10 Movies That Got Sequels Despite Being Box Office Bombs

Success in the world of cinema is far from a guarantee, but a movie’s quality often isn’t indicative of its financial performance. Despite having star power behind them and coming from hugely acclaimed directors, some movies struggle to find an audience.

Whether it’s because the movie has become a cult hit in the years since release, because the studios succumb to peer pressure from fans, or because studios want a franchise so badly, these movies somehow got sequels despite underperforming upon their release.

10 Donnie Darko (2001)

There have been a lot of time travel movie flops throughout cinema history, but none were more deserving of success than Donnie Darko, a strange movie that people are still debating about to this day. Because of the movie’s impossible to market ambiguity, it failed to find its audience.

However, the movie found huge cult success with its DVD release, which led the studio to create S. Darko, a sequel that follows the exploits of Donnie’s sister. Fans of the original movie hate S. Darko—and that includes Richard Kelly, the director of the original movie, who had no involvement with the sequel.

9 Tron (1982)

Tron was one of the movies that made Jeff Bridges the master of cool that he is today, but that’s about all people know it for. Though the movie made $50 million worldwide, Tron was a massive disappointment for Disney, and some of the budget was lost due to how heavily the film was marketed.

It’s unfortunate, as, though the movie is excellent, it still remains relatively forgotten today. Disney did try one more time with the sequel Tron: Legacy, but it totally missed the mark and didn’t have the magic of the original, though its visual effects were stunning.

8 The Big Lebowski (1998)

Though it’d look a lot different if it was made today, being another movie starring Jeff Bridges, it’s hard to believe that he isn’t a box office draw. Bridges is one of the greatest actors of our generation, and The Big Lebowski is his most iconic movie. Thankfully, though the movie was a bitter disappointment for Working Title Film in 1998, it has gone on to become another cult hit, it has since earned more than enough recognition.

A sequel was released as late as last year. The Jesus Rolls follows John Turturro’s Jesus, who was a sensation in the first film, as he celebrates getting out of prison. Unfortunately, it was another flop, and, based on the movie’s reviews, it doesn’t look like it’s going to become a cult hit anytime soon.

7 The Wizard Of Oz (1939)

What might come as a huge surprise, The Wizard of Oz massively underperformed upon its release over 80 years ago. The cost of production was extremely high, so much so that it was the most expensive movie made by MGM at the time. The company lost over $1 million due to the movie’s failure, which is nearly $19 million when adjusted for inflation.

However, after its re-release 10 years later, it finally found an audience, and it’s now one of the most popular movies ever made. The Wizard Of Oz eventually got a sequel, though not until decades later, with Return to Oz. The movie is a strange sequel, as it is much darker in tone. The magic is totally missing, and it was again another box office bomb.

6 Ghostbusters (2016)

Turning the beloved Ghostbusters series into a Paul Feige comedy, the third movie was a huge flop. With a budget close to $150 million and considering how much was spent on marketing, Sony lost tens of millions because of the Saturday Night Live alum-studded cast. But, despite the movie’s miserable performance, a follow-up is still being released this year.

Though it’s a popular franchise and the upcoming Ghostbusters: Afterlife was in no way green-lit based on the 2016’s Ghostbusters, they’re still following up the movie in a rather quick succession. But, if the all-female Ghostbusters was a success, it probably would have changed the direction of the sequel, following the 2016 cast on yet another adventure.

5 XXX: State Of The Union (2005)

Just like how he didn’t return for 2 Fast 2 Furious after the success of The Fast and the Furious, Vin Diesel pursued other projects after the major success of the first XXX movie. That left Ice Cube to film some rather large boots in the sequel, XXX: State of the Union. But, without Diesel, the franchise was nothing, and the movie made a fraction of what the first movie did.

But that didn’t stop Paramount from releasing a third movie which brought Diesel back and put the franchise back on track. The studio would probably love to scrub State of the Union off the history books, as it was barely referenced in XXX: Return of Xander Cage.

4 Justice League (2017)

Justice League has had a rough history in its short three-year life. Not only did the movie underperform—any movie that features major pop culture icons like Batman and Superman should be grossing $1 billion at least—but, due to going well over budget, the movie flopped despite making over $600 million. It had an initial budget of over $250 million, but tens of millions more were spent on reshoots when Joss Whedon took over directing duties from Zack Snyder. Then Warner Bros. gave Zack Snyder another $70 million to complete his vision for HBO Max, andthen hundreds of millions of dollars were spent on marketing. All told, it’s likely one of the most expensive movies of all time.

But, there have been sequels in the form of Aquaman, and they’ll continue with The Flash and further Aquaman and Wonder Woman movies. The newly released director’s cut might have lost Warner Bros’ money in the long run, but it’s an investment, as it keeps general audiences talking about the universe.

3 Hocus Pocus (1993)

Being another surprise bomb, as it’s one of the most famous Halloween movies of all time, Hocus Pocus did terribly at the box office in 1993 despite starring Bette Midler as one of the three sinister witches. There have been rumors of a Hocus Pocus sequel for years now, and it’s something that fans have been clamoring for, but it’s finally officially happening. The sequel, though there’s no release date as yet, will be premiering on Disney+.

2 It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)

The fact that It’s A Wonderful Life totally bombed upon its release and that it has a sequel makes this a double surprise. Though considering the movie is so philosophical, it’s shouldn’t be surprising that it didn’t fair well with general audiences, but it’s one of the most iconic and highest rated films of all time. Though nobody has heard of it, the movie has a made-for-TV sequel, Clarence, which follows the guardian angel in a narrative that is almost identical to the original.

1 Blade Runner (1982)

Blade Runner is the ultimate great box office bomb, as it was way ahead of its time in both visual effects and narrative, but even Harrison Ford couldn’t keep the movie from flopping, as it was considered too dark for audiences at the time. As the fanbase for Blade Runner grew, demand for a sequel mounted, and Blade Runner 2049 arrived 35 years later.

Though the sequel is great, the idea to greenlight a sequel might have been a little misguided of the studio, but to give it the behemoth budget of $200 million was outright silly. Being a sequel to a box-office bomb, being R-rated, and being almost three hours in length, there was no way 2049 was ever going to be a success. 2049 followed in its predecessor’s footsteps and flopped at the box office, making it extremely unlikely fans will ever get a third movie.