Here are the top 5 highest-grossing movies with a zero on Rotten Tomatoes.
Some films critics fail with audiences and critics alike — but not these. Audiences disregarded critics’ objections and voted with their wallets.
Here we go.
But First
Some background: To get a zero on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, a film needs universally negative reviews.
At one point, the 1983 Saturday Night Fever sequel, Staying Alive, was the highest grossing film with a zero on Rotten Tomatoes. But then one critic decided to change that, by giving the film a positive review, and now the John Travolta film has escaped that distinction.
Which leaves us the following films on making up the five top-grossing movies with a zero on Rotten Tomatoes.
5 — The Queen’s Corgi (2019)
The Queen’s Corgi is a Belgian animated film about the adventures of Queen Elizabeth II’s pet corgi, Rex.
It made $31 million on a $20 million budget, and at one point the corgi bites President Trump in the crotch. The film also features highly stylized animated versions of not only Donald but Melania Trump, above.
We haven’t seen this movie, but it looks great.
Pinocchio (2002)
After he won two Oscars for his film Life is Beautiful, Italian actor Roberto Benigni could more or less write his own ticket. So he decided to play Pinocchio as a grown-up man.
Pinocchio made $41 million, which was roughly its budget.
The film is not to be confused with the original animated Disney Pinocchio, from 1940, which has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, or with Guillermo del Toro’s 2022 Pinocchio, which has a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The disparity in scores for those two Pinocchio’s and Benigni’s version — even though all follow essentially the same characters and story — shows the importance of execution.
One Missed Call (2008)
One Missed Call is an American remake of an acclaimed 2003 Japanese film by Takashi Miike. Critics declined the call.
But the film was nonetheless a modest success with audiences, earning $46 million on a $20 million budget. It is also the highest-ranking horror film on this list, and boasts a cast of talented actors including Shannyn Sossamon, Ed Burns and Ana Claudia Talancón (above).
The next two films on our list are flat-our hits.
Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987)
The fourth Police Academy film made $77 million on a $17 million budget.
It’s also notable for being an early Sharon Stone film and for featuring David Spade in his film debut.
As if those aren’t reasons enough to see it, Citizens on Patrol also reunited Tackleberry, Hightower, Mahoney, Sweetchuck, and all our other favorites.
We like this movie.
Number 1 — Problem Child
Problem Child made a very impressive $72 million on an $11 million budget, and is notable for counting among its stars the late, great John Ritter. It was successful enough to spawn two sequels and an animated series.
Also, its writers, USC roommates Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, went on to write such great films as Ed Wood, The People Vs. Larry Flynt, and Dolemite Is My Name, as well as the fantastic Ryan Murphy series The People vs OJ Simpson.
If you like this list of the top-grossing movies with a zero on Rotten Tomatoes, you may also like our list of the 12 Best Movies Where Not Much Happens.
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Main image: Sharon Stone and Steve Guttenberg in Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol. Paramount