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5. Zoolander 2 – $28 million
It seems that long-gestating comedy sequels are doomed. Like Anchorman 2 and Dumb and Dumber To, the Ben Stiller-Owen Wilson sequel Zoolander 2 spent many long years of fan-pleading for it to get made. Finally, the movie was released 15 years after the original. It turns out that the studio didn’t want to greenlight the film for the longest time for a reason – no one wanted it.
Zoolander (2001) was an eccentric and stupid little slice of comedy when it opened. The film was so polarizing that it only really developed a huge following when it arrived on DVD, much like Anchorman (2004). Now the original Zoolander is looked at like some sort of classic in many film communities. Zoolander 2 will absolutely not be joining its predecessor.
Zoolander 2 earned a measly $28 million total. In terms of tickets sold, it didn’t even sell half of what its modest predecessor did. Remember that Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig, and Penelope Cruz also added some serious star power to this film. Yet critics and audiences both trashed it. Against its rather large budget of $50 million, Zoolander 2 is an absolute bomb that even the presence of Justin Bieber and Katy Perry couldn’t save.
For star Ben Stiller, this was his lowest-grossing wide release studio film in 12 years. Don’t hold your breath that he’ll convince Paramount to let Derek Zoolander turn left again.
