Fall 2024 was a season of highly anticipated films, but unfortunately many didn’t live up to the hype. Here are some films that we found that had huge potential, but were missing that IT factor and just fell flat. Let’s talk about why we think these 3 movies didn’t project well in the box office.
Joker: Folie Ă Deux
Perhaps one of the most anticipated films this year, this sequel to the Joker franchise disappointed many fans with high expectations after the immense success of the first film. With Joaquin Phoenix reprising his role as Arthur Fleck and the addition of Lady Gaga as Harleen Quinzel, better known as Harley Quinn. The film follows Fleck’s battle with his dual identity, as he faces incarceration at Arkham State Hospital. While it explores his kindling flame with Harley Quinn, it also incorporates a musical theater aspect that seemed strangely out of place. Critics on Rotten Tomatoes were left unimpressed by this new angle and felt it failed to capture the mystery, intelligence, and magic from the original. While trying to juggle the crime, drama, and musical genre, critic Austin Burke reported that it felt “more like an extended epilogue” than a sequel and the plot fell short to those expecting a thrilling action film only to receive an unnecessary and poorly executed musical. Despite the 2019 Joker’s unprecedented billion-dollar success and $96.2 million opening weekend, this sequel is projected to lose $150-200 million dollars in the box office after a catastrophic $37.7 million opening weekend.Â
Transformers One
Since 2007, the Transformers franchise has earned a dedicated fanbase to these well-loved films directed by Michael Bay. Transformers One serves as a prequel to the series, depicting the origin story of enemies Optimus Prime and Megatron as they journey through a complex relationship of how their former close friendship came to an end. It also explores how they both received their transforming powers. It was the first animated theatrical feature to the franchise, taking a new direction and appealing to a new demographic of younger viewers. According to an article by MovieWeb.com, the biggest downfall to this film was its poor marketing, failing to project the tone of the movie and find a balance in enticing their adult and child audiences. Many original fans were left underwhelmed with the shift from action packed, futuristic classics to an overly comedic, lackluster animation that doesn’t feel like it belongs to the Transformer universe. This ultimately led to it underperforming at the box office, with an opening weekend of only $24.6 million. While some are appreciative of this new take, others are unenthusiastic by this childish and generic attempt to be more family friendly.Â
It Ends with Us
The announcement of this Colleen Hoover book being brought to life on the screen captured the attention of all the BookTok lovers, only to be met with wild disappointment. This film adaptation was intended to raise awareness to domestic violence, with the book’s initial storytelling portrayal of a young adult woman named Lily Bloom finding the courage to end the cycle of abuse in her own family. Glamour.com reported that this tragic and heartbreaking drama was sorely misrepresented in the film, with the marketing barely acknowledging the domestic violence aspect and selling it as a beautiful love story. Fans found this to be incredibly insensitive to victims across the world who found solace in this story, and were disgusted by the romanticization and oversimplification of domestic violence. Although it was a success at the box office with a $50 million opening weekend, this serious topic was not handled with enough care and the glamorization of abuse was not appreciated by viewers. Fans of the book felt it lacked authenticity and character development, hindering the ability to relate to the characters and connect to the story. Just another example of why the book really is always better than the movie.Â
Despite the disappointment that came from these films, the year is not over yet and there is still time for 2024 to make a cinematic comeback. Some highly anticipated films coming this holiday season include Red One on November 15, Wicked on November 22, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 on December 20 so make sure to mark your calendars.