10 Movies You Were Totally Wrong About

For the most part, it's pretty easy to figure out whether a film is going to be critically and/or commercially successful pre-release.

By looking at any movie's marketing (or lack thereof) and social media buzz, one can glean a clear picture of the general temperature in the room and make predictions accordingly.

But it's certainly not an exact science, and there isn't a person among us who hasn't been shocked by the unexpected performance of a movie - whether for better or worse.

Sometimes a film fares far better or worse with critics and/or general audiences that there's simply no choice but to admit you were totally wrong.

Perhaps the filmmakers put more care into the movie than expected, its box office benefitted from unforeseen circumstances, or on the other side of the coin, a slam-dunk concept fell brutally short of the mark.

While the majority of movies can be pegged long before they come out, these 10 films serve as a reminder that there's always the opportunity to be surprised one way or another.

If you've already totally pre-judged 2023's upcoming films, be sure to keep your mind open to other outcomes...

Let's kick things off with a film that was categorically underestimated by basically everyone from the moment that it was announced.

Many were initially upset that the third Jumanji film, Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle, was revealed to be in development barely a year after the passing of original star Robin Williams, and the addition of an A-list cast including Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan didn't help move the needle much.

The cynicism was certainly justified to an extent - it wasn't exactly easy to believe that director Jake Kasdan, fresh off helming the terrible comedy Sex Tape, would deliver a quality blockbuster without any big-budget tentpoles under his belt.

The marketing sold Jumanji as an aggressively broad action-adventure film, and releasing a mere five days after Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the writing seemed to be on the wall for a critical and commercial dud.

But talk about a movie that surpassed any and all pre-release predictions. Jumanji not only racked up an impressive 76% Rotten Tomatoes score but went on to gross a mind-boggling $962.5 million.

Given that many were unconvinced that the $150 million movie would gross even half its final gross, it's easily one of the most unfathomable box office results in recent times.

The unexpectedly positive reviews and The Last Jedi proving divisive with fans basically created the perfect environment for Jumanji to swoop in and make off like a bandit.