It is safe to say that, upon starting a film production, all the filmmakers and actors involved have a common goal: to make the project a hit. Embarking on a venture as ambitious as a film takes an enormous amount of effort, time and money, and to make it all worthwhile, the production has to be well-received by the audience at the time of its release. Of course, this doesn't happen in each and every case, and that's how hundreds of films over the years have turned into box office flops that didn't even earn back the money invested in them.
The elements that lead a film to success are almost as diverse as those that lead it to failure. A production with an interesting storyline headed by a renowned director and featuring a stellar cast is bound to succeed, and yet the context in which it is released can be crucial to the point of turning it into a flop. Of course, the chance to fail is even higher if the production fails to attract the audience's attention, which translates into a tremendous waste of money.
Throughout the history of cinema, there have been flops released across all genres, even within those that tend to be a hit with audiences, such as romantic comedies. Over the years, and despite criticism, rom-coms have established themselves as one of the audience's favorite genres, spawning films that went on to become cinema classics. However, as it happens with the rest of the genres, romantic comedy has also had several box office failures, and some of them resulted in millionaire losses. Here are 10 of them.
10 Gigli
Martin Best's Gigli had many things in its favor to win over the audience, but the most important of them all was that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, the film's stars, were in a relationship at the time, something that greatly aroused the public's interest. However, this was not enough for it to perform well at the box office, and after a very poor reception from audiences and critics, this 2003 film became one of the worst ones ever.
Gigli features Larry, a low-life mobster from Los Angeles who is tasked with kidnapping the brother of a federal prosecutor to bargain for the freedom of a powerful crime boss. Since Larry's boss doesn't fully trust him for this assignment, he also sends Ricki, a beautiful gangster who, apart from helping the man, will sweep him off his feet.
Supporting the leads in this production are Justin Bartha, Al Pacino, Christopher Walken, and Lainie Kazan. On a budget of over $75 million, Gigli only managed to gross just over $7 million, making it one of the biggest box office bombs of all time.
9 How Do You Know
How Do You Know is a great example of how a film can fail at the box office despite starring some of Hollywood's most renowned actors. Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Paul Rudd, and Jack Nicholson star in this 2010 production under the direction of James L. Brooks, who also serves as producer and writer. It follows Lisa, a woman who spent her life playing softball whose situation takes a turn for the worse after she is cut from the team. Unsure of how to move forward in her life, she becomes involved in a love triangle with an immature sportsman and a businessman who is under investigation for stock fraud.
How Do You Know was released in December 2010, and only managed to garner $49 million worldwide with mixed reviews. Considering its $120 million budget, this production also became one of the biggest box office flops in movie history.
8 Town & Country
Warren Beatty, Diane Keaton, Goldie Hawn, and Garrett Shandling star in Town & Country, a 2001 film directed by Peter Chelsom that also failed to make it at the box office. This production features Porter, a renowned architect who has been happily married for many years to interior decorator Ellie. However, their life takes a turn after a couple of friends of theirs break up, and Porter embarks on an affair with the woman that triggers a personal crisis and a breakdown in his marriage.
Town & Country faced many problems during its production and took over three years to shoot with a budget of over $90 million. After being delayed several times, it hit theaters to poor reviews and, to top it off, grossed only $10 million worldwide.
7 The Hottie and the Nottie
The Hottie and the Nottie has an utterly problematic and questionable premise, even for a 2008 production. For that reason, it's no wonder that this Kevin Falk film has become one of the worst movies of all time. This production features Nate, a young man in his 20s who, despite having dated girls in his life, has never gotten over Cristabelle, his elementary school classmate who was also his first crush.
As fate would have it, these two now-adult classmates are thrown back together, giving Nate the chance to finally fulfill his dream and date the young woman who stole his heart. Since Cristabelle has decided not to date anyone until her ugly friend June gets a date, Nate sets out on a mission to persuade other young men to agree to date his crush's friend. However, after the girl undergoes a complete makeover, Nate starts to question whether his feelings for Cristabelle are as real as he thought they were.
Paris Hilton, Joel David Moore, and Christin Lakin star in this production that became a box-office flop and won several Golden Raspberry Awards. The Hottie and The Nottie only managed to gross $1.6 million, well below its initial budget of $9 million.
6 Alex & Emma
Rob Reiner is the filmmaker who treated audiences to 1989's When Harry Met Sally, for many, the best romantic comedy in history. With such a reputation in the genre, one would assume that Reiner is a hit-making machine. However, this prestigious filmmaker has also had a few flops, and one of them is the 2003 film Alex & Emma.
This doomed production stars Kate Hudson and Luke Wilson, two actors who also had their fair share of romantic comedy hits, and follows a writer struggling with a lack of inspiration and serious financial problems who hires a typist to help him with a novel, unaware that their relationship would completely affect the ending of his story. Alex & Emma became a box office flop that grossed $15 million, only half of its original budget.
5 The Love Guru
Mike Myers stars in the 2008 film The Love Guru as Pitka, the second-best guru in the world after Deepak Chopra. Pitka is assigned to help a hockey player improve his marriage so that he can perform better and win the Stanley Cup, oblivious to the fact that, in the midst of this task, he would find love in the most unexpected person.
Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake, Romany Malco, and Meagan Good join Myers in this film that marked Marco Schnabel's directorial debut. Unfortunately, The Love Guru failed to impress the critics and performed poorly at the box office, grossing only $40 million worldwide against a budget of $62 million.
4 The Big Wedding
Just like How Do You Know, The Big Wedding is another example of a film in which a star-studded Hollywood cast wasn't enough to make it at the box office. Robert De Niro, Katherine Heigl, Diane Keaton, Amanda Seyfried, Susan Sarandon, and Robin Williams star in this movie written and directed by Justin Zackham that serves as an American remake of Mon frère se marie.
It follows Don and Ellie, a long-divorced couple who are forced to pose as a blissfully married couple for the wedding of their adopted son Alexander, which will be attended by his conservative biological mother. The Big Wedding was heavily panned by critics and disappointed with its box office performance, grossing slightly over its $35 million budget.
3 Catch and Release
Jennifer Garner is a household name in the romantic comedy genre, having starred in productions such as 13 Going on 30 and Valentine's Day, among many others. However, there is one rom-com in her portfolio that is not as well remembered, and that is due to the terrible performance it had at the box office. We are talking about Catch and Release, the 2006 film that gave writer Susannah Grant the chance to direct for the first and only time in her career.
This production features Gray, a woman trying to piece her life back together after the unexpected death of her fiancé. Along the way, she uncovers secrets about her lover that make her rethink their relationship, and even falls in love with someone pretty unexpected. Catch and Release was met with mixed reviews and grossed $16 million worldwide, which did not even match the $25 million spent on the film.
2 Swept Away
In 2002, Guy Ritchie helmed Swept Away, a film that served as a remake of the Italian production of the same name released in 1974. To star in this film he hired Madonna, his wife at the time, and Adriano Giannini, who were joined by Bruce Greenwood, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Elizabeth Banks. Swept Away follows the story of Giuseppe and Amber, a sailor and a socialite who, while on a cruise ship, are stranded on a stunning isolated island.
While neither of them can stand the other, their newfound situation forces them into different roles that will completely transform their relationship. Not only did Ritchie's film draw terrible reviews, but it only grossed just over a million dollars at the box office, well under its $10 million budget.
1 The Rewrite
Rounding out this list of rom-com flops is The Rewrite, a 2014 film directed by Marc Lawrence and starring Hugh Grant and Marisa Tomei. This production follows Keith, a screenwriter who has not enjoyed success with his productions for many years. Unemployed and in a hurry to pay off debts, he takes a job as a college professor, which he doesn't like very much. But things take a turn when he meets Holly, a student in his class who will totally reshape his life.
Bella Heathcote, Allison Janney, J. K. Simmons, and Chris Elliott join the leads in this production that earned mixed reviews upon its premiere, with praise for its cast but negative comments about the script. The Rewrite had an initial budget of $29 million, but managed to gross just $4.5 million worldwide at the box office.