Box Office Flops That Destroyed Careers and Cost Hollywood Millions

Heaven’s Gate (1980)

This western film chronicling the Johnson County War changed the film industry forever, irreparably damaging director Michael Cimino’s career. Heaven’s Gate lost around $123 million at the box office after Cimino’s “vision” for the film quadrupled the production budget. The studio, United Artists, was driven to bankruptcy. The film itself was subject to allegations of animal abuse on set and had also been described by critics as “one of the greatest injustices of cinematic history.”

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The More You Know

In 2002, Steven Spielberg finally finished college after a 33-year hiatus. He turned in Schindler’s List for his student film requirement.
Peter Ostrum, Charlie from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, never acted in another movie after that and is now a veterinarian.
For 'Fight Club' (1999), Brad Pitt had pieces of his front teeth chipped off to play Tyler Durden. He also took soap-making classes, boxing, taekwondo, and grappling lessons with Edward Norton to prepare for the role.
Pierce Brosnan was contractually forbidden from wearing a full tuxedo in any non-James Bond movie from 1995-2002.

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