Films that scored at the Oscars but failed at the box office
Woody Allen has never been an excessively successful director (especially in the States) but it is striking that his quintessential film, winner of four Oscars (Film, Direction, Actress and Screenplay) only grossed 38 million. Not only that, the only Oscar that 'Annie Hall' did not win, was Best Actor for Woody Allen himself.
Nominated for 9 Oscars, it won all 9 statuettes, including Best Picture in 1958 and Best Director for Vincent Minnelli. Despite its resounding success and being one of the most awarded films in history, it grossed a meager $7 million, which, with inflation, would be just over $60 million today.
Frank Capra's classic is one of the best and most famous films in history, yet it didn't win a single Oscar out of its six nominations. It failed at the box office, where it grossed just over $9 million in 1946. It had cost $3.6 million to make.
59 million dollars seems too little income for the sports epic. It won four Oscars and its soundtrack is pure Hollywood history, but it did not replicate its critical success at the box office. It was, however, profitable, having cost a mere $5 million to make.
Milos Forman's film won 8 of the 11 Oscars it was up for in 1984. Despite being so critically acclaimed, it seems that audiences were not so interested in the life of the legendary composer. The film's worldwide box office gross was only $52 million.
Two years before 'Amadeus,' another historic biography had matched its results with 8 Oscars out of 11 nominations. And something similar happened at the box office, as Gandhi's biopic barely managed to gross 53 million dollars. The cost? $22 million.
In 1988, Bernardo Bertolucci's film literally swept the board with 9 out of 9 at the Oscars. It didn't do much for the film's box-office success, however, and it grossed only 44 million dollars. It cost $24m to make.
'Moonlight' accumulated eight nominations in 2016, taking home three of them: Best Film, Supporting Actor, and Adapted Screenplay. A committed, vindictive, and visually marvelous story, it nevertheless only earned a meager 55 million dollars globally.
'Midnight Cowboy' grossed 44 million dollars worldwide. Not much for a legendary film that got the Oscars for Best Picture, Direction, and Screenplay. Of course, it didn't help that in some countries the film was X-rated. Meanwhile, Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman gave audiences some of the best on-screen chemistry ever seen, and still they missed out on an Oscar for their performances.
Along with 'The Matrix,' to which it lost the Oscar for Best Sound Effects Editing, it was the most talked-about film at the end of the 20th century. A cult film of undeniable quality. And yet, despite this, it barely made more than 100 million dollars. Production had cost around 63 million.
This film raked in a modest 28 million dollars for a film that won six Oscars, as well as gaining two other nominations. We are talking about Oscars for Best Film, Direction, Actor, Screenplay, Cinematography, and Costumes. Not much of a profit, even if the film only cost 2 million dollars.
It made history with 6 Oscars in 2009, including Best Picture, Directing and Screenplay. Still, it did not reach 50 million dollars worldwide. On the other hand, it only cost 15 million.
The classic that won four Oscars, was crowned Laurence Olivier Best Actor, and was the Best Picture of 1948 grossed only $3 million. At today's exchange rate, it would be around $30 million.
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