Generally, moviegoers and critics alike can pinpoint the movies most likely to be blockbuster hits.

Sometimes it’s due to the cast, other times an enticing trailer. No matter what the reason, though, it’s important to know that this isn’t an exact science. Even the smartest movie fans alive aren’t perfect, as indicated by these big-budget movies that didn’t translate to the success many experts envisioned.

John Carter

Budget: $300 million

John Carter had all the makings of the next big thing from Disney, but never reached those heights.

The first in a planned franchise, John Carter flopped at the box office, killing any chance of this becoming anything more than a one-off.

The Lone Ranger

Budget: $300 million

Pairing Gore Verbinski, best known for working with Johnny Depp on the first three Pirates of the Caribbean movies, with Captain Jack Sparrow himself seemed like a great idea.

Yet The Lone Ranger failed to be anything more than a mindless summer blockbuster flick that failed to draw in audiences.

Blade Runner 2049

Budget: $185 million

Blade Runner 2049 isn’t the most expensive movie on the list, but it’s not exactly cheap either.

It’s a shame because it’s an incredible movie, worthy of the Blade Runner franchise, but it just never found an audience.

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The Flash

Budget: $220 million

The Flash should have been a hit; Ezra Miller was one of the best parts of The Justice League, and seeing Michael Keaton as Batman is always a good thing.

However, Miller’s off-screen behavior turned a lot of people off on the movie.

Speed Racer

Budget: $120 million

It doesn’t seem like a lot, but $120 million in 2008 was a big deal for movie budgets.

Speed Racer has become a beloved cult classic today, but it could have used that excitement at the box office.

Lightyear

Budget: $200 million

Lightyear has an undeniably interesting premise. It’s the movie Andy saw in 1995 that made him want a Buzz Lightyear toy.

Given the improbably sustained success of four Toy Story movies, Lightyear seemed like another sure thing, but moviegoers disagreed.

The Good Dinosaur

Budget: $200 million

This is, without a doubt, Pixar’s most notorious flop.

The studio went on an impressive run of churning out box office hits, regardless of what critics said. The Good Dinosaur is rarely mentioned today, though, making it not only a movie that failed to live up to expectations, but one that’s completely forgettable as well.

Treasure Planet

Budget: $140 million

Disney’s animated films are accustomed to being ambitious, and Treasure Planet is no different.

While critics didn’t love it, they all agreed that there’s a good movie to be found here! Sadly, its abnormally high budget, as well as living in the shadow of Lilo & Stitch, resulted in disappointment.

Tomorrowland

Budget: $190 million

Speaking of disappointment, there was so much hope and anticipation over Tomorrowland.

Brad Bird was directing! It was written by Bird and Damon Lindelof! The cast was impressive! Sadly, all that ambition and expectation failed to deliver.

Waterworld

Budget: $175 million

Adjusted for inflation, the budget for 1995’s Waterworld is roughly $355 million. That’s a lot of money, even for a movie today.

No matter how well it would do at the box office (spoiler alert: it bombed), this was always doomed. Here’s the thing, though; it’s currently becoming a cult classic. Were we wrong about it 30 years ago?

Doctor Sleep

Budget: $55 million

Sequel to a beloved movie? Check. Reviews that say it’s a worthy sequel? Check. Box office success? Well, that depends on who you ask.

Sure, that $55 million budget doesn’t seem like much, but this isn’t a summer blockbuster that needed hundreds of millions of dollars to make. Audiences just weren’t that interested in revisiting the world of The Shining, no matter how great the movie is.

Dredd

Budget: $45 million

Again, $45 million doesn’t seem like a lot, but Dredd is the reboot of 1995’s flop Judge Dredd with the feel of a smaller studio movie.

It worked: Dredd is an incredible film and is everything moviegoers claim they want, but it only made $41.5 million at the box office.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Budget: $85 million

Speaking of what moviegoers want, you’d figure they’d flock to a smart, funny, clever, and stylish action comedy based on a beloved graphic novel.

I’ll never understand why Scott Pilgrim vs. The World didn’t make millions at the box office. Oh, and before you ask, yes, that’s an expensive budget. While we don’t have the data for The Running Man‘s budget, currently, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is Edgar Wright’s most expensive movie to make.

Cats

Budget: $100 million

Cats is one of the most beloved musicals of all time and was set to make its long-awaited big screen debut in 2019.

It should have been the biggest hit of the year. It should have broken records. Instead, we got…whatever this thing was.

Hugo

Budget: $170 million.

I wonder if studios banked a little too hard on Martin Scorsese’s name doing the heavy lifting for this movie.

Instead, I’d argue it was a little too inside baseball for moviegoers.

Pan

Budget: $150 million

Man, studios loved their epic adaptations of beloved stories in the 2010s. I get it; the Pirates of the Caribbean movies made billions at the box office.

You’d figure that would translate to a successful epic adaptation of Peter Pan, especially one starring Hugh Jackman and with a brisk run time of under two hours, but that success never came to fruition.

Strange World

Budget: $180 million

A Walt Disney adaptation of beloved tales like Journey to the Center of the Earth from the co-director of Moana and an all-star voice. Surely that results in a box office hit, right?

Well, about that. Despite positive reviews, this thing bombed hard.

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