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Following Kevin Costner’s success in the highly acclaimed seriesYellowstone, great things were expected from the actor, especially since he ventured into Western filmmaking with his 2024 two-part franchise starterHorizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1.However, although the sprawling Western epic had promised to be something fresh and groundbreaking, the film suffered a catastrophic blow at the box office.
This led netizens to express their disappointment in Kevin Costner, considering how the actor had previously created hype surrounding his Western epic. But surprisingly, when you look at the bigger picture,Horizonis far from an isolated failure. In the landscape of Hollywood cinema, where sequels and remakes are dominating the box office, there appeared several other original movies that sadly succumbed at the 2024 box office.
Kevin Costner’sHorizonFranchise Failed to Break Even in Theaters
Considering howKevin Costnerhas made a successful career out of Western dramas (Let Him Go, Dances With Wolves,andThe Highwaymen) the actor recently took on the challenge of directing his 2024 Western franchiseHorizon: An American Saga.Therefore, narrating the tale from pre-and post-Civil War America, and detailing the exploration of the American West, Costner’s films depicted a twelve-year span, when people ventured into new territory from their homes.
“He’s freaked out by it”: Kevin Costner Has Lost the Confidence of One Famous Actor After Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1’s Disastrous Failure
Unfortunately, whileHorizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1was initially expected to be an ambitious project, based on the marketing and hype it created, the two-part franchise starter eventually failed to pay off at the box office. Kevin Costner’s responsibility as both a director and leading man ended up being a major failure as the films opened to low box office returns. This led the actor to delay the release of the second film.
According toThe Numbers, the cinematic adventure spanning the events that happened between the four years of the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, managed to make only 0.6 times its production budget. Made with an estimated $50M budget, the movie simply managed to earn around $31.49M at the global box office. Thereafter, while critics and audiences began slamming the movie, the blow suffered bytheHorizonfranchiseseemed to indicate a larger trend affecting original films in Hollywood.
2024’s Shameful Record of Sequels Winning Over Original Movies
In the era of filmmaking dominated by sequels, prequels, remakes, and reboots, Kevin Costner’sHorizonfranchise seemed to highlight how original films have been taking the silent blow at the box office, due to this disturbing trend. Therefore, whileHorizon’s underperformance shocked a handful of people, it’s high time to realize that Costner’s film wasn’t alone in its struggle.
Kevin Costner’s ‘Horizon: An American Saga’ Films Are On a Brink of Becoming His Career’s Biggest Failure as Fate of Chapter 2 Looks Depressing After First Movie
2024 witnessed a degrading trend where original, non-franchise films have failed to break even at the theaters. Beginning withHenry Cavill’s spy parodyArgyllewhich created hype and even had an ensemble cast of Dua Lipa and John Cena, the movie failed to capture the audience’s attention, despite a significant budget. Made with an estimated $200M budget, Matthew Vaughn’s movie managed toearnback $96M (roughly 0.5 times the production budget).
Further, there’sTheBikeriders,which, much likeArgylle, suffered a catastrophic blowat the box office, despite having notable talents like Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, andTom Hardy. Exploring the rise of a fictional motorcycle club in Chicago during the 1960s, Jeff Nichols’ ambitious project was expected to make millions. But unfortunately,TheBikeridershad to suffice their theatrical run with a mere $35Mcollection.
Similarly, there’s Oscar-nominated directorM. Night Shyamalan’s thrillerTrapstarring Josh Hartnett, which was initially expected to break even at the theaters. Given the popularity of Shyamalan’s previous films likeThe Sixth SenseandOld,the filmmaker’s 2024 movie was deemed to be a box office success. But much like the above-mentioned films’ failure streak, evenTrapsuccumbed with $82M in globalearnings.
Following this pattern,@DiscussingFilmrevealed on X, how all of the Top 10 highest-grossing movies of 2024 have been sequels. Based on analysis reports fromGames Radar,Inside Out 2, Deadpool and Wolverine, andDespicable Me 4have taken up the top three positions on the list of box office successes. Despite previous controversies surrounding franchise fatigue, recent reports suggested that people are gladly choosing sequels and remakes over original projects like theHorizonmovies.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1is currently available to watch on Max.
Krittika Mukherjee
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3218
Krittika Mukherjee is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on films, TV shows, and celebrity news with over 3,000 articles published. With an educational background in Journalism, and a keen interest in filmmaking, Krittika blends factual precision with creative flair, when crafting her editorials, or dissecting fan theories.Her coverage often includes news and analyses of critically acclaimed films, celebrity news, and franchises like the Wizarding World, LOTR, DC, and MCU—particularly Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, Superheroes, and fan theories. As a Wizarding World aficionado, Krittika has spent countless hours exploring hidden backstories, unadapted book moments, spells, and trivias surrounding J.K. Rowling’s lore.An imaginative writer with a way with words, Krittika has worked as an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a web content writer for a year. She brought her experience and expertise to FandomWire to pursue her desire for sipping coffee while dissecting films and tracking celebrity drama.
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Henry CavillKevin CostnerM. Night ShyamalanTom Hardy
