I would also include anything that was initially a flop on its original release but then found a following later such as movies like Momento. This still counts as commercial failure for the sake of this question.

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[–] 53 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (8 children)

Firefly. Watching Serenity, it's pretty obvious they're trying to hit several seasons' worth of story beats in as little time as possible. Seeing it as intended would have been really cool.

Honorable mentions (in no particular order):

Fight Club

The Iron Giant

Grindhouse

Waterworld

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  • [–] 19 points 1 week ago

    The appearance of Fight Club on your list surprised me - I thought it did well. But I looked it up - it was #1 on opening weekend but ultimately only turned a profit of $10m, which is indeed a flop. Wild considering how well regarded it is now.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 week ago* (1 child)

    The Iron Giant

    I was wondering if anyone would mention it! By far one of the most influential animated films of my youth, might have even been the reason I continued to enjoy animation past my childhood.

    It flopped in theaters because despite test audiences loving it, Warner Brothers dropped the ball on marketing and nobody even knew it was in theaters. But from what I heard it gained a massive cult following, and I remember it being shown every holiday season for years as a kid.

    After all these years, the final "Superman" still gets me...

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