10 Truly Awful Movies That Made Obscene Amounts Of Money

2. The Da Vinci Code (2006)

Budget: $125m Total Box Office: $758.2m US Home Video Sales: $100.5m Thanks to the phenomenal success of Dan Brown's source novel, The Da Vinci Code was a hugely anticipated movie by the time it hit theaters. The controversy that surrounded the book also followed Ron Howard's big screen adaptation, and it rode the pre-release buzz to become one of the biggest hits of the year. However, when the dust had settled people realized that the movie wasn't very good, with the most memorable thing about it being Tom Hanks' glorious mullet. Despite everyone working on the production repeatedly stressing that it was based on a work of fiction, religious groups were up in arms about the project and it was ultimately banned in numerous countries including Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan and Lebanon. They should count themselves lucky; at least they didn't have to sit through 145 minutes of mind-numbing tedium. Despite the best efforts of a star-studded international cast, The Da Vinci Code is an overblown and terribly dull mess, and takes itself far too seriously given the often-ridiculous plot contrivances. However, as the saying goes; controversy creates cash. The Da Vinci Code enjoyed a huge $77m domestic opening weekend, and grossed over $250m in the States. International audiences also flocked to see the movie, providing over 70% of the total box office takings, with the $758.2m total making it the second biggest movie of 2006. Additionally, over 6.5m copies were sold on DVD in the US alone, with an educated guess at international numbers indicating that the theatrical and home video revenue generated by the movie won't be far off a billion dollars.