10 Flop Movies That Somehow Got Sequels
4. The Boondock Saints
No film on this list has as ugly a cost-to-profit ratio - theatrically speaking, at least - as The Boondock Saints. The dark action thriller, produced for a seemingly sensible $6 million, ended up grossing just $30,471 upon limited release in the United States.
To be clear, it clawed back a pitiful 0.005% of its production budget during its theatrical release.
There were however majorly extenuating circumstances for this, given that The Boondock Saints was test-screened just two weeks after 1999's Columbine High School massacre.
With distributor Indican Pictures concerned that it might inspire copycat crimes, they decided to release the film in just five U.S. cinemas, where it didn't stand a chance of turning a profit.
But in the years that followed, The Boondock Saints enjoyed a prosperous second life on home video, where it generated more than $50 million in revenue - enough that a sequel was released in 2009, The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day.
Though it didn't become a breakout box office hit itself, its $10.6 million total marked a huge leap from the first film, which combined with presumably strong home video sales made a still-developing third film a genuine possibility.