Hollywood’s top actors work hard to maintain good reputations among movie fans. Their popularity keeps them employed and encourages movie studios to entrust them with lead roles in big-budget productions. Yet everybody makes mistakes, and even the most famous and bankable of movie stars can make a professional misstep.
To determine the A-list actors with the biggest box office flops, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the filmographies of nearly 50 of today’s most popular actors. Only movies in which the actor was among the top four performers listed on IMDb, an online movie and TV database owned by Amazon, were considered. The film starring that actor that made the least amount of money in the U.S. was selected. Box office data, audience scores, and Tomatometer critics’ scores came from Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator.
A movie can flop for various reasons. A script that strains credibility, uninspired direction, unattractive subject matter, even poor timing for its release. Whatever the cause, financial catastrophe results in what’s commonly called a box office bomb. (Some films that fail eventually achieve cult status, though. Here are 25 box office bombs that became comedy classics.)
Click here to see A-list actors’ biggest box office flops
It should also be noted, though, that sometimes box-office failures are critical successes. The public doesn’t always agree with the opinions of professional reviewers.
The negative effects the movies on our list have had on their stars’ careers vary. Some remain so little-known that most fans don’t even know that an actor appeared in a flop. Others overshadow the roles that first earned the actor’s widespread acclaim – like these movie roles that launched some of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
Angelina Jolie
> Movie: Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021)
> Domestic box office: $7,300,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.0/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 62%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 86%
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Anna Hathaway
> Movie: Song One (2014)
> Domestic box office: $20,200
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.7/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 32%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 29%
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Anthony Hopkins
> Movie: Slipstream (2007)
> Domestic box office: $6,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 4.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 25%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 29%
Ben Affleck
> Movie: To the Wonder (2012)
> Domestic box office: $586,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 47%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 37%
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Bradley Cooper
> Movie: Serena (2014)
> Domestic box office: $176,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 16%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 23%
Cate Blanchett
> Movie: Manifesto (2015)
> Domestic box office: $161,100
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 55%
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Channing Tatum
> Movie: The Son of No One (2011)
> Domestic box office: $28,900
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 15%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 22%
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Charlize Theron
> Movie: Sleepwalking (2008)
> Domestic box office: $169,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 17%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 43%
Chris Evans
> Movie: Before We Go (2014)
> Domestic box office: $37,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 27%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 57%
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Chris Hemsworth
> Movie: Blackhat (2015)
> Domestic box office: $7,800,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 32%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 24%
Denzel Washington
> Movie: For Queen & Country (1989)
> Domestic box office: $62,800
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.6/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 29%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 28%
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Dwayne Johnson
> Movie: Southland Tales (2006)
> Domestic box office: $273,400
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 41%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41%
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Emma Stone
> Movie: Movie 43 (2013)
> Domestic box office: $8,800,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 4.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 4%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 24%
Gal Gadot
> Movie: Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
> Domestic box office: $46,500,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 58%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 73%
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George Clooney
> Movie: Welcome to Collinwood (2002)
> Domestic box office: $334,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 55%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 55%
Halle Berry
> Movie: Frankie & Alice (2010)
> Domestic box office: $693,200
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 21%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 59%
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Harrison Ford
> Movie: Crossing Over (2009)
> Domestic box office: $454,100
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.7/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 15%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 49%
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Jennifer Aniston
> Movie: Life of Crime (2013)
> Domestic box office: $261,700
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 68%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 37%
Jennifer Lawrence
> Movie: Winter’s Bone (2010)
> Domestic box office: $6,500,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 94%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 76%
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Johnny Depp
> Movie: Happily Ever After (2004)
> Domestic box office: $252,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 57%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 71%
Julia Roberts
> Movie: Full Frontal (2002)
> Domestic box office: $2,500,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 4.7/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 39%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 27%
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Kate Winslet
> Movie: Ammonite (2020)
> Domestic box office: $160,900
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 69%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85%
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Keanu Reeves
> Movie: Knock Knock (2015)
> Domestic box office: $34,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 4.9/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 37%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 19%
Kevin Costner
> Movie: Ever Again (2006)
> Domestic box office: $10,800
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 50%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 54%
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Leonardo DiCaprio
> Movie: Total Eclipse (1995)
> Domestic box office: $339,900
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 25%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 61%
Mahershala Ali
> Movie: Moonlight (2016)
> Domestic box office: $27,900,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 98%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79%
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Margot Robbie
> Movie: I, Tonya (2017)
> Domestic box office: $30,000,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 88%
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Matt Damon
> Movie: Howard Zinn: You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train (2004)
> Domestic box office: $120,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 97%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84%
Matthew Mcconaughey
> Movie: The Sea of Trees (2015)
> Domestic box office: $14,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 17%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 43%
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Meryl Streep
> Movie: Dark Matter (2007)
> Domestic box office: $30,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.0/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 40%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 40%
Michelle Pfeiffer
> Movie: Love Field (1992)
> Domestic box office: $519,200
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.5/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 40%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 56%
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Morgan Freeman
> Movie: The Long Way Home (1997)
> Domestic box office: $13,300
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.6/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 100%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83%
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Natalie Portman
> Movie: The Other Woman (2009)
> Domestic box office: $20,600
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 39%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 45%
Nicole Kidman
> Movie: Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus (2006)
> Domestic box office: $220,900
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 32%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 63%
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Reese Witherspoon
> Movie: Freeway (1996)
> Domestic box office: $283,800
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 76%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 76%
Robert De Niro
> Movie: Killing Season (2013)
> Domestic box office: $27,700
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 10%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 29%
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Robert Downey Jr.
> Movie: The Singing Detective (2003)
> Domestic box office: $336,500
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 39%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 40%
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Ryan Gosling
> Movie: The United States of Leland (2003)
> Domestic box office: $343,800
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.0/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 34%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81%
Ryan Reynolds
> Movie: The Nines (2007)
> Domestic box office: $62,700
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.2/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 65%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 61%
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Scarlett Johansson
> Movie: A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004)
> Domestic box office: $159,200
> IMDb avg. rating: 7.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 43%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80%
Susan Sarandon
> Movie: Safe Passage (1994)
> Domestic box office: $1,600,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 54%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 73%
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Sylvester Stallone
> Movie: Kambakkht Ishq (2009)
> Domestic box office: $1,400,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 3.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 0%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 31%
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Tom Cruise
> Movie: Legend (1985)
> Domestic box office: $12,300,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.3/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 40%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 73%
Tom Hanks
> Movie: A Hologram for the King (2016)
> Domestic box office: $4,200,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 70%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 54%
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Viola Davis
> Movie: Lila & Eve (2015)
> Domestic box office: $37,900
> IMDb avg. rating: 5.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 40%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41%
Will Ferrell
> Movie: Everything Must Go (2010)
> Domestic box office: $2,700,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.4/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 73%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 52%
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Will Smith
> Movie: Six Degrees of Separation (1993)
> Domestic box office: $6,300,000
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.8/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 88%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 71%
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Woody Harrelson
> Movie: The Sunchaser (1996)
> Domestic box office: $23,100
> IMDb avg. rating: 6.1/10
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 17%
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41%
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