One of the biggest box office bombs ever lost Rs 1100 crore, leading to the studio boss losing his job and the director going underground
Today, some of the biggest box office bombs from around the world lose millions of dollars if things don’t go well. The ever-expanding budgets of the biggest films mean that if they tank at the ticket window, the losses are gargantuan. One of the biggest of them all reportedly lost $220 million , wreaking havoc on its makers
1. One of the biggest box office bombs ever
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John Carter, the 2012 sci-fi action adventure from director Andrew Stanton, was one of the most expensive films ever made, but it underperformed at the box office, earning only $284 million worldwide
2. What was John Carter about?
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John Carter was an adventure film with science fiction elements. Based on the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, it followed the titular adventurer (played by Taylor Kitsch) battling monsters on Mars and attempting to save a princess
3. How John Carter lost Rs 1100 crore
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John Carter was reportedly made on a budget of $263 million with over $200 million spent on marketing and promotions. In the end, the box office net of the film was $220 million (Rs 1100 crore at the time) less than the landing cost
4. The fallout of John Carter’s failure
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John Carter was one of the biggest failures in the history of cinema. Walt Disney Studios, the studio behind the film, bore the brunt of it. Rich Ross, the head of the studio, resigned despite the fact that he had arrived after production on the film had already begun
5. How director Andrew Staunton went underground
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Director Andrew Staunton was also affected by the failure of John Carter. He went away from the film world after a while to digest the film’s failure. He avoided media interactions for a long time before returning to his first love – animation
6. Why John Carter’s heroine disappeared
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The biggest impact of the film’s failure was on Lynn Collins, the film’s female lead. She went on record to say that she was asked to ‘disappear for a while’ to avoid bad press. This, however, disconnected her from Hollywood. The actress said that she had no big offers for years after John Carter’s release and eventually fired her entire PR team for the fiasco
