5 Movies From 2026 That Failed to Live Up to the Hype
Even before the year began, there was already a lot of hype surrounding the movies coming out in 2026: The Odyssey, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Avengers: Doomsday, Dune: Part Three, Disclosure Day, The Devil Wears Prada 2, Scream 7, Toy Story 5, and so on. There was a little bit of everything, from original stories and adaptations to sequels and remakes. The problem is that not all features usually live up to what people initially expect. Sometimes it’s because the movie is just average and all the buzz made it seem like it was going to be a box office record-breaker, or maybe it’s a new installment in a franchise and the previous movie was insanely good that the new one had to live up to it.
This happens every year and it’s completely natural, but 2026 isn’t even over yet, and it’s already given us several examples of this, unfortunately. We’ve put together a list of some of the films that had a lot of people excited before their release, but ended up leaving many of them disappointed once they came out. That doesn’t necessarily mean all of these movies are bad, but when you take the size of the hype into account, you can really see the gap between what was promised and what was actually delivered.
5) The Bride!
It’s possible that the announcement for The Bride! didn’t reach that many people, and because of that, it didn’t get as much buzz as some of the other movies this year. Out of all of them, it still falls into a space that isn’t exactly mainstream. Still, the fact that it’s directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal and stars Christian Bale and Jessie Buckley was enough to create some expectations (especially since the story is a different take on Frankenstein and is inspired by the 1935 Bride of Frankenstein). The plot takes the famous creature to ’30s Chicago, where he’s trying to create a companion. From there, we get a mix of horror, romance, and chaos. It was also coming after Guillermo del Toro’s highly praised movie, so it made sense to be hopeful.
Unfortunately, the film only made $24 million worldwide, which was very little for a production with an estimated $80 million budget. There’s no denying that The Bride! has some good performances and some really cool ideas, like the gangster angle and the musical elements, but it’s trying to do too much at once, and the strength of each of those ideas gets lost. It didn’t need to be a masterpiece to be good; it just needed to give us a really convincing reason for why this version of the story needed to exist and be seen today. It had all the ingredients to be amazing, but once it came out and the first reactions started coming in, it felt like everyone just gave up on watching it.
4) The Drama
Getting straight to the point, this is a film that got a lot of people excited not only because it had Zendaya and Robert Pattinson as the leads, but also because the trailer itself was really well put together. Plus, it’s an A24 production, and the studio already has a reputation for making surprising and well-loved movies. The Drama‘s story starts off in a relatively simple way: a couple who seem to be in a perfect relationship see everything change after an unexpected revelation puts their relationship into question. And for a very, very long time, people kept wondering what that revelation could be to cause all the chaos shown in the trailer. The movie hooked people through curiosity.
The problem is that when it came out, it didn’t live up to those expectations. It’s not that the movie is bad, but you can definitely say the marketing made it look better than it actually was. The romantic drama goes in some strange and pretty uncomfortable directions. Does that work? At times, yes, but it also makes the film as a whole less interesting than it should’ve been. The performances are excellent, but you can’t help feeling that, given the material, they could’ve been put to better use. In the end, The Drama isn’t quite as provocative as everyone expected it to be. It’s good, and you can defend it in some ways, but it could’ve been more.
3) Supergirl
When Superman was released, even though it divided fans over James Gunn’s version compared to Zack Snyder’s, overall, it showed that the new DCU had a lot of potential. So, Supergirl had a huge advantage: an audience that was willing to believe that this new cinematic universe could actually be good. The story follows Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) as she deals with a tragedy and the attack of Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts), which leads her to seek justice and go after revenge — and it also brings in the anticipated Lobo (Jason Momoa). So, in theory, the result could’ve been pretty good. However, it seems like there’s something about the superhero genre that makes it really hard to satisfy a demanding audience.
The movie ended up making around $126 million worldwide, which is a weak result considering a budget of approximately $170 million. Basically, Supergirl is enjoyable, but it also isn’t since it feels messy rather than bold. A lot of people considered the script generic, too familiar, and dependent on clichés, while also failing to balance all the elements of revenge, grief, humor, and adventure at the same time. And the number of ideas and characters doesn’t really help either. Alcock as the heroine was a great choice, and she brings a lot of energy to the character, but the story isn’t on the same level. It can be a fun movie, but it isn’t a strong one.
2) Moana (Live-Action)
There was no need to convince anyone that this would be a success, after all, Moana had already been a huge hit, gotten a sequel that broke records, and become one of Disney’s most recent musicals to fill movie theaters. In other words, the animated feature was in a great place, and it seemed like people would love to see more of this universe. So, the studio decided to go for a live-action remake (which is pretty much standard practice for them), and then it turned into a disaster. Why? The story continues to follow Moana (Catherine Laga’aia) on her journey across the ocean, and even though it’s now in a different format, it proved to be a movie that added absolutely nothing.
Recreating the same story isn’t enough. Besides, there are certain details like the CGI and color grading that became controversial since they made the whole film lifeless and stripped away all the charm the original animation has. It made around $280 million, which might sound like a good number, but given it’s a Disney adaptation and therefore had a massive budget, it was a bad result. And even if the latest live-actions, like Lilo & Stitch, raised expectations because they worked out, the fact is that Moana is a 2016 animated movie and still too recent (especially with the 2024 sequel), which also weighs heavily on the whole thing.
1) Scream 7
Scream continues to be one of the most famous horror franchises, with a new movie always being released. And for fans, that might sound like a gift, but given the latest features, it starts to make you think twice — even more so after the seventh installment. Scream 7 puts Sidney (Neve Campbell) up against Ghostface once again while her family (more specifically, her daughter) becomes the new target. Before this one, the franchise had gone through a series of changes, but with Campbell and Matthew Lillard returning, along with the writer of the first movie, Kevin Williamson, on the project, everyone believed we were getting something that would exceed expectations. It was basically a big return to its roots.
Since its announcement, Scream 7 had been one of the most anticipated films. When it came out, audiences obviously showed up in theaters, and it ended up having the biggest opening. On the other hand, considering all the hype, it was supposed to be much more than just a box office success, right? Both critics and audiences ultimately received it much worse than expected, with many people feeling that the installment was more focused on nostalgia than finding a new way to play with the formula (it’s 2026, and this is getting pretty saturated). This is a series of movies that’s always been meta and creative when it comes to playing with the audience, but at this point, it seems like it doesn’t remember what to do anymore.
