10 Movie Franchises That Died In 2022
4. The 355
Universal evidently had high hopes for The 355, the first major theatrical blockbuster of 2022 - a globetrotting spy action flick starring some of the finest actresses of their generation, in Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Diane Kruger, and Lupita Nyong'o, as ass-kicking spies.
The potential certainly speaks for itself, but under filmmaker Simon Kinberg, The 355 was ultimately nothing more than a bland, patently forgettable romp that failed to show most of its $75 million budget on the screen.
The film admittedly had some factors working against it.
For one, audiences at the time were still anxious about returning to cinemas for anything not called Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Plus, with Universal committed to releasing most of their films to streaming within 17-31 days of their cinema release - depending on how much they gross in their opening weekend - why bother leaving the house for something that looks so mediocre?
And the masses absolutely opted to stay home, with The 355 making just $27.8 million worldwide in the face of predominantly negative reviews. If Kinberg's star-studded actioner felt better suited to streaming, it fittingly wound up on PVOD just three weeks after its cinema release.
With its pathetic box office performance, plans to make The 355 a major tentpole IP for Universal promptly fell embarrassingly flat.
What a waste of so many talented actors, yet with Kinberg's track record - Dark Phoenix, anyone? - everyone involved should've seen its failure coming.