Released on May 13, 2022, Firestarter starring Zac Efron is a remake of the 1984 film of the same name starring Drew Barrymore. Unfortunately, with the release of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Firestarter bombed at the box office. Despite prior success or audience familiarity, remakes are not guaranteed to perform well regardless of the opening weekend competition.
With that in mind, movie fans voted at Ranker for the worst movie remakes ever made. Several films topping the list made a lot of money, but flopped with critics. However, the fans are often the harshest critics of all, and they are disappointed in the poor attempts at remaking these movies.
Swept Away (2002)
Swept Away by an Unusual Destiny in the Blue Sea of August is a 1974 Italian comedy that follows a rich woman becoming stranded on a deserted island with one of the crew. Starring Giancarlo Giannini and Mariangela Melato, it was a success.
Guy Ritchie directed the English-speaking remake, Swept Away, in 2002. With Madonna leading the cast, Adriano Giannini took over the role his father played in the original. According to Box Office Mojo, with a budget of $10 million, the movie only grossed just over $1 million worldwide, and it was widely panned by professional critics and normal moviegoers.
Bewitched (2005)
The Bewitched remake is actually a reimagining of the series from the 60s. Instead of following a witch named Samantha who becomes a housewife to Darrin, the movie follows an actor (Will Ferrell) as he discovers his costar (Nicole Kidman) in the production of a Bewitched remake is actually a witch.
Following the success of the series, a Bewitched spin-off based on Tabitha, the daughter of Samantha and Darrin, ran for only one season. The magic of Elizabeth Montgomery and her nose twitch could, unfortunately, not be imitated. The Bewitched film is largely considered to be one of Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell's worst movies.
Fantastic Four (2015)
Before Chris Evans became Captain America, he was the Human Torch in 2005's Fantastic Four alongside Jessica Alba, Ioan Gruffudd, and Michael Chiklis. The movie follows a group of astronauts that gain superpowers from being exposed to radiation. Despite mixed reviews, the movie was a moneymaker and banked enough to warrant a sequel.
However, the 2015 remake did not do as well. Starring Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara, and Jamie Bell, the movie reimagined the origins of the superheroes with them having gained their powers as children building a teleportation device. This comic film was a rare flop that was immediately forgotten, but audiences will soon enjoy another Fantastic Four remake as Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige, confirmed a new movie is on the way.
Footloose (2011)
With Kevin Bacon starring as Ren McCormack, Footloose (1984) follows a big-city teenager as he moves to a small town where dancing is banned for religious reasons. The Footloose soundtrack became just as popular as the movie itself, with the notable performance by Kenny Loggins in the titular song.
The 2011 Footloose remake did not manage to capture the same energy. Starring Kenny Wormald and Julianne Hough, the movie is too close to the original to stand out on its own and just seems like a pointless exercise in moviemaking.
Jacob's Ladder (2019)
Jacob's Ladder was released in 1990, starring Tim Robbins as a Vietnam vet whose strange visions and intense hallucinations haunt him and he must discover the truth. The psychological horror film became influential, inspiring surreal scenes in movies, TV, and even video games that followed it.
Released in 2019, Jacob's Ladder is one of the worst remakes. Michael Ealy stars as a soldier who experiences hallucinations and paranoia upon returning home from deployment in Afghanistan and losing his brother in the war. Details of the plot are changed to update it for a new war, but these changes did not raise favorability with audiences.
Annie (2014)
In 1982, Annie was released as a feature-length musical following the success of the Broadway show of the same name. The movie follows a young orphan who is taken in by a rich man but wants to find her real parents. With Aileen Quinn as Annie and Albert Finney as Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks, Annie is one of the best musicals made into a movie and it spawned several remakes.
Starring Quvenzhane Wallis as Annie and Jamie Foxx as William "Will" Stacks, the original story is updated in 2014. Annie is no longer in an orphanage, but foster care, and Will is a tech mogul turned politician. The songs were also updated to feature a contemporary style, but the movie overall failed to make an impression.
The Wicker Man (2006)
The Wicker Man was originally released in 1973 and follows a police Sergeant who searches a Scottish island for a missing girl only to discover the residents practice Celtic paganism. The final scene depicting a human sacrifice inside a burning wicker statue was a truly shocking twist that was difficult to recapture.
The remake released in 2006 starring Nicholas Cage was less than stellar. His character, Edward, arrives at an island off the coast of Washington in search of his ex-fiancé's missing daughter. The minor plot changes were not successful enough to achieve the same status as the original cult classic.
The Mummy (2017)
The Mummy was released in 1999 as an adventure film starring Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz. Chaos ensues when an adventurer and a librarian awaken the cured high priest, Imotep. With a budget of $80 million according to Box Office Mojo, the movie grossed over $415 million, spawning a sequel and spin-off movies about the Scorpion King.
However, Tom Cruise's 2017 remake was not as successful with audiences. Following a soldier and an archaeologist, The Mummy unleashes a trapped Egyptian princess who feeds on people to regenerate. Unfortunately, it was just one among a few failed attempts to revitalize classic horror movies into the so-called "Dark Universe" of films.
Overboard (2018)
Overboard (1987) is one of the best romantic comedies from the 80s. Goldie Hawn stars as a rich woman with amnesia after falling overboard from her yacht. Kurt Russell's character claims her from the hospital, convincing her she is actually his wife as a way to get back at her for treating him poorly when doing remodeling on her yacht.
The film has been remade several times, but audiences consider the 2018 remake starring Anna Faris to be the worst. In a gender-swapped plot, Anna Faris's character convinces a rich playboy with amnesia that he is her husband.
Psycho (1998)
In 1960, Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho was released as an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Robert Block, about a woman who stays at a roadside motel and is murdered. With Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates, Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, and Vera Miles as Lila Crane, the original Psycho has a solid legacy that is difficult to replicate through sequels and remakes.
Gus Van Sant directed the 1998 remake starring Vince Vaughn as Norma, Anne Heche as Marion, and Julianne Moore as Lila. Filmed in color, this version is almost a shot-for-shot remake which added nothing to the original story. The original currently holds a 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes while the remake has a 28% audience score.