10 Promising Movie Franchises Crushed By 1 Box Office Failure

Summary

• Certain movie franchises were cut short by box office flops, indicating audience disinterest.
• Potential comebacks for movie franchises existed post-flop, with room for improvement after the first installment.
• Marketing mishaps, narrative errors, or industry circumstances halted potentially successful franchises.

A few movie franchises had strong potential but were cut short by one box office flop. It is not uncommon for movie franchises to be ended by a box office flop, which is the clearest indicator to a studio that audiences are no longer interested in the series. However, some abridged movie franchises did have a dedicated audience — maybe just not one as big as studio executives were hoping for — or flopped for other reasons, possibly marketing or the circumstances of the industry.

Certain franchises might have made a comeback after one bad movie or would have done better if the filmmakers were given the chance to learn from their mistakes. Good movies have suffered from bad marketing, while other movies with serious wasted potential might have turned into successful franchises if not for one mishandled narrative decision. In all these scenarios, the first movie(s) in a planned franchise set up a great story that would have supported something bigger, but the financial losses ended it too soon.

10 The Chronicles Of Narnia

Last Movie: The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader (2010)

The Chronicles of Narnia movie franchise saw massive success in the beginning before starting its gradual downward trajectory and heading into reboot territory. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is one of the biggest box office hits of the 2000s; while Prince Caspian also turned a profit, it was nowhere near as much, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was even worse. Despite this, The Silver Chair was in development for some time with Millie Bobby Brown being offered the lead role.

The Silver Chair would have been a return to a more classic adventure storyline and might have allowed the Narnia movies to make a comeback.

The second and third Narnia movies faced a lot of challenges with less conventional narratives, which led to major changes from the source material. The Silver Chair would have been a return to a more classic adventure storyline and might have allowed the Narnia movies to make a comeback. However, The Silver Chair was stuck in development for too long before being canceled. Netflix now owns the rights and is planning a reboot with Greta Gerwig at the helm.

9 The People Of Sparks

Last Movie: City Of Ember (2008)

The movie adaptation of Jeanne DuPrau’s The City of Ember is just a little bland in comparison to the book, the first in the People of Sparks series. The movie condensed some elements from the book that would have made the potential social commentary of Ember more impactful. Considering that the movie is only an hour and a half long, they could have afforded to better develop some of the subplots. Otherwise, City of Ember is a decent movie, featuring an early-career Saoirse Ronan, alongside Bill Murray and Toby Jones.

While this movie sticks to the basic adventure storyline, showing off the intriguing production design and rising stars along the way, the sequels might have been able to build upon it thematically. The problems of limited resources and mistrust only get bigger in the subsequent People of Sparks novels, laying the groundwork for some interesting movies. City of Ember was always going to be difficult to adapt because it is more subdued than some other novels of the same genre, but it could have been a strong movie trilogy.

8 Jupiter Ascending

Last Movie: Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Almost everyone agrees that the premise of Jupiter Ascending is fascinating; it’s only the execution that fell short, mainly due to the underdeveloped characters. Following an average young woman from Earth who happens to be genetically identical to the late matriarch of an extraterrestrial dynasty, Jupiter Ascending sets the stage for some interesting intergalactic politics and power struggles. Great actors like Eddie Redmayne, Sean Bean, and Tuppence Middleton took on supporting roles, with Mila Kunis as the title character.

This is in addition to breathtaking sets and costume design that had everyone intrigued when shown in the trailers. However, Jupiter Ascending‘s weaknesses led to its box office flop, overshadowing its strengths. If the franchise had managed to survive this commercial failure, they might have even cut out things like the needless romantic subplot in the sequels, offering a stronger story with more character development for Jupiter and the rest.

7 The Millennium Series

Last Movie: Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Sadly, Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig didn’t return for a Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sequel, despite being the best leads the franchise could hope for. Riding on the success of The Social Network, David Fincher was also exactly the director the Millennium movie franchise needed, well-versed in psychological thrillers. It’s even more disappointing that the sequels didn’t happen because these hires did pay off for this adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s novel, as almost everything about it was praised by critics.

Yet The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was still a box office flop, scrambling Fincher’s plans to adapt the whole trilogy. The franchise saw a soft reboot with 2018’s The Girl in the Spider’s Web with a new director and new leads, namely Claire Foy as Lisbeth Salander. However, this movie was both a critical and commercial failure, destroying the series’ movie potential once and for all.

6 The Mortal Instruments

Last Movie: The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones (2013)

Cassandra Clare debuted the first Shadowhunters books amid the popularity of both Twilight and The Hunger Games. The Mortal Instruments clearly exhibits some of the most popular tropes of its predecessors, yet still stands out with its distinct premise and world-building. The Mortal Instruments could have been the next big movie franchise, with stunning visuals and even some strong casting choices in Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, and Lena Headey. Some of the exposition was rushed but could have been easily improved with a few rewrites.

The City of Bones movie arguably should have just cut the subplot where Clary and Jace believe they are siblings, which doesn’t come into play until the very end. In retrospect, this was an awkward storyline for the franchise to get past to become one of the best lengthy fantasy book series worth committing to. With a couple of changes — and, of course, without the first movie bombing at the box office — The Mortal Instruments could have shown more of its incredible world on the big screen.

5 Wonder Woman

Last Movie: Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

Diana Prince a.k.a. Wonder Woman was doing the best out of all the DCEU heroes in her solo movies. The first Wonder Woman was highly acclaimed and a great introduction to the ideological conflicts of Diana’s character and her combative abilities. What went wrong with Wonder Woman 1984 constitutes many possibilities, but overall, it seems to have been received as a generic addition to Diana’s story. The settings and villains are less interesting while the emotional storyline is built on clichés, all leading to Diana triumphing once again.

Wonder Woman 3‘s cancellation still came as a disappointment to many. Other (mostly male) superheroes have suffered second-movie syndrome but still got a third installment. In Wonder Woman’s case, Patty Jenkins certainly knew that Wonder Woman 3 demanded something less formulaic. The result could have been Diana’s biggest adventure yet if the events of Wonder Woman 1984 were treated as building blocks for something greater.

4 Battle Angel Alita

Last Movie: Alita: Battle Angel (2019)

Based on the manga Gunnm, known as Battle Angel Alita in English, Alita: Battle Angel isn’t as bad as a movie as some might assume, even if its visuals are stronger than its story. With extensive source material providing plenty of ideas, a sequel could be the perfect opportunity to strengthen the characters and plots where they failed in the first movie. Alita: Battle Angel 2 is technically in development, but the previous installment’s failure would understandably give some people pause.

Alita: Battle Angel first entered development in 2003, but was regularly delayed because of producer James Cameron’s commitments to Avatar. The sequel is set up to face the same problem, with Cameron releasing a new Avatar movie every other year for the immediate future. Some would probably assume that the franchise is over, only waiting for an official cancellation. However, the director and producers of Alita: Battle Angel are at least enthusiastic about the sequel, which might have saved some other franchises that were once in the same situation.

3 Treasure Planet

Last Movie: Treasure Planet (2002)

Treasure Planet is one of Disney’s most expensive failures ever, although it has become a treasured cult classic since bombing at the box office. Disney was in an awkward place in the 2000s, as the glory days of the Disney Renaissance were behind them, and they faced more competition from 3D animated movies. Yet they were ambitious with Treasure Planet, incorporating some 3D elements and planning a story that extended past the framework of Treasure Island‘s plot.

If Treasure Planet’s eventual reception had happened when it was released, it might have kicked off Hollywood’s first epic animated franchise.

If Treasure Planet‘s eventual reception had happened when it was released, it might have kicked off Hollywood’s first epic animated franchise. There was even a finished script for the canceled Treasure Planet 2, which included a new villain, a rival/love interest for Jim, a backstory for John Silver, and more. In addition to this, there were rumors of a TV show spinoff — one of the first times Disney proposed such an idea. Unfortunately, plans were scrapped after Treasure Planet‘s epic commercial failure.

2 The Barsoom Series

Last Movie: John Carter (2012)

The source material for John Carter set Disney up with an extensive sci-fi franchise; yet Disney’s biggest animated box office flops like Treasure Planet, Mars Needs Moms, and Meet the Robinsons suggest that sci-fi is not the studio’s strength. In fact, Disney’s confidence in John Carter being a success was unlike anything before, pouring a ludicrous amount of funds into the project. This would only make it even more of a box office bomb and cement the franchise’s early ending.

However, bad marketing and the series not being as popular as Disney thought are just some of the reasons that John Carter flopped spectacularly. It could have been the beginning of another space opera franchise if Disney had been more frugal in their efforts. John Carter was all about setting up the sequel and providing as much spectacle as possible when studio executives were certain that it would pan out because of its tropes rather than its unique story.

1 Power Rangers Reboot

Last Movie: Power Rangers (2017)

Since its average reception in 2017, more and more people have come to the defense of the Power Rangers reboot. With a strong cast of up-and-coming stars plus great veterans in Elizabeth Banks and Bryan Cranston, Power Rangers has a more serious tone but incorporates some goofy elements. With the characters being given development as individuals as well as a group and the set-up for the Green Ranger storyline, the Power Rangers sequel could have topped what is already a strong reboot.

However, Power Rangers also flopped at the box office, likely due to its failure to impress critics and Hollywood being oversaturated in reboots. Like with many similar cases, the studio was not willing to risk another, even bigger failure by producing a sequel. Yet Power Rangers and other franchises still intrigue fans who wish that the series could have been seen to completion.