Movies are a risky business. Although the biggest hits often have a sizable marketing push behind their impressive revenues, it's not unusual for similar hype to be attached to a massive flop. Whether reviews were harsh, word-of-mouth warned others to stay away, or a movie was released alongside a runaway hit, some movies crash and burn at the box office.
Indeed, the odds are stacked against success for many studios. That's because — as Dustin Rowles explained in a Pajiba article — movie studios don't receive 100% of their grosses. They get 80% during the first week and less as time goes on, which means that most box office calculators tend to assume the studio responsible for a movie made about half of its grosses back. As you'll learn, many movies are considered box office failures-- just see how much money these titles lost.
