TORONTO — Summer is not quite over but there are likely some executives in Hollywood who wish it was.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the movie business this summer is experiencing the worst year-over-year deficit in at least three decades.
For the first time since 2001, no summer movie is expected to earn more than $300 million in the U.S. and Canada.
Transformers: Age of Extinction has grossed $243 million domestically, followed by Maleficent ($236.8 million) and the made-in-Montreal X-Men: Days of Future Past ($232.5 million).
In fact, only 13 of this summer’s movies have made more than $100 million domestically.
In the music world, there has been a dearth of blockbuster albums this summer. Veterans like Mariah Carey failed to score big hits (her Me. I Am sold only 58,000 copies in its first week); sophomore efforts like Foster the People’s Supermodel went nowhere (none of its singles made it into the Top 100); and newcomers like Lea Michele tanked (Louder spent only two weeks in the Top 40).
Here’s a look at five of the biggest summer flops — movies and albums that should have done better.
Jersey Boys
Few Broadway shows have been as successful as Jersey Boys, the musical about Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. But not many fans who saw the Tony-winning stage show were interested in seeing the big screen adaptation, directed by Clint Eastwood. The movie bombed with $46.6 million in ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada — and earned another $12.2 million elsewhere.
A Million Ways to Die in the West
It had an all-star cast, including Charlize Theron, but A Million Ways to Die in the West died quickly at the box office. The movie made a disappointing $42.7 million in the U.S. and Canada. Even with another $43 million from other markets, A Million Ways looks to be a $86 million flop.
Earth to Echo
It was commissioned by Disney and then sold to Relativity Media. It was scheduled for release in January, then April, but came out on July 2. It had no big-name stars and a premise that echoed E.T. So it’s little wonder Earth to Echo failed to make a splash at the box office. It opened in sixth place and went on to earn a mere $42.7 million worldwide.
Paula – Robin Thicke
Robin Thicke‘s summer 2013 release Blurred Lines debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and went on to sell more than 925,000 copies around the world. This year, however, Thicke didn’t fare as well. Paula, an album dedicated to his estranged wife Paula Patton, debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 after selling only 24,000 copies in the U.S. In its second week, the album dropped to No. 41. Paula debuted in Canada with sales of 550 copies, in the UK with 530 and Australia with 158. In early August — five weeks after it came out — Thicke’s album sat at No. 189 on the Billboard 200 — one spot under Nickelback’s 2007 release, All The Right Reasons.
A.K.A. – J. Lo
Jennifer Lopez’s June release A.K.A. fizzled when it should have sizzled. Her eighth studio album debuted at No. 8 with U.S. sales of only 33,000 copies in the first week. It peaked at No. 12 in Canada. Singles “I Luh Ya Papi” and “First Love” didn’t help boost sales. A.K.A. is now also known as the first of Lopez’s English albums without a Top 40 hit.
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