10 Signs An Upcoming Film Is Going To Bomb HARD

There are few indictments more damning than a film simply not being screened for critics.

Generally even bad movies are screened at least a few days in advance for reviewers, and so to not even bother holding a screening suggests a complete lack of faith in its quality.

Generally the idea with not screening a film for critics is for audiences to see it on its first weekend and allow studios to rake in some fast cash before a fleet of bad post-release reviews kill its future commercial prospects.

Yet here's just a few examples of films which weren't press-screened and went on to tank both critically and commercially: the Nicolas Cage-starring remake of The Wicker Man, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Sucker Punch, R.I.P.D., and so on. You get the idea.

There are very occasional outliers, such as Piranha 3D receiving unexpectedly solid reviews and turning a decent profit, but if a studio doesn't want any reviews out there before release, a big fat bomb is almost definitely incoming.