Biggest box office bombs: # 6 - Cleopatra (1963)

June 11, 9:19 PMBaltimore Movie ExaminerTom Clocker

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Cleopatra DVD cover

Biggest box office bombs: # 6 - Cleopatra (1963)

“The motion picture the world has been waiting for!”

The sixth film on the list of biggest box office bombs is Cleopatra. Although this film did have a decent run in the theater it went so far over budget that it almost bankrupted 20th Century Fox. It was originally slated to cost about $2 million to make. When you adjust for inflation this movie ranks very near the top of the most expensive films ever made.

Statistics

Budget: $44 million
Box Office: $26 million
“In the Red” by: $18 million or 40.91% of budget *

Plot

Epic saga of the legendary Queen's reign from the time Julius Caesar arrived in Egypt until her death some 18 years later. Cleopatra is portrayed as a schemer, firstly to gain control over the Egyptian kingdom from her brother with whom she ruled jointly. Having gained the confidence of Caesar, they become lovers and she bears him the son he never had. Her attempts at ensuring that the boy takes his rightful place in Rome are thwarted when Caesar is assassinated and she flees back to Egypt. Many years later Marc Antony, now responsible for the eastern half of the Roman Empire, seeks an alliance with Egypt. He and Cleopatra become lovers and form a military alliance but are forced to retreat after losing a major naval encounter at Actium. Both eventually take their own lives. (written by user “garykmcd” on IMDB.com)

Cast

Elizabeth Taylor - Cleopatra
Richard Burton - Mark Antony
Rex Harrison - Julius Caesar
Pamela Brown - High Priestess
George Cole - Flavius
Hume Cronyn - Sosigenes
Cesare Danova - Apollodorus
Kenneth Haigh - Brutus
Andrew Keir - Agrippa
Martin Landau - Rufio
Roddy McDowall – Octavian

Director - Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Rouben Mamoulian, Ray Kellogg

Back to Bomb List
 

* “In the Red” figure is how much money the movie lost and is based solely on box office revenue and does not take into account other revenues such as DVD sales or merchandise. The percent figure is how much of the film’s budget was never recouped from ticket sales.

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