10 Films That Cost WAY More Than They Needed To

Before Cleopatra was released in 1963, Mutiny on the Bounty was the most expensive movie of all time, costing $17 million.

But Cleopatra obliterated this record with its budget of $31 million. That may not sound like much, but that figure translates into $350 million by today's standards, making Cleopatra the most expensive film ever for over half a century.

Boasting 79 sets and 26,000 costumes, Cleopatra was always going to be costly. Sadly, 20th Century Fox could've never anticipated the budget could skyrocket to this level.

The lead star, Elizabeth Taylor, was contracted to be paid up to $50,000 per week. But because of interruptions, Taylor's ill-health, and the director being fired, the production was delayed for years. Since Taylor was still being paid weekly during this time, her salary gobbled up nearly 25% of all expenses!

But that's not all. When news broke that Taylor was having an affair with her co-star, Richard Burton, it was all the public could talk about, making moviegoers desperate to see the historic epic.

However, Cleopatra was meant to be a two-parter, with Burton's character not appearing until the second movie. Worried that people wouldn't watch the first part if they know Burton wasn't in it, the studio ordered the director to condense the project into one movie. This caused the story to become so incomprehensible, 49 pages of reshoots had to be inserted, adding millions to the budget.

All these hardships failed to pay off, since Cleopatra recieved lukewarm reviews and failed to make a profit.