How bad has it been for new movies at the 2013 box office?
So bad that leading into Friday's release of Oz the Great and Powerful, there's only been one $100 million hit (Identity Thief). So bad that the "worst" movie of all-time (Movie 43) is actually a success story. So bad that an infamous flop now seems a blockbuster.
A rundown of the stiffs:
1. Jack the Giant Slayer: It reportedly cost $200 million-something; worldwide, it opened to $40 million-something; and, most devastating from a P.R. standpoint, it failed to measure up to John Carter, which grossed more than twice as much in its debut.
2. Beautiful Creatures: It could've been the new Twilight, if, you know, it was about vampires instead of witches, and it had inspired fanatical ticket sales. Instead, the movie, which most reports assert had a $60 million price tag, barely made a blip, and to date has grossed only $45 million worldwide.
3. Bullet to the Head: With a reputed $55 million budget versus a $14 million worldwide gross, this Sylvester Stallone shoot-'em-up wins the booby prize for worst showing for a 2013 movie starring a 1980s action icon.
4. The Last Stand: Stallone's toughest competition, as it were, was this Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, the former governor's first starring work in nearly a decade. The film has netted $31 million worldwide from a $45 million reported budget.
5. Phantom: What's worst than being mentioned in the same box-office breath with John Carter? Being mentioned in the same box-office breath with Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure. It was that bad last weekend for this $18 million Ed Harris-David Duchovny sub movie that tanked, and historically so, with only $500,000 and change in domestic ticket sales.