10 Movie Flops You've Probably Forgotten

Described by the studio head as “one of the worst movies we ever made”, The Wolfman was Universal’s latest attempt to turn another of its horror franchises into an effects-heavy action movie in the wake of The Mummy (1999) and Van Helsing (2004). Which explains the over-generous budget ($150 million), but when the film made less than that worldwide the studio was left with egg on its face.

The problem is that the basic plot just isn’t blockbuster material. The tragic story of a man being bitten by (and ultimately transforming into) a werewolf worked very well as a 70 minute black-and-white feature back in 1941, but as a 2 hour effects showcase from the director of Jurassic Park III? Not so much.

Unfortunately, Universal didn’t learn from the experience and committed the same sins again with Dracula Untold, whose indifferent reception caused the studio to rethink its plans for a series of interconnected films. Whether that rethink benefitted the films will become apparent when their reboot of The Mummy (starring Tom Cruise) opens in 2017.