As a result, the film came out on VOD within 25 days of its release, making it one of the worst DCEU projects to date both critically and commercially. The film barely managed to cover its production budget of $125M and eliminated the possibility of any sequel for a long long time.
2. The Suicide Squad (2021)
Yes, we are talking about James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad and not David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, which is actually the 3rd highest grossing DCEU movie ever. Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is highly acclaimed, has a huge fan following, launched the acclaimed series Peacemaker, and has resulted in Gunn taking over the helm of DC Universe. So how exactly did it bomb at the box office? The reason is simple – it debuted at the prime of COVID-19 hence managing to gross only $167M failing to cover even its production budget of $185M. However, the film was the most-streamed DCEU film on HBO Max and had it debuted under different circumstances, it might have been one of the highest grossing DC films of all time. Don’t worry WB, we do not blame you for this one.
1. Wonder Woman 1984
It isn’t overstating to say that Wonder Woman 1984 is one of the absolute worst superhero films ever made, let alone DCEU. Slammed by audiences and critics alike, the film is the second lowest grossing DCEU film (not including Blue Beetle) and failed to cover even its production budget of $200M. That’s right, the film grossed $47M domestically and $166M worldwide, making it the biggest flop in the history of superhero genre. With an estimated loss of $230M, it is also one of the biggest flops in Hollywood overall.
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