If you spend any time watching comic book movies–and since this place is called Geek Vibes Nation, you do–you’re familiar with the phrase “best worst performing movies.” Look at the latest string of CBMs or TV series as a purview into what this patented GVN list represents.
Cinephile scholars are everywhere on the Web. They love to review CBMs and, for the most part, there is an accord among the geek brethren. Granted, there are those moments when the strongest acolytes refuse to accept an alternative point of view.
In case you missed it, and by the look of box office receipts–you have, The Marvels and Blue Beetle tripped over a bump in the theater carpet and fell on their faces. The reviews are polarizing. The fans are bickering. And the path forward for both branded cinematic universes is slightly skewed.
Yet, the movies are not nearly as bad as some fandoms want you to believe. The box office can’t be the only barometer for total suckage of a movie. Take Jurassic World: Dominion. Well, you get it.
There have been some films considered GOATs in their respective genres. These are all-time classics that adorned DVD collections around the world. And they all sucked out loud during its theatrical runs. Some of these may be surprising.
Here are the Top 10 Best Worst Performing Movies of all time (so far)…
10. The Master (2012)
$16M Box Office | $30M Budget
To begin this list of the “Best Worst Performing Movies,” we have arguably Paul Thomas Anderson‘s best work. Then, you have Amy Adams, Joaquin Phoenix, and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman earning Oscar nominations for their part in this movie. And still, no one seemed to care.
The film’s pace is a snail’s pace build, but if you give it time, The Master draws it in. And yes, despite what anyone says, it’s totally inspired by the oddball life of L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. Unfortunately, on its opening day, it only drew in $242K. It deserved much better.
9. Nightmare Alley (2021)
$37M Box Office | $60M Budget
When you attach Guillermo del Toro to a film, odds are it will crush the box office. The man’s neo-noir signature is enough of a reason to buy a ticket. And then, there’s his fascinating mind. (Pan’s Labyrinth? C’mon!)
Yet, for some peculiar reason, this acclaimed director and that bewildering cast–led by Cate Blanchett and Bradley Cooper–was just roadkill in any alley. It upset Martin Scorsese so much that he penned an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times chiding people for not seeing it. Guess what? It’s still worth a click and a view.
8. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
$15M Box Office | $30M Budget
As quiet as it wasn’t kept, this is one of Brad Pitt‘s brightest moments in film. Casey Affleck and Pitt developed mesmerizing chemistry in the story of Jesse James’ demise–shot in the back of the head by someone he considered a friend.
Maybe, it’s because it was a Western? Then again, Tombstone made $56M. Brad Pitt is a fan favorite. Roger Deakins was behind the amazing, picturesque views. The movie made Jesse James a sympathetic figure by the time he was killed, and that Robin Hood-wannabe guy was vicious. Whatever the case, cinephiles missed out on one of the best modern Westerns made.
7. Children of Men (2006)
$28M Box Office | $76M Budget
Alfonso Cuarรณn‘s dystopian thriller was a remarkable adaptation of such a finely crafted (but dense) book by P.D. James in 1992. The film tracks the plight of human infertility and Clive Owen‘s character, Theo, forced to protect the first pregnant woman in decades (Clare-Hope Ashitey).
The source material puts humanity fighting the global effects of an ecocide, which caused international infertility. Critics lauded the movie. Oscar nominated it three times. Yet, fans didn’t get it and weren’t eager to see it. Even today, there is no free streaming–only rentals on Vudu and Apple. Pity, because the movie was complex and beguiling.
6. The Big Lebowski (1998)
$18M Box Office | $15M Budget
From a relatively unheard movie to a cult phenomenon, The Big Lebowski (Jeff Bridges) is a wonderfully hilarious movie with some of the most quotables in the past half-century. The Coen Brothers are gifted storytellers, and this bowling movie proves it. (As if Barton Fink, O Brother Where Art Thou, No Country for Old Men, and Fargo didn’t already accomplish that feat.)
Joel and Ethan Coen weren’t big fans of how their fun film ended up because “critics didn’t get the humor.” That may be why the movie barely broke even during its first U.S. theatrical run. Their uncertain reviews killed anticipation. Well, screw those people because the rest of us sure got it, so there.
5. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
$3.0M Box Office | $2.7M Budget
In 1939, $3 million was an outlandish amount of money to pay for a film, but MGM had a good feeling about this alabaster-hued teenager with ruby red shoes. Judy Garland was an instant success, and The Wizard of Oz would become one of cinema’s most beloved films ever.
During its theatrical run, the movie lost $1M. It took a decade for the film to finally make a profit. Today, imagine Marvel making an anticipated edition like their version of Fantastic Four and blowing through $750M at the apex of COVID-19. Good luck with recouping that budget. But you know the story, not even an F-5 multiverse-traveling tornado could deprive that movie and that film of its destiny.
4. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
$3.1M Box Office | $3.7M Budget
You can’t frown or ignore the Christmas spirit during It’s a Wonderful Life. It’s impervious to Grinches, grumpy mall santas, and cantankerous old farts. That’s why it is so surprising to see It’s a Wonderful Life on a list featuring top worst performing movies. This is an angel getting its wings. It is Yuletide magic in ultra-high definition. So, what the what? Jimmy Stewart lost money?!
That’s why this wonderful film is heralded as an all-time classic–it had to beat the odds. From Clarence to Christmas, this movie is the spirit of the holidays! And had that Yuletide joy not caught on, it would be stuck in the $5 DVD bin at Walmart. And how many angels get their wings at that place?! Damn.
3. The Thing (1982)
$19M Box Office | $15M Budget
At the time (and many believe, still), The Thing is king of the mountain on inventive filmmaking. A changeling?! Only John Carpenter could curate something as mind-blowing as that. Few horror enthusiasts neglect the influence of this eerie movie. Yet, few fans went and saw it at the movie theater.
The New York Times said the movie “only qualifies as instant junk.” Is that a fact? The guy is an armorbearer in the horror hall of fame, and one of his most stellar films was instant junk. Here’s to hoping Vincent Camby, critic-at-large, became instant unemployed because that review sucked even more than he thought the movie did.
2. Citizen Kane (1941)
$1.0M Box Office | $839K Budget
The American Film Institute, Smithsonian, and the U.S. Congress Archives agree that Orson Welles‘ magnum opus Citizen Kane, is the greatest movie ever made. Any genre, any year, this film loosely translated on publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst’s life is still inspiring moviemakers to this day. It’s a triumph, a vision, a complete box-office bomb.
As massively respected as Welles was, how would that movie crash? Coincidentally, it was Hearst. He used every flat sheet and broadsheet he had to refuse Citizen Kane from advertising. The legend is that Hearst the Megalomaniac even offered cash money to Hollywood executives to burn original copies of the film in effigy across the country.
Rosebud may have slid around as one of the best worst performing movies in history. Yet, it will always and forever be that movie.
1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
$28M Box Office | $25M Budget
This is the best worst performing movie at the box office. Period. Regardless of its theatrical throttling, it’s one of the most beloved films ever made. Find a “Best Movie Ever List” (no, not here…yet) and you will find this Frank Darabont classic near the top of each one of them.
This movie is that admirable. It’s visceral, moving, compelling, and one of the most prolific stories of hope ever told. And yet, it barely broke even at the box office. Why? How can a story that significant not be appealing? Tim Robbins, who played the innocently charged Andy DuFresne, thought it was the title.
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Whatever the reason, no movie has seen so little that deserved so much. A remarkable tale, A renaissance story. An irreplaceable film.
All statistics are provided courtesy of The-Numbers.com.

Since he saw ‘Dune’ in the $1 movie theater as a kid, this guy has been a lover of geek culture. It wasn’t until he became a professional copywriter, ghostwriter, and speechwriter that he began to write about it (a lot).
From the gravitas of the Sith, the genius of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, or the gluttony of today’s comic fan, SPW digs intelligent debate about entertainment. He’s also addicted to listicles, storytelling, useless trivia, and the Oxford comma. And, he prefers his puns intended.