10 Films That Totally Misunderstood Their Own Audiences, According to Reddit

Understanding what the audience wants and then offering it to them is maybe the most basic part of making a good film. And, while proficient directors can meet viewer expectations in a way that is both enjoyable and profitable, it is also a challenging task to pull off.
Sometimes, filmmakers and studios change a formula that sometimes backfires and alienates even the most diehard fans who have attended all previous chapters of the franchise. By processing the content, taking the story in an unnecessary wacky direction, failing to choose a coherent tone, or trying to undo what the previous film did, these films doomed themselves to fan indifference, if not outright hostility...
Here are 10 films that totally misunderstood their own audiences, resulting in, at best, a highly divisive reception and a box-office bomb. Read on and tell us which one disappointed you the most!

#1 Batman & Robin (1997)

Source: Gettotext

Because it fails to understand Bruce Wayne's character as well as some technical failures, Batman & Robin is considered the worst Batman film ever.
According to Reddit user drummerguy06, the film was developed "thinking that the success of Batman Forever" justified a more campy, lighthearted approach to the character. This is a far cry from the broody character from the comics, which is why so many Batman fans detested the film.

#2 Cars 2 (2011)

Source: thethirdeathstar.blogspot.com

Pixar has produced very few films that are classified as disappointments, but Cars 2 is unquestionably one of them. It delivers a story that very few youngsters would care about and is a complete change from both the tone and the content of the original film.
According to Reddit user larsdragerl, most younger audiences were "turned off" by Cars 2 due to the unnecessary intricacy and stylistic change of the narrative. It lacks the joyful simplicity of the first movie, which most fans expected.

#3 Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them (2016)

Source: Twitter

Millions of Harry Potter fans were excited when it was announced that the Harry Potter universe will be returning to the big screen in 2016, but Fantastic Beasts was unlike anything they had expected. The film wasted so many opportunities for greatness by focusing on the complicated backstory of its least interesting characters.
Fantastic Beasts was the first film in the franchise that most fans agreed was boring. There are moments of characteristic magic, but it is never the focus of the film. "They're too adult for kids, but they're too boring for adult Harry Potter fans",  Redditor leavefornoraisin thinks.

#4 Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (2008)

Source: Twitter

The long-awaited Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was expected to be a massive cinematic event, resurrecting an iconic character who had led some of the 1980s' most popular films. Instead, the picture ruins all dignity by having some odd scenarios that simply do not make sense.
"If the movie had been more eerie, grounded, and suspenseful," Reddit user maxpaladin comments, "it could have been fine." Instead of honoring the heritage of the first three films, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull became one of the worst movie sequels of all time.

#5 Jurassic World (2015)

Source: Twitter

Although most moviegoers will agree that Spielberg's original Jurassic Park is a fantastic film with numerous merits, many fans feel the recent sequels are odd and forced. The first film is a tight-knit family thriller about a single-contained disaster, but the sequels simply attempt to complicate things.
"They probably could have made a standalone movie about once a decade or so and made me bank every time," Reddit user apri08101989 confesses. However, this uneasy releasing method has effectively "burned" any chance of Jurassic World having any cultural impact, especially since the latest sequel was barely about dinosaurs at the heart of the story.

#6 Morbius (2022)

Source: IMDb

Morbius inspired multiple meme reactions after its debut earlier in 2022, immediately becoming one of the most widely discussed about films of the time. Unfortunately, studio management mistook this online talk for genuine fans and re-released the picture in theaters.
"Sony underestimates how important Spider-Man is... the audience for characters like Morbius is Spider-Man fans." Redditor jhawkinc suggests a reasonable reason for Morbius' commercial failure. Morbius may have been a bigger success if Sony had been more focused on its marketing strategy and character inclusions.

#7 Prometheus (2012)

Source: Twitter

There have been countless disappointing sequels to the Alien franchise, but Prometheus is possibly the most daring and unpredictable of them all. While some people still appreciate the film, there's no denying that it's different from the rest of the series.
Some say that Prometheus isn't as horrible as most fans think, but for those like Reddit user doesntfearzeus claims, the film was "so disappointing." Perhaps the film will get a better reputation after the first shock wears off, but for the time being, it is one of the worst entries in the Alien franchise.

#8 Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker (2019)

Source: Twitter

There are lots of issues with the most recent additions to the Star Wars saga, but many fans agree that The Rise of Skywalker is the most deserving of criticism. Many fans are angry that The Rise of Skywalker appears to devalue the original trilogy's message.
"They ruined Anakin's story," says Redditor kingcheeta7, referring to Vader's brief voice cameo that he claims to have succeeded in restoring balance to the force. It's just one of many aspects that anger fans about the sequel trilogy.

#9 The Dark Tower (2017)

Source: BuzzFeed

Stephen King's The Dark Tower is one of his most successful and prolific works, therefore the movie version was under a lot of pressure to meet the expectations of many fans. Unfortunately, the film took on a very different tone from the novel and changed much of the plot.
According to Reddit user  mysterious-sense-185, "They butchered a fantastic book... I genuinely don't know who they were trying to appeal to."   It's never easy to adapt Stephen King's books for the big screen, but The Dark Tower is certainly one of the least accurate translations to date.

#10 The Last Airbender (2010)

Source: News Text Area

While it is true that directors should be allowed some creative license when adapting existing works, it really just didn't make sense for M. Night Shyamalan to go so far from the source material in his extremely controversial The Last Airbender.
According to Reddit user friend-beast, "Shyamalan even watched 5 minutes of Avatar before making the movie." The film was certainly targeted toward show fans, yet the final product was practically unrecognizable from this fictional universe.