May it be classic happily ever after storylines or intense, action-packed scenes, The Walt Disney Studios hardly ever fails with its films. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for two particular Disney movies that soiled the legacy of Disney’s flawless movie releases. 

Infamous for being two of the worst box office outcomes, the Disney movies that earned the lowest were Mars Needs Moms and John Carter. Coincidentally, both films were set on Mars.

The Failure of Mars Needs Moms

The Walt Disney Studios has consistently released motion pictures that warm the hearts of its viewers, and even until now, Walt Disney continues to bring quality storytelling through their movies. But that isn’t quite the case for all their releases. 

Some Walt Disney movies, specifically Mars Needs Moms and John Carter, are infamous for the worst return of investments in Disney pictures history. (Source: Best Life) 

Mars Needs Moms, a 2011 animated Disney film, needed to spend more than $150 million for its production, but it only produced $6.9 million at the domestic box office during its first release. With the lack of profit, Mars Needs Moms became the twelfth movie with the worst outcome even when they premiered in more than 3,000 theaters. Mars Needs Moms also took the title of one of the lowest openings a 3d movie had.

The right audience came, but not in the numbers we needed. I am disappointed for the filmmakers. They spent at least two years of their lives making a terrific movie that people won’t see.

Chuck Viane

There was little to no hope for a possible recovery at this point. In the international debut of Mars Needs Moms, they similarly did worst, gaining only a low amount of $2.1 million from more than ten countries, covering 25% of all territories.

The effort of the filmmakers did not reflect the critics of the viewers. Many were creeped out and scared by the animated alien movie, especially young children. (Source: Hollywood Reporter) 

The Disappointing John Carter

Another major infamous box office disappointment was the live-action movie of Walt Disney, John Carter. It may probably be Director Andrew Stanton’s least notable work as its production costs needed $250 million to more than $300 million, but it only earned a pitiful $284 million internationally.

In light of the theatrical performance of John Carter, we expect the film to generate an operating loss of approximately $200m during our second fiscal quarter ending 31 March. As a result, our current expectation is that the studio segment will have an operating loss of between $80 and $120m for the second quarter.

Walt Disney Studios

Although John Carter was one of the Disney movies that cost the most with its production, the fictional science film became a standard example of financial failures, joining the notorious Heaven’s Gate and Ishtar. The Walt Disney Studios lost $200 million with their ambition of John Carter to be the next famous movie hit. 

The loss became so severe to the point that the former chairman of Walt Disney, Rich Ross, ended up resigning from his position because of his approval for the continued production of John Carter, consequentially making him doubt his professional standing.

With its lack of cultural relevance, no iconic characters & famous starring celebrities, and the standard storyline and title it possessed, John Carter‘s failure became inevitable. (Source: Forbes)