Martian warriors, digital despots, cowardly barbarians, and cyborg pirates are just a few of the interesting Disney characters you may have missed by skipping these fabulous flops.
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00:00Martian warriors, digital despots, cowardly barbarians, and cyborg pirates are just a
00:06few of the interesting Disney characters you may have missed by skipping these fabulous flops.
00:12Treasure Planet is a science-fiction-infused adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson
00:17classic Treasure Island, tweaked for a new audience. It came out in 2002,
00:21less than a year before the first parts of the Caribbean movie hit theaters.
00:25But while the latter made a huge splash, Treasure Planet sank big time. With a massive
00:31budget of $140 million, Disney poured a lot into this swashbuckling epic,
00:36blending computer animation with traditional animation in order to create a unique look.
00:42Moviegoers weren't biting. The film made less than $110 million worldwide,
00:47and the initial plans for a sequel were canceled. Even though Treasure Planet wasn't a box office
00:53success, the film itself is actually pretty incredible. Not only did Disney's efforts pay
00:58off on the screen, but the exciting characters and complex worldbuilding make this one of the
01:03most unique projects the studio has ever put together, and it's the most original Treasure
01:08Island adaptation out there. The friendship between Jim Hawkins, voiced by Joseph Gordon
01:13Levitt, and John Silver, voiced by Brian Murray, really solidifies this picture.
01:18But there's a lot more to the movie than meets the eye. If you've never seen it,
01:23there's never been a better time to check it out.
01:25What are you looking at, weirdo?
01:29Yeah, weirdo.
01:31Back when 3D animation was still being perfected, we got films like Ice Age and Robots. While those
01:37are pretty well-known, 2007's Meet the Robinsons didn't fare quite as well. This $150 million
01:45adventure generated less than $170 million at the box office, which wasn't a return on the
01:51investment that Disney was hoping for. Meet the Robinsons was meant to help usher the studio
01:56into the new digital age, but it went the way of so many other Disney sci-fi flicks, failing big
02:02time. But just because something isn't a financial success, that doesn't mean it's not worthy of your
02:07attention. The film is centered around a 12-year-old inventor called Louis, an orphan who
02:12gets whisked off into the year 2037 by a time-traveling boy named Wilbur. It's heartfelt,
02:18charming, and an absolute blast, which really makes it a bit of a mystery as to why it flopped
02:23in the first place. Maybe the fact that the animation of the day wasn't quite able to create
02:28convincing human characters had something to do with it, or maybe people just didn't quite get
02:32the concept. Its failure is even harder to understand when you consider the fact that
02:37many top critics were singing its praises. Richard Roper called it a lot of fun,
02:42while Lou Lemyick of the New York Post called it,
02:45"...a delightful, quirk-filled riff on Back to the Future."
02:49Created by pop novelist Edgar Rice Burroughs in the early 1900s, the fantastical world of
02:54Barsoom has captivated the hearts and minds of countless readers, but it took almost a full
03:00century for big-screen adaptations to appear. While the smaller studio adapted A Princess of
03:05Mars in 2009 for a direct-to-DVD feature, Disney took the epic to the big screen in 2012
03:11with John Carter. The film cost them a whopping $307 million to put together,
03:18but a weak and confusing marketing campaign tore the whole thing apart. With a box office return
03:24of $284 million, the studio lost a ton of money on the ambitious project. It even led to Walt
03:31Disney Studios chairman Rich Ross resigning. But at the end of it all, John Carter is actually
03:37pretty good.
03:38"...You are ugly, but you are beautiful."
03:41The film stars Taylor Kitsch in the title role, and is genuinely a lot of fun. It manages to
03:46capture the source material fairly well, even with a few minor changes. Sure, there are a couple of
03:52dull moments in there, but it doesn't change the fact that Kitsch was well-cast in the lead role,
03:57and he does a great job all things considered. Whether you're familiar with the original
04:01novels or not, John Carter is an adventure that's well worth revisiting today.
04:06It contains some fantastic worldbuilding, has a distinctive style, and features a unique
04:11combination of Western and sci-fi aesthetics. It deserved to get a sequel, but the money involved
04:17meant that was never gonna happen. Disney has also suffered a few TV flops in recent years.
04:23Among these is 2012's Tron Uprising, an animated series set between the events of the original
04:29Tron and 2010's Tron Legacy. The show actually went into production before Legacy hit theaters,
04:35but because it took so long to make, it didn't come out until after the film had dropped.
04:40By then, Tron Legacy wasn't the huge hit that Disney hoped for,
04:44leaving question marks over the future of the franchise. It wasn't surprising when a
04:48planned second season of Uprising was abandoned, even though the first season is actually very good.
04:54Bruce Boxleitner returns to voice Tron, but this time as a kind of mentor. He shapes a young
05:00program named Beck, played by Elijah Wood, into a new Tron so they can battle Clu's dark forces.
05:05The show is a blast, and despite airing on Disney XD, it actually tackles some mature themes.
05:12As well as being a gripping story, it's a real feast for the eyes, boasting a unique animation
05:17style. Disney execs weren't sold, but fans loved it. Tron Uprising has a 92% audience score,
05:24and Rotten Tomatoes.
05:26The George Clooney-led Tomorrowland actually grossed more than its $190 million budget,
05:31but the film still fell far short of expectations, losing anywhere between $120 to $150 million
05:39when it all was said and done. The Brad Bird-directed sci-fi flick didn't go down
05:43well with critics or audiences, receiving lukewarm reviews across the board.
05:48Bird confirmed to The Wrap,
05:50"...for whatever reason, it didn't hit the way we wanted it to hit."
05:53He also lamented the fact that original movies often face an uphill battle
05:57compared to reboots and franchise installments. So what went wrong, exactly?
06:02The film's optimistic look toward the future contrasts deeply with our modern thoughts on
06:06climate change, artificial intelligence, and political divisions, but that was kind of the
06:11point. To build a better tomorrow, the film argues that we also need to hope for one.
06:16"...in every moment, there is the possibility of a better future,
06:20but you people won't believe it."
06:22Tomorrowland is a little heavy-handed with its message, but the film's charismatic cast,
06:26beautiful cinematography, and hopeful story propels it forward.
06:30More than anything, it's a movie that might make you long to be a kid again.
06:35The animated comedy Dave the Barbarian seemed to constantly be on Toon Disney in the mid-2000s,
06:41but then all of a sudden, it vanished. Said during the Middle Ages, the show follows the
06:45adventures of Dave and his two sisters, who are left to manage their kingdom of Ujogoth while
06:50their parents are away fighting evil. Dave is left in charge of physically protecting the realm,
06:55while his older sister, Candy, is left to call the shots.
06:58Even though she'd rather be out shopping than making important decisions,
07:02the bravest of the bunch is Dave's younger sister, Fang. This hilarious show had everything
07:07from casual fourth-wall breaks to sinister talking pigs. It took the general Conan the
07:12Barbarian concept and flipped it on its head, making Dave a cowardly character.
07:16From the start, Dave the Barbarian didn't have the biggest budget to work with,
07:20but the writers always found clever ways to work around their limitations. It's hard to tell
07:25exactly what killed the series, but there are those who are still mourning its loss two decades later.
07:32Just before the entire world shut down in the face of the pandemic,
07:35Disney and Pixar released Onward to theaters. With Chris Pratt and Tom Holland voicing two
07:40elf brothers on a quest to bring their father back to life, it seems like this movie was
07:45destined to be a success. Unfortunately, circumstances beyond the film's control
07:50prevented it from gaining much traction, and it ended up making $142 million,
07:55a significant amount less than its budget. Those figures aren't surprising given the
07:59global situation at the time, but it's a shame considering how good this movie actually is.
08:05Thankfully, when Onward was released to home audiences, it began to receive the
08:08recognition it deserved. Pratt and Holland are an inspired pair here, and their unique blend
08:13of real-world aesthetics with the fantasy genre makes Onward stand out as a noteworthy addition
08:19to Pixar's resume. Some commenters called it frozen for boys. It's certainly just as fun,
08:25and it has an ending that will bring you to tears. If you've been sleeping on this one,
08:30we recommend adding it to your watch list immediately.
08:33One of Disney's most notorious flops, 1985's The Black Cauldron was the most expensive animated
08:40project that the studio had ever put together at the time, partially because it was the first to
08:45use computer-assisted imagery. The movie is based on Lloyd Alexander's novel of the same name,
08:50which is part of his Chronicles of Prydain series. The film cost the reported $44 million to make,
08:56and while that might not seem like a lot of money for a movie these days,
09:00that was no small chunk of change in 1985. Ultimately, it only poured in about $21 million
09:07during its theatrical run, making it a resounding failure.
09:10The Black Cauldron ended up being just too dark for Disney, but it could have been even darker.
09:16In the years since it came out, some legitimately disturbing deleted images have been unearthed,
09:21including a scene where henchmen have their skin melted in graphic fashion.
09:26Things like this are why The Black Cauldron became a cult classic after being released on
09:30home video. It's a fantasy epic that boasts an unusually terrifying villain in the Horned King,
09:36and a generally somber atmosphere, setting it apart from other animated Disney films.
09:41"...now I call my army of the dead. The Cauldronborn."
09:50It may have been a flop at the time, but it rightfully lives on in the hearts and
09:53minds of dark fantasy aficionados everywhere.
09:572022's Lightyear was meant to evoke the 90s sci-fi blockbusters that a young Andy from
10:03Toy Story would have watched growing up. Sadly, Lightyear ended up crashing and burning,
10:08making just $226 million against a $200 million budget. Fans just weren't interested.
10:15Perhaps some were mad that Tim Allen wasn't returning as Buzz Lightyear,
10:18or maybe some were disappointed that the film didn't follow the already-established Buzz Lightyear
10:23of Star Command animated series. According to Pixar's chief creative officer Pete Docter,
10:28the lack of other recognizable Toy Story characters was probably to blame.
10:33Docter told The Wrap,
10:34"...I think probably what we've ended on in terms of what went wrong
10:37is that we asked too much of the audience. When they hear Buzz, they're like,
10:41great, where's Mr. Potato Head and Woody and Rex? And then we drop them into this
10:46science fiction film that they're like, what? If you go into this film not expecting it to
10:51be another Toy Story film and simply take it for what it is, you'll have a blast."
10:56Another Disney animated series from the early 2000s that's worth a second look is Fillmore,
11:02a hybrid of a 70s cop show and a middle-school drama. Created by future The Walking Dead
11:06showrunner Scott Gimple, Fillmore originally ran on ABC before moving to Toon Disney.
11:12In many ways, the 70s cop drama theme was probably too mature for its younger audience,
11:16but not mature enough for those who grew up with the shows like Kojak and The Rockford Files.
11:21Time has actually been kind to Fillmore, and today it seems like a crime that it only got 26 episodes.
11:27From its memorable opening that primes you for a new adventure to the hilarious cop show
11:32caricatures that make up each of the main characters, the show shouldn't work. But it
11:36absolutely does. On paper, it's a ridiculous idea, but that's exactly what makes it special.
11:42Watching these middle-schoolers act as if they're in a hard-boiled crime drama
11:46is both funny and engaging. You can't help but root for the gang,
11:50hoping that they'll catch the latest Vandal or Cheetah in their midst.