10 'Next Big Thing' Movies That Completely Flopped

6. Tron: Legacy

Tron Legacy Clu Jeff Bridges
Disney

A lot of films on this list deserved to fail, but Tron: Legacy is not one of them. In 2020, Disney's strange sequel/reboot holds up surprisingly well, bolstered by committed performances, spellbinding visuals and a killer soundtrack.

In a lot of ways though, it failed because it was too ahead of its time.

This was a franchise revival that built on the past while also introducing a brand new set of characters for modern audiences, long before the likes of Independence Day and Star Wars tried the same thing. Likewise, this was one of the first major blockbusters to pull the trigger on de-ageing technology, and it was pretty damn impressive at the time.

Sadly, audiences weren't as convinced, and were put off by a lot of the experimental elements that made it so special. Who knows, had it released a few years later, maybe it could have been the trailblazer it deserved to be.

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Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.