5 Notorious Box Office Flops Turning 40 in 2026

The domestic box office generated $3.065 billion in 1986, fueled by blockbuster successes including “Top Gun,” “Crocodile Dundee,” “Aliens,” and “Down and Out in Beverly Hills.” Yet a look back at the year’s top earners reveals that many have not maintained the cultural staying power of the genre favorites released in 1982. In the 2020s, for instance, audiences are far less likely to encounter GIFs or frequently repeated quotes from “Down and Out in Beverly Hills.”

Even if not every major 1986 release has endured as a cherished classic, the year produced no shortage of commercial winners, including the still-revered “Aliens.” But every prosperous movie year also has its flops, and 1986 was no different. Several films crashed at the box office despite ambitious creative goals and apparent studio faith, leaving behind five especially notable examples of the year’s financial low points amid a marketplace packed with hits.

No single factor doomed these 1986 releases, though competition from the year’s biggest films played a role for many of them. Nearly four decades after they debuted, however, each title remains fascinating for the unusual path it took at the box office.

John Carpenter may be best known for his horror classics, but his work has stretched across a wide range of genres. His 1986 standout, “Big Trouble in Little China,” is a lively adventure packed with a wonderfully himbo Kurt Russell performance, impressive practical effects, and exhilarating set pieces. It has all the ingredients of an immediate crowdpleaser, yet when it first arrived in theaters, “Big Trouble in Little China” barely registered with moviegoers.

Today, “Big Trouble in Little China” stands as one of the ’80s box office bombs most deserving of rediscovery. Despite opening over the favorable Fourth of July weekend, it earned only $11.1 million during its initial domestic run. The film was overwhelmed by fierce summer 1986 competition, particularly “Top Gun” and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” while its more elaborate premise—both a subversion and an expansion of classic adventure-movie conventions—may have made it harder to sell.

Carpenter had also faced similar struggles with earlier movies, most notably his other Russell collaboration, “The Thing,” which initially failed to catch on theatrically. His films have often required audiences to catch up with them over time. Considering its enormous popularity today, “Big Trouble in Little China” clearly did eventually find the audience it missed in 1986.

Aside from recent disappointments such as “Transformers One” bombing at the box office, 21st-century “Transformers” films have generally been reliable moneymakers. Even installments containing some of the franchise’s most questionable material, including the cringe-inducing Romeo & Juliet scene in “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” surpassed $1 billion worldwide. Since 2007’s “Transformers,” the eight theatrical “Transformers” movies have combined for more than $5.4 billion globally. Those enormous numbers make it all the more startling that the Autobots and Decepticons first encountered major financial trouble when they reached the big screen.

Released in 1986, “The Transformers: The Movie” brought in just $5.84 million worldwide, an embarrassing total that placed it 99th among the year’s domestic releases. Its North American haul fell behind both “My Little Pony: The Movie” and “Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation.” While the “Transformers” television series was hugely popular, this theatrical feature came from an independent distributor and opened during a year crowded with toy-based movies, leaving it little room to gain traction. The controversy surrounding the death of Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) also did no favors for word-of-mouth.

Fortunately for the companies behind the later live-action “Transformers” films, subsequent adaptations of the franchise became vastly more profitable—and, unfortunately, far more problematic—than “The Transformers: The Movie.”

King Kong’s screen history extends well beyond the landmark 1933 original and the various 21st-century reimaginings. A 1976 remake starring Jessica Lange and Jeff Bridges brought the giant ape’s story into the then-modern era, with Kong climbing the World Trade Center rather than the Empire State Building. Although it was an expensive production, “King Kong” turned a profit, inevitably prompting efforts to find new ways to capitalize on the property.

While today “Kong: Skull Island” was followed up by “Godzilla vs. Kong” just four years later (which would’ve been sooner if it weren’t for COVID-19-induced delays), it took ten years for the 1976 “King Kong” to get a follow-up. 1986’s “King Kong Lives” hailed from the De Laurentiis Entertainment Group and saw the titular ape getting resurrected and falling in love with a female member of his species. Grossing only $4.7 million domestically on a $10 million budget, “King Kong Lives” was a mighty flop that’s box office fate was sealed by how long it’d been since its predecessor.

Certain films, like “Zootopia” or “The Terminator,” can withstand lengthy gaps between sequels. 1976’s “King Kong” wasn’t remotely such a title. Throw in the cheeseball “King Kong Lives” premise and of course audience apathy killed this beast at the box office.

Today, Jim Henson’s “Labyrinth” is unquestionably popular and beloved. Comic conventions all over the world are crammed full of cosplayers dressed as David Bowie’s Jareth. Prolific museum exhibits offer a chance to witness the beautiful handmade artistry that went into it. The lyrics to the original “Labyrinth” tune “Magic Dance” are second-nature to countless theater kids. However, when it first came out, “Labyrinth” didn’t just miss the mark at the box office. It was a colossal failure that stood in sharp contrast to the many instant hits Henson had been associated with throughout his career.

“Labyrinth” got a cushy launch before 1986 4th of July weekend and with marketing materials promising tangible spectacle. However, over its opening weekend, it debuted to a disastrous $3.54 million, coming in behind the third weekend gross of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”  The eventual 4th of July holiday and summer weekdays only got “Labyrinth” to $13.15 million worldwide, an anemic gross given its $25 million budget. That summer, audiences were more invested in stories firmly rooted in reality like “Ferris Bueller” and “Top Gun” as opposed to titles promising to sweep people off to fantasy worlds.

Its initially mixed reviews also didn’t help “Labyrinth” convince 1986 audiences to take a chance on something so original and tonally complex. That initial grim financial outcome for “Labyrinth” would be incomprehensible to modern audiences who know the movie as a beloved cult classic. 

“To this duck, we say a toast/So get to bumpin’ off of his case/No, he got too good to roast/’Cause he saved the human race.” So goes the lyrics in the shockingly catchy “Howard the Duck” song from the movie of the same name crooned by the fictional in-universe band Dolby’s Cube. Alas, having “saved the human race” wasn’t enough to get general audiences invested in seeing “Howard the Duck” in theaters. This infamous misfire wasn’t just a financial disappointment, but became one of those ’80s bombs that changed Hollywood forever.

Costing $37 million to make, “Howard the Duck” only made $37.96 million worldwide, including a dismal $16.29 million domestically. Despite wielding such a major price tag and hailing from producer George Lucas, “Howard the Duck” didn’t come close to winning over audiences who were clamoring to see summer holdovers like “Aliens” and “Top Gun.” To boot, “Howard the Duck” received absolutely awful reviews, with many critics instantly claiming it as one of the worst movies of all time. Everywhere “Howard the Duck” looked, further bad news emerged.

While several summer 1986 films bit the dust financially, few were as embarrassing as “Howard the Duck.” After all, what other summer 1986 box office dud got a Universal Studios executive fired while casting a toxic reputation over live-action Marvel movies for over a decade?