Probably the worst sci-fi flop of all time that didn’t deserve it

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Probably the worst sci fi flop of all time that didnt

In 2018, fantasy and sci-fi fans eagerly awaited Mortal Engines, an adaptation of Philip Reeve’s massive book. Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson not only produced the film, he also gathered a considerable part of his Middle-earth team around him. It was also filmed in New Zealand, just like the Tolkien trilogy. One could expect great things. Unfortunately, the project failed miserably. Today you can see Mortal Engines on TV.

  • The film runs on Thursday at 8.15 p.m. on VOX
  • The repetition follows Friday at 10:15 p.m. also on VOX

    • That’s what the sci-fi blockbuster Mortal Engines is all about

    Mortal Engines: Urban Warfare paints the picture of a dystopia where Earth’s resources are scarce and numerous cities have been mobilized by engines. This allows them to attack and destroy other cities in order to claim valuable resources.

    Mortal Engines – Trailer (German) HD

    London and its residents, like historian Thaddeus Valentine and apprentice Tom (Robert Sheehan), try their hand at this time before others more powerful walking cities to hide. But nobody can hide forever. Together with the mysterious Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar), Tom forms an alliance that could be crucial to the survival of mankind.

    More on this:

    Mortal Engines is considered one of the biggest flops in cinema history

    A sequel did not follow the first part, although only part of Philip Reeve’s work was filmed. Rather, Mortal Engines was given a dubious reputation: it is one of the worst sci-fi flops in film history.

    How did that happen? The budget wasn’t particularly high: Peter Jackson and Co. spent a maximum of 150 million US dollars on the production. The problem lay more in the global box office. According to Box Office Mojo, only 83 million US dollars were raised worldwide. Even by flop standards, that’s extremely lousy for a production of this size. According to Deadline, Mortal Engines made a loss of around 174 million US dollars. We couldn’t find a sci-fi movie that had it worse. According to Collider, Mortal Engines is the most devastating film flop in cinema history. (On Amazon: Ultra-realistic Morgul Blade for Lord of the Rings fans *)

    Did Mortal Engines deserve this? Did it have to be like this? This result is difficult to explain. Why are so few people interested in a visually stunning sci-fi blockbuster that advertises with big names and has an exciting story? Three possible explanations:

  • Perhaps the world of Mortal Engines was difficult to convey to a large audience in the trailers. walking cities? What is that supposed to be?
  • The film adorned itself with the name of Peter Jackson and relied on an advertising effect. However, Jackson’s reputation suffered from the Hobbit trilogy, with which many fans were not satisfied.
  • In 2018, in the heyday of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the competition from superhero films was too great and interest in original genre material too little.

    • Mortal Engines would not have been in this environment just be allowed to be good. The movie would have great have to be in order to prevail. And that’s not true of Mortal Engines, even on a grand scale.

    *. . .

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