...
...
Next Story

2025's biggest box office bomb was loved by critics, but caused studio $100 million loss, forced OTT release in 18 days

The biggest box office bomb of the year so far is projected to lose over $100 million, forcing the studio into an early release on streaming.

Updated on: Mar 18, 2025, 06:14:30 IST
By
Prefer HTon Google
Advertisement

The biggest box office bomb of 2025 is arriving on streaming in less than three weeks of its theatrical release. What is amazing is that the film was praised by critics but just could not connect with the audiences. (Also read: Salman Khan's biggest box office bomb made just 2 cr, director quit filmmaking, actress never worked in Bollywood again)

The biggest box office bomb of 2025

A still from Bong Joon Ho's Mickey 17.
A still from Bong Joon Ho's Mickey 17.

By next week, Parasite director Bong Joon Ho's sci-fi thriller Mickey 17 will be streaming on all major platforms worldwide. This may come as a shock to many since the film was released in theatres only last week. But its disappointing performance at the box office has meant that Warner Bros Discovery, the studio bankrolling it, has been forced to an early streaming release to cut its losses.

Mickey 17 digital release

Mickey 17 was made on a production budget of $118 million with $80 million spent on top of that for publicity and marketing. Industry insiders have said the $198 million landing cost implies the film needs to earn over $300 million just to break even. However, at the end of 9 days, Mickey 17 has earned only $90.5 million worldwide, and its daily haul has diminished to low single-digit numbers. It may just scrape past $100 million but not go much further. World of Reel quotes sources saying the film is set to cause Warner Bros a loss of over $100 million, making it the most unprofitable film of 2025 so far.

All this has come after the critics seemed to enjoy the film. Mickey 17 has a favourable 78% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 7.2/10. On Metacritic, the film has a healthy 72/100 score, with many critics giving it 4 out of 5 stars.

Mickey 17, based on Edward Ashton's novel Mickey7, stars Robert Pattinson, along with Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette, and Mark Ruffalo.

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abhimanyu Mathur

Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.

Stay connected with all the glitz and glam from the world of entertainment, right from Hollywood gossip to Bollywood chit chat. Also don't miss out on music buzz, anime scoops and OTT action.
Stay connected with all the glitz and glam from the world of entertainment, right from Hollywood gossip to Bollywood chit chat. Also don't miss out on music buzz, anime scoops and OTT action.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Hindustantimes wants to start sending you push notifications. Click allow to subscribe